WASHINGTON — New Amtrak guidelines on special trains and private cars issued Wednesday provide a few exceptions from its original plan — to only allow private car moves between a train’s originating and terminating point — but…
Sounds like a lot of weasily ways, at best cards close to the vest, very nebulous parameters to not provide service, even for the conditions where they could provide service.
“Oh sorry, locomotives and crews not available”
“Oh sorry, dosen’t make us enough money”
When are locomotives and crews available? “We can’t reveal that information”
How much do you need to make it worthwhile? “We can’t reveal that information”
It still is a volontary service.
Regards, Volker
Please show us where it states that moving private cars or hosting excursion trains is Amtrak’s mission or required?
It’s not required but taxpayer money isn’t required either and when you call yourself a quasi-governmental Corporation, your going to do things that please the government and the taxpayers more than they do the bottom line. Same reason Amtrak maintains a LD network.
I actually thnk the message being sent out to the public and to other private companies that Amtrak is starting to take it’s mission more seriously…is a good one. I’ll miss seeing the Private Cars but in retrospect they were disappearing slowly anyways and it becomes less and less affordable to maintain them. I don’t think Amtrak should be overly burdened with their carriage but at the same time Amtrak should not just walk away. Charge them more for the service or limiting the service is fine with me.
It’s in PRIIA, and has been covered in recent Trains Forums/Blogs.
It says " Amtrak is encouraged to increase the operation of
special trains funded by, or in partnership with private sector operators through
the use of competitive contracting to minimize the need for Federal subsidies.
[§216]."
emphasis mine - zug
Encouraged, but not required.
The original post also used the word “mission”, and I figure whatever Congress encourages becomes Amtrak’s mission.
Which OP, where?
The Passenger Rail Investment and Improvement Act is law. The language in laws is special but encouraged for sure doesn’t mean required. Laws often leave room for interpretation but not that far.
Regards, Volker
See my post of Saturday, April 21, 2018 8:56 PM which shows where I am replying to a question on Amtrak’s mission. I am presuming that part of their mission is to impliment the laws that apply to them, and if the law says to “encourage” something, then it is their mission to encourage that.
With times it is a bit difficult as my computer shows my local (German) time. But I think I found the post.
Charlie hebdo has asked Miningman to show where it is stated that it is Amtrak’s mission (or a requirement) to move private cars. Mission was his word.
You pointed to the PRIIA and Zugmann cited the law.
The PRIIA is distinct in saying that Amtrak is encouraged.
Nowhere the word mission can be found other than in that one question and there it doesn’t cite anything.
Regards, Volker
Before we get into too much polyglot semantics over the wrong things, when someone mentions ‘mission’ in connection with Amtrak, they are likely referencing much the same thing as ‘vision’ - which Amtrak addresses in contiguous statements:
Now, there is a problem here: the next line after this charming example of mission and vision statement is a link to see the Amtrak strategic plan. This link goes to a page address referencing the “2014-2018” strategic plan … and that page no longer comes up from the link. That is a likely indication that a newer, more mercenary strategic plan is either in the works or soon to be posted.
Personally, having suffered through a number of instances of private cars being
In this case it was just a misunderstanding I tried to unravel not some semantics. Someone asked where an Amtrak mission/requirement to move private cars is layed down. The next one concluded there must be a defined mission about private cars.
At that time it had nothing to do with the Amtrak’s vision you quote.
BTW we had a German chancellor, who stated if you have visions go to a doctor.
Regards, Volker
In United States management practice, “mission” and “vision” usually refer to specific mission and vision statements respectively. As it happens, Amtrak lists their vision statement ahead of their mission statement, so I referenced them in that order.
To be more specific, the brief text in that mission statement is the ‘definitive’ meaning in context for anything that relates to Amtrak’s “mission” as some people were trying to establish in the discussion. There is, to me, absolutely nothing that would indicate a common-carrier or other ‘right’ of private-car owners to have their cars carried at any time, on any terms, on scheduled Amtrak trains.
Common Carreir obligation?
This story about private rail cars was on NPR on Friday
Steve
I haven’t found a common carrier obligation in the statutes. The Interstate Commerce Act has a section 11101 titled “Common carrier transportation, service and rates”. There is said that a rail carrier shall provide transportation or service upon resonable request. https://www.stb.gov/TransAndStatements.nsf/8740c718e33d774e85256dd500572ae5/d40483b73a9d34f08525743a006d739d?OpenDocument
That leaves a lot room for interpretation. On the other hand has Amtrak to provide freight service? I can’t see that Amtrak is required to transport private rail cars.
Regards, Volker
Wasn’t that a bone of contention between amtrak and the class 1s when the former was running boxcars and reefers 15-20 years ago?
This is interesting. However, I do not beleive that Mr. Salaman has seen a Superliner consist with baggage car–on these, the baggage car is at the front end so it can be accessed from the passenger-carrying cars. The car that has accommodations for the on-board service crew, roomettes for passengers, and an area where the train crew can sit also has access to the baggage car.
Yes, the baggage car is on the rear of the single-level trains that have baggage cars–much to the annoyance of passengers who have enjoyed looking back at where the train has been.