Group Wants Atlanta-Savannah Passenger Rail Line (Boston, Berlin: shop, design, horse)

[Onthemove2014]

This thread has gotten hilarious with all the reaching and dreaming. Let's build a train to bigger cities that make economical sense first.

[tv_racin_fan]

Originally Posted by neil0311

Exactly. Someone gets it.

Can anyone tell me what the anticipated annual expense will be to operate this line, assuming the capital budget magically appears out of thin air (or China)? Does anyone know what the anticipated ridership will be for this great convenience? What is the expected level of fare that will be charged based on the two previous answers?

Sorry to bog all the fantasy down with details.

Actually roads and highways get a subsidy because they are mentioned in the Constitution. I do not recall any mention of passenger rail.

[StAubin]

Originally Posted by tv_racin_fan

Actually roads and highways get a subsidy because they are mentioned in the Constitution. I do not recall any mention of passenger rail.

Perhaps because passenger rail did not exist in the united states at the time. I think many people on this forum are missing the point. Passenger rail is not about making money, it is about providing viable alternatives which..

• Help releave congestion on our highways.
• Help releave stress on the enviornment.
• Help bring in investment and jobs, as companies are likley going to want to be near the rail line.
• Provide a possible economic engine to struggaling small towns.
• Provide small towns with a cheap travel alternative. (I.E. A man living in LaGrange wants to go somewhere where he is going to have to fly. Right now that man would have to drive all the way to the Atlanta airport and pay for parking, costing him money. If there is a rail alternative he could leave his car at home and take the train to the airport (Assuming that there is a station at the airport, which there should be) and fly to his final destination.)

I had an idea for a public private partnership for rail in georgia but i have no idea if it would actually work. I call it the Georgia Railway, it s kind of like georgia's own version of amtrak, except it is smaller and focuses on georgia and the cities surround georgia (I.E., Jacksonville, Chattanooga, Montgomery, ect..)

Here is how the ownership works.

30% State of Georgia
10% Norfolk Southern
10% CSX Transportation
5% City of Atlanta
5% City of Savannah
5% City of Macon
5% City of Columbus
5% City of Augusta
20% Private investors
5% Me ( In reality more Private Investors)

Just a Thought.

[MathmanMathman]

Your idea might work if mail and light cargo is included. Mail delivery is dropping off but probably is not going away. A system that goes around the state might attract companies looking to ship cheaply, especially to more rural areas. The University System for instance has deliveries of books going around the state. A passenger train alone is probably not worth it.

[flyonpa]

I can't See any Light Cargo going by train.
The Labor / loading-Unloading at each station for the light cargo would cost more then load it once on truck. Deliver it.

Train.
Load on truck
Unload truck into Train
Unload off train to truck
Unlod off truck to deliver.

[arjay57]

Originally Posted by Onthemove2014

This thread has gotten hilarious with all the reaching and dreaming. Let's build a train to bigger cities that make economical sense first.

Obviously there are many issues to be resolved in order to bring back passenger rail to this region of the country.

But mega projects like that always start with people dreaming big and reaching for things that seem impossible. Intercontinental railways? A canal between two oceans? Airlines that let you go to any corner of the globe in a matter of hours, or deliver a package by the next day? 8 lane highways connecting every little burg in America? Men on the moon?

It's easy to find naysayers for just about everything. Frankly, I'm more interested in encouraging the Think Big folks. They seem to be in short supply in this country these days.

[StAubin]

Originally Posted by MathmanMathman

Your idea might work if mail and light cargo is included. Mail delivery is dropping off but probably is not going away. A system that goes around the state might attract companies looking to ship cheaply, especially to more rural areas. The University System for instance has deliveries of books going around the state. A passenger train alone is probably not worth it.

Thats one of the reasons why I included Norfolk Southern and CSX in the deal. The main reason was so that the trains could use their tracks. But I also hoped this could be a way for them to work together and with the state to improve the tracks. The tracks would probobly need to be improved in some areas in order to accomodate fast passenger trains, but you could also upgrade the tracks so freight can run faster and more efficintly. Helping the companies and the state.

Light freight is a great idea, all the trains would probobly include a baggage car, so I assume if you needed to deliver something the size of a suitcase or a mail bag the trains would be able to easily accomodate them.

I do think that this corporation could be profitable, but it would take some time and a large initial investment. Thats why I devided it amongst different governments in the state and left it open for private investors to contribute.

I kind of see it working like this..

• The state, the cities, and the private investors contibute to an initial fund that would pay for the cars, locomotives, station facilities, etc... Basic start up cost.
• Norfolk Southern and CSX provide the tracks and help schedule trains to fit them in their current freight schedule. They would also work with the state and cities on improving and expanding the tracks. They could also help with station and baggage facilities.

2. After its first launch the state and cities could provide opperating funds as the service steadily expands. As the service becomes profitible ( with convieneint routes and timing i beleive it can) the governments gradualy contribute less and less. The hope is that additional taz revenue generated by the trains arrival would help pay for some of the initial operational cost.

3. Once it becomes a fully functioning system it acts as a normal coporation with the ownership i described in my previous post. Eventually the investers would see a return on investment but it would take time.

This is just an idea. I hope it works but I am no business major. I think it could work though if it is executed correctly and the right people are choosen to lead it.

[MathmanMathman]

Originally Posted by flyonpa

I can't See any Light Cargo going by train.
The Labor / loading-Unloading at each station for the light cargo would cost more then load it once on truck. Deliver it.

Train.
Load on truck
Unload truck into Train
Unload off train to truck
Unlod off truck to deliver.

That's basically what is happening to freight in the US. A train can ship containers cheaper than by truck. It's better to us the train and then offload the contain to a truck. Let the train do the long haul and not the truck.

If you're going to have passenger rail service around the state, might as well add a freight car to load stuff on the train from say Atlanta to get it to Albany, Valdosta, or Columbus. Then offload to a local truck for local delivery. That would defray some of the cost. So if a train is going to Augusta anyway, might as well send mail and other light freight along with it.

[Craziaskowboi]

An Atlanta/Savannah passenger rail line would be a great idea. Those who would otherwise be bored to tears by driving I-16 could sleep instead. It's not like they'd miss any interesting scenery anyway.

[MathmanMathman]

Originally Posted by Gnutella

An Atlanta/Savannah passenger rail line would be a great idea. Those who would otherwise be bored to tears by driving I-16 could sleep instead. It's not like they'd miss any interesting scenery anyway.

It would take more than sparing Georgians a boring drive to justify the route. The issue is, is it sustainable?