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Re: Requiem for the Santa Cruz Branch
Author: mook
Date: 01-09-2012 - 18:12
Anbody who would just say **x** can't run a railroad is spouting a political/troll line.
There are good and bad (under given circumstances) operators both private and public. There are and have been a number of good publicly-owned lines, and some bad ones too. As with private industry, it depends on who's running it and what they have to work with, and how many limits are placed on them. Conrail, for instance, would never have happened under private ownership -- under the circumstances at the time continued private ownership would have resulted in liquidation and destruction of most of the RRs in the Northeast; interim (and permanent in spots like the commuter lines and Amtrak NECorridor where freight was a negligible concern) govt ownership was necessary to straighten out the mess and produce something worth buying. There are several govt-owned small railroads that do reasonably well, and even sometimes make money. Even the commuter lines, though they lose money, do their job which is to carry passengers at a more or less affordable price (in a suitable market) which doesn't make a profit let alone one big enough to be worth the private while - those riders mostly have jobs and pay taxes. Govt ownership/operation has to make sense not only on the actual RR books but also in terms of the economy -- are there businesses (that pay taxes!) that need RR service that private RRs can't or won't provide, and that can be provided reasonably well by a non-profit operation that can cover or nearly cover its costs (i.e. the subsidy is less than the taxes)?
Of course, the SC Branch doesn't appear to have much traffic potential, and even a public line has to have a decent shot at covering expenses or it'll become a trail (which you can get highway TAX money to build/maintain). I think we all know what's likely to happen under continuing UP owner/operatorship, and they're hardly government. IMO the only chance for the SC line remaining in place *is* public ownership because without the cement plant it'll never make a profit. Question mainly is whether RTC is interested in the local political fight that will be needed to support enough rail freight business to pay at least the basic operating bills.
There are good and bad (under given circumstances) operators both private and public. There are and have been a number of good publicly-owned lines, and some bad ones too. As with private industry, it depends on who's running it and what they have to work with, and how many limits are placed on them. Conrail, for instance, would never have happened under private ownership -- under the circumstances at the time continued private ownership would have resulted in liquidation and destruction of most of the RRs in the Northeast; interim (and permanent in spots like the commuter lines and Amtrak NECorridor where freight was a negligible concern) govt ownership was necessary to straighten out the mess and produce something worth buying. There are several govt-owned small railroads that do reasonably well, and even sometimes make money. Even the commuter lines, though they lose money, do their job which is to carry passengers at a more or less affordable price (in a suitable market) which doesn't make a profit let alone one big enough to be worth the private while - those riders mostly have jobs and pay taxes. Govt ownership/operation has to make sense not only on the actual RR books but also in terms of the economy -- are there businesses (that pay taxes!) that need RR service that private RRs can't or won't provide, and that can be provided reasonably well by a non-profit operation that can cover or nearly cover its costs (i.e. the subsidy is less than the taxes)?
Of course, the SC Branch doesn't appear to have much traffic potential, and even a public line has to have a decent shot at covering expenses or it'll become a trail (which you can get highway TAX money to build/maintain). I think we all know what's likely to happen under continuing UP owner/operatorship, and they're hardly government. IMO the only chance for the SC line remaining in place *is* public ownership because without the cement plant it'll never make a profit. Question mainly is whether RTC is interested in the local political fight that will be needed to support enough rail freight business to pay at least the basic operating bills.
