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Metro-North to add 230 new trains a week
The presss release/ statement and accompanying table uses the word “investment” several times. Sorry, but that’s a misuse of the word - these are all operating expenses, not capital investments.
That said, it’s good to see service being added and tweaked to reflect, meet, and anticipate the demand and better serve the area.
But where is the money coming from ? How can they afford to do this, just a few years after apparently massive cuts ? Why the funding roller-coaster ? What changed in the meantime ? How long will this last / be ‘sustainable’ ?
- Paul North.
More increased public demand - and off peak at that, mind you. This is a great way to get where you’re going in the crowded NYC metro area, and riders know it. Even if some public source funding has to balance out the farebox revenue, everyone in the region is still a winner, with less highway congestion and pollution. Viva the passenger rail resurgence!
Since rail service is mostly fixed cost and already covered, it’s possible that the incremental revenue will cover or exceed the incremental cost. Does anybody know?
Of course this does not excuse the fact that much of that fixed cost is covered by taxpayer dollars - but maybe the additional service will actually reduce the bill to the taxpayer.
With $2500 per month considered a “reasonable” rent for a studio apartment in Manhattan, and a 1-bedroom in much of the rest of the city, the commuter edge is moving further out each year. Parking in the lots 100 miles from the city center is getting crowded. Adding a station stop or even 2 more to the end of most lines is becoming a necessity, especially with the virtual impossibility of driving into the city itself.
With $2500 per month considered a “reasonable” rent for a studio apartment in Manhattan, and a 1-bedroom in much of the rest of the city, the commuter edge is moving further out each year. Parking in the lots 100 miles from the city center is getting crowded. Adding a station stop or even 2 more to the end of most lines is becoming a necessity, especially with the virtual impossibility of driving into the city itself.
WOW ! I’m sure glad someone realizes that this country needs and wants passenger trains, even if it is a commuter line. The pendalum swings the other way occasionly.