Posted on 12/22/2008 7:41:24 AM PST by CedarDave
It was standing room only on the Rail Runner to Santa Fe on Sunday — and that was for those lucky enough to get on the train.
Middle Rio Grande Council of Governments Executive Director Lawrence Rael said a crowd of "well over" 5,000 people riding the new train service caused delays of 30-45 minutes. Some people had to wait for later trains as the Rail Runner filled up before all the waiting passengers could board at some stations, he said.
"It's a good problem to have, to have so many people riding the train," Rael said. But "we're concerned about giving people a bad experience."
Rael said another train — each is made of four cars and carries just under 1,000 people — was added to the Rail Runner schedule Sunday about noon, but delays persisted.
He said the free rides offered this weekend, people visiting for the holidays and the novelty of the new train to Santa Fe boosted ridership. "Free rides do tend to bring people out," Rael said.
(Excerpt) Read more at abqjournal.com ...
Duh! Local taxpayers are paying for the service so they might as well take a ride. Fares from Santa Fe to ABQ are free for the next three months and when they kick in, it will be about the cost of a super-sized Big Mac - $6 one way, $8 round trip for the 60 mile trip. Fare box recovery is estimated at 10% of the $20-25 million estimated to operate the train. So that's pretty close to being "free."
Dagny would never allow such a thing.............
NM list PING!!
FReepmail greyfoxx39 to be added or removed from the list.
“Dagny would never allow such a thing.............”
Very good.
The train will be packed the next two weeks. Schools out, snow (and more coming) covers the landscape from ABQ north and lights and shopping in Santa Fe is always a winter attraction.
As someone on another forum I visit said, it’s like having a day with free rides at the state fair. It brings in the crowds and management hopes they will also spend money to throw a baseball at bottles in an attempt to win a Kewpie doll.
That which you subsidize, you get more of.
That which you tax, you get less of.......
Hardly free to the taxpayers. TANFL
Navin Johnson: “Ah! It’s a profit deal!”
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