Can Passenger Rail Operations Become Profitable and Lure Private Interest?

As new passenger rail services in Virginia and Massachusetts are showing promising initial returns, there is hope for a broadening window for rail options that will attract enough riders to cover expenses. The article takes a look at the success of the partnership between Amtrak and the state of Virginia with rail service between Washington, DC and Lynchburg that began in 2009. A new seasonal train is also expected to produce revenue with service between Boston and Cape Cod (the Cape-Flyer) that began in May of 2013 - the result of a partnership between the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority in Boston and the Cape Cod Regional Transit Authority (CCRTA).The question is posed whether increased speed plus greater frequency can equal greater profits and attract private sector involvement. Leaders of the Florida East Coast Railway (FEC) hope the answer is yes as they seem prepared to embrace this concept through their All Aboard Florida project, which aims to introduce higher-speed, high-frequency passenger rail service between Orlando and Miami by 2015. The Texas Central Railway (TCR) also hopes to introduce high speed rail to the Dallas-Fort Worth and Houston metropolitan regions. The project will unite prospective investment from Central Japan Railway with American business interests. Finally, the Vegas X Train will travel over existing Union Pacific Railroad tracks to connect Southern California (Fullerton) to Las Vegas with service expected to start in late 2013. These projects, among others, are demonstrating an increasingly cost-effective and potentially profitable operating environment for passenger rail, thus deflating the long-held myth that passenger rail is inherently a money-losing proposition.

• Record URL:
  • http://web1.ctaa.org/webmodules/webarticles/articlefiles/Railprivateinterest.pdf
• 
• Availability:
  • Find a library where document is available. Order URL: http://worldcat.org/issn/08954437
• Authors:
  • Sampson, Rich
• Publication Date: 2013

Language

• English

Media Info

• Media Type: Digital/other
• Features: Figures; Photos;
• Pagination: pp 31-35
• Serial:
  • Rail Magazine
  • Issue Number: 33
  • Publisher: Community Transportation Association
  • ISSN: 0895-4437
  • Serial URL: http://www.railmagazine.org/

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Case studies; High speed rail; Investments; Passenger service; Private enterprise; Profitability; Rail transit
• Geographic Terms: Boston (Massachusetts); Cape Cod; Dallas-Fort Worth Metropolitan Area; Fullerton (California); Houston (Texas); Las Vegas (Nevada); Lynchburg (Virginia); Miami (Florida); Orlando (Florida); Washington (District of Columbia)
• Subject Areas: Finance; Passenger Transportation; Planning and Forecasting; Public Transportation; Railroads; I10: Economics and Administration; I72: Traffic and Transport Planning;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 01502255
• Record Type: Publication
• Files: TRIS
• Created Date: Dec 23 2013 11:06AM