The Standard for carloads per mile just to keep the doors open and break even is 100 cars per mile so at 96 miles 9600 cars per year. Use $6,000 a mile just to maintain track to FRA Class 1 track. The POTB cost due to the locations of the tracks will be more more to keep the line safe for operations. It is impossible for a line like this to exist at a private operation,and it needs to have a public money to survive. The road system in the area is also subject to the whims of nature and they are two lane and could they support the 12,000 or so trucks per year that would result if the railroad did not survive.

The PTOB may get the money for the repairs because the benefit to the public by keeping the railorad open outweighs the reality of the fact the operation in the long run is not able to sustain it self with out public money or a lot more carloads than projected or reported.

A Private operator would have not been able to afford to keep operating.