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MARC weekend service to begin in December
Why didn’t they do it from Perryville to DC? Oh, that’s right we on the shore don’t count! Maryland is so far behind the everyone else.
Reinstituting trains on the Camden line in conjunction with home Oriole and Ravens games would also make sense.
This is a smart decision and makes me wonder why they omitted weekend service in the first place. No weekend service means forcing potential customers to have access to another form of transportation, and if they’re going to spend the effort on obtaining that other form of transportation, they’re more likely to use it instead of MARC during the week too.
Are they going to do it for any other line? I feel like if they really want more money they can expand it to the Brunswick Line or the Camden Line too.
Weekend service was “omitted” because it was never a part of “commuter service,” which is what MARC/Md. DOT took over from previous operators decades ago. The B&O and PRR offered weekend passenger service, but not at “commuter” prices and frequency.
To expand weekend service to the Brunswick and Camden lines, Maryland would have to reach a deal with CSX, a corporation they have long been at odds with over a variety of issues. CSX wants to use the railroad for its freights, and it has that right. If MARC wants expanded service on CSX, the state should stand ready to pay for expanded track capacity and construction, such as occurred in Virginia for VRE. Maryland has, instead, opted to pursue and fund transit projects like Baltimore’s proposed Red Line and suburban DC’s proposed Silver Line instead.
Why would Amtrak allow lower priced competition on it’s own rails?
Why would Amtrak allow lower priced competition on it’s own rails?
Why would Amtrak allow competition on its own rails? Because they would prefer to sell those seats for longer hauls and the trains on the NEC often run near capacity.