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Re: Trump Administration wants to cut service south of Eugene
Author: Sgt. Joe Friday
Date: 08-28-2019 - 08:18
Interesting choice of words: Amtrak trains "lose half a billion dollars" annually. The Starlight "loses" $46 million.
When the private railroads were running their own trains, it could be accurately said that the trains were "losing" money, although how much was always a matter of what formula was used to calculate those losses.
But under Amtrak the trains are a government sponsored operation. So let's use terminology that is more consistent with that:
- Runs a deficit of
- Requires a subsidy of
- Has an annual budget of
There are lots of other things the government is involved in that "lose" money, and provide a questionable public benefit, or none at all. Amtrak does not fall into either category.
When the private railroads were running their own trains, it could be accurately said that the trains were "losing" money, although how much was always a matter of what formula was used to calculate those losses.
But under Amtrak the trains are a government sponsored operation. So let's use terminology that is more consistent with that:
- Runs a deficit of
- Requires a subsidy of
- Has an annual budget of
There are lots of other things the government is involved in that "lose" money, and provide a questionable public benefit, or none at all. Amtrak does not fall into either category.
