2006 is here. What are your predictions for the big RR news of the year?
Frt RRs? e.g. CP sells US rails to NS
Passenger RRs? e.g. O’toole to head Amtrak
Locomotive news? e.g. UP orders more 6000 HP ACs
Bizarre RR news? e.g. Mars rover finds NYC J3a
Congress will investigate David Gunn’s firing. A lot of money will be spent but the outcome will not change.
dd
Criswell appeared to me in a vision and spoke, and said…
Short term
Business as usual till post mid-term 2006 elections, then…
Amtrak LD routes slashed by years end
Short distance and NEC route services funding severly reduced leading to the end of Amtrak service on most routes.
The end of transcontinental passenger rail service in the US after 137 years.
Somes short distance Amtrak lines will survive as commuter rail by being absorbed by regional commuter services.
Wholesale sell off of former Amtrak rolling stock, look for Genesis powered double stack trains, and former Amtrak cars scrapped or sold off to 3rd world countries for cheap.
Some scenic long distance routes will still see passenger service in the form of tourist excursion trains such as the American Orient Express, and like the AOE only the most well healed will be able to afford to experience.
Some former Amtrak funding used to bail out current failing airline companies who’s lobbiest are generous with campaign contributions to the congress and the administration.
Long term
Demise of Amtrak will lead to an increase in small bus companies servicing the members of the population who cannot afford to fly or will not fly for health reasons and will operate on the interstate routes meaning more busses (often not very safe ones) operating on the nations hwys.
After Amtraks demise, there will be another 9-11 similar event that will close down the nations airline service again, yet with limited short distance rail services and without intermediate or long distance rail service to pick up part of the burden, the impact will be more severe as there will be far less options for those trying to get from A to B, more airlines will again face bankruptcy and some will fold but some will again be bailed out by a government more concerned with getting reelected then with coming up with a realistic nation
Hillary gets in BNSF better buy a route in Ireland as thats where I am going and I want to keep my seniroity.
DM&E becomes a small class 1?
Isn’t that the truth!
Mike
DME already got the go on the new line…so yes DME/ICE will be a Class 1 railroad within the next year or 2.
I predict a mega merger…like a BNSF/NS merger.
Joe- Yeah, I thought I 'd heard that recently about DM&E. Thanks.
I don’t know about mega merger, but I bet someone nabs KCS soon. Lots of possibilities there with NAFTA and CAFTA. Think CN could afford it or will it go to one of the US companies?
Mike
Guilford Rail will purchase NS and BNSF.
The New rail system will be called Springfield Terminal.
[8D]
Or Pan Am?
Guilford???..OH GOD NO! We don’t need any of their bad track here in St. Louis
Gee whiz, imagine that for all this time I thought it was spelled Amtrak…silly me, now I know it is spelled Amtrack (See above).
Someone silence this guy before Mr. Mellon and his associates get any ideas! I like the black-and-white diesels that thunder past my house. As snazzy as the GRS livery is, it can’t match up to the Thoroughbred. As for the Gunn hearings, I doubt he’ll get reinstated, but I’d really like it if he did.
Amtrak Whamtrak Jamtrak Spamtrak …Whatever… you got the point didnt you! [:p][:o)]
I think Amtrak will make it thru but not without changes.
DM&E is almost there, as far as getting a$2.5 billion government loan. Their president has recently said that wouldn’t actually procede until some power companies signed on the dotted line. An earlier thread about class 1’s noted that DM&E, MRL and I thought one other bigger regional railroad were already big enough to be catagorized as class 1’s,but asked not to be, because of the extra costs of paperwork compliance-weird huh?
I’m thinking its possible that some of the smaller almost-class-ones will merge to create another mega-class one.
I dont think this will be a year with any big changes, but i do hope Amcrap gets there act together and puts in service from Denver to KC to STL to Indianapolis!
i doubt anything will change really. and i hope that one guy’s prediction of the '08 election is way way way way way way way way way way way way wrong. an amendment to the constitution needs to be passed…no more shrubery in the white house.
The Chinese National Railroad formerly takes over possesion of BNSF…
…and suprisingly, there is no perceptable difference in service levels.
(It’s just a joke folks!)
Afraid not…Jeb Bush is Dubya’s brother, and the current Gov of Florida who’s now expressed an interest in running for Prez…[:0]