Business

Support Amtrak Subsidies, Get a Discount on Rail Fare!

Take a look at this email writers at Boarding Area received this morning:

Support Amtrak Subsidies, Get a Discount on Rail Fare!
Pretty clear, right? Become a member of the National Association of Railroad Passengers (NARP) and get a discount on Amtrak fare. But wait a minute: Amtrak is owned by the feds and NARP is an “advocacy group” that lobbies for train subsidies.

Translation: the government-owned entity will offer discounts to customers who support NARP (a group that secures them subsidies), but will charge full price for customers who don’t join and may be opposed to more subsidies for an organization they’re already paying for.

Support Amtrak Subsidies, Get a Discount on Rail Fare!Amtrak is owned by the feds & NARP secures it subsidies (click to enlarge)

Somehow this doesn’t seem entirely ethical.

Comments (40)

  • Tanner Smith
    Posted on June 18, 2012 at 9:54pm

    Prof. Richard White’s Book “Railroaded” links the transcontinental railroads with the birth of wide spread crony capitalism. Many railroad fans hated the book for it’s business center theme. But early own he writes of a practice that Washington DC perfected. Besides the land grants, cheap money and other subsidies, Government officials from Senators to cousins of clerks could get free passage on any train. The government where first there partners then their competitors. People talk about expanding train service but its so much easier to build a highway. In the end we where never really a train people.

    Report Post »  
  • DennisWG
    Posted on June 18, 2012 at 7:35pm

    Amtrak is easily the worst mode of transportation the the universe. Last year they were so reckless they sold us tickets that no normal people would ever have done. We spent several hundred miles riding through the floodlands on North Dakota and other states watching the waves lapping at the wheels with no land in sight. It was a nightmare, and the only fun thing was the gallows humor about swimming and drowning on the train. Fortunatley they cancelled the return trip because of several feet of water over the tracks – which I am surprised they noticed. We were 12 hours late on a trip that should have taken less than 20 hours. We were lucky to have a clean bathroom near us, but the other passengers did a lot of gagging when they told us about the other bathrooms. What a waste of taxpayer money it is to subsidize Amtrak. Ugh.

    Report Post »  
    • Smokey_Bojangles
      Posted on June 18, 2012 at 8:46pm

      Amtrak officials project an operating loss of $506 million in the fiscal year ending Sept. 30, up from a loss of $419.9 million last year. Officials have projected a loss of $616 million next year.Amtrak blames the red ink on rising compensation costs for union workers.

      Report Post » Smokey_Bojangles  
    • drbage
      Posted on June 18, 2012 at 11:38pm

      Another shining example of what happens when the government puts its quasi control on a semi-autonomous enterprise: Amtrak and the USPS. If they want to change something to become more efficient they have to not only get permission from the union, but also Congress–a pure recipe for debt, decay, and despair.

      Report Post »  
    • Oldphoto678
      Posted on June 19, 2012 at 8:04am

      I can’t speaktothe troubles of Amtrak, but it’s absolute FACT that it was the republiCON side of congress that caused all the problems for the USPS.

      Report Post »  
  • TrueSoundsOfLiberty
    Posted on June 18, 2012 at 6:48pm

    Support oil subsidies and get higher gas prices.

    Report Post » TrueSoundsOfLiberty  
  • Verum Ad Potentia
    Posted on June 18, 2012 at 5:09pm

    Can you say “Crony Fascism” boys and girls? Good! I knew you could!

    Report Post » Verum Ad Potentia  
  • amgoldho
    Posted on June 18, 2012 at 4:50pm

    I was a member of NARP and quit because they continued to support Amtrak the same old way. We need a good passenger railroad system at the same time “sacred cows” must come to end. Cutting our budget and reducing our deficit means no “sacred cows.”

    Report Post »  
  • georgepatton
    Posted on June 18, 2012 at 4:16pm

    Goverment run railroad……………………….ummmmmmmmmmmmm.
    NO THANKS TEAR IT DOWN AND LET A PRIVATE SECTOR PERSON FIX IT ,THEN THE TRAINS WILL BE ON TIME ,NO UNIONS AND IT WILL COST COMMUTERS A LOT LESS THAN WHAT THEIR PAYING NOW.

    Report Post »  
  • BenFrank1791
    Posted on June 18, 2012 at 3:48pm

    Anytime a train ride costs more than airfare and subsidized by the government… well.. its a Litmus test for the sane vs the insane.

    Report Post » BenFrank1791  
  • Individualism
    Posted on June 18, 2012 at 3:22pm

    i don’t want to join until i know how much i have to give in order to get the discount.

    Report Post » Individualism  
  • jowiedman
    Posted on June 18, 2012 at 3:03pm

    What I care most about is keeping Amtrak on the rails.

    Report Post »  
  • daddy_stew08
    Posted on June 18, 2012 at 2:56pm

    I would love to travel on Amtrack. But two things stop me: 1) the cost is so much higher than airfare. 2) the routes. Because there is no competition the cost fo a family to travel on Amtrak is outrageous. If you want to travel from the midwest (Milwauke) to florida (Orlando) you have to go through DC first and it takes 44 hrs!

    Report Post »  
    • Melika
      Posted on June 18, 2012 at 4:08pm

      No kidding! A trip that takes 2 hours by car takes 5 hours by Amtrak. It’s a terribly run service.

      Report Post »  
  • pissantno.10
    Posted on June 18, 2012 at 2:55pm

    i love trains to they pay my salary. there is no money in passager service thats why the private railroads got rid of them. europe is stuck with them but they dont make any money either

    Report Post »  
    • lukerw
      Posted on June 18, 2012 at 3:05pm

      In a Socialist Society… Making Money is irrelivant!

      Report Post » lukerw  
  • Oldphoto678
    Posted on June 18, 2012 at 2:38pm

    I take AMTRACK coast to coast every year on your dime. I’m taking every cent of your tax money I can get my hands on. SSDI, VA pension, Free medical, no taxes, the list goes on and on. Wife gets SSDI as well. We both stopped working well before we hit 50, and we’ve been living on your dime ever since. I love America.

    Report Post »  
  • sWampy
    Posted on June 18, 2012 at 1:59pm

    We don’s subsidize trains to anywhere near the level we do trucking. If trucks paid taxes equal to the amount of damage they do to roads, they would pay close to 100k per year per truck, yet have pay barely 100th that.

    Report Post »  
    • scuba13
      Posted on June 18, 2012 at 2:15pm

      Who told you that story? Why should I believe anything you say? If you are going to cite statistics you need references.

      Report Post » scuba13  
    • Dustoff
      Posted on June 18, 2012 at 2:37pm

      Care to share some proof.

      Report Post » Dustoff  
    • kaydeebeau
      Posted on June 18, 2012 at 2:37pm

      What are you talking about???

      Report Post » kaydeebeau  
    • Oldphoto678
      Posted on June 19, 2012 at 8:07am

      The truth about it is easy to find if you wanted to, but we all know that the truth scares you CONs.

      Report Post »  
  • SmokeyBehr
    Posted on June 18, 2012 at 1:53pm

    There’s nothing new about the NARP discounts. They’ve been on the Amtrak website booking system for years. I was using them, even though I wasn‘t a NARP member every time that I’d have to take a train trip any where.

    There’s not much difference between using the AAA or AARP discounts, and the NARP discount. All of the allowed discounts without a special code are 10%.

    Report Post »  
  • progressiveslayer
    Posted on June 18, 2012 at 1:53pm

    Amtrak like all other government programs loses money,they’ve never made a profit and never will.
    Cut the feds across the board 65% and watch our economy take off,nah that makes too much sense better to spend us into oblivion and depression part two.

    Report Post » progressiveslayer  
  • scuba13
    Posted on June 18, 2012 at 1:51pm

    No thanks, I‘m already being taken for a ride by the Government and it sure isn’t free.

    Report Post » scuba13  
  • jackact
    Posted on June 18, 2012 at 1:42pm

    Shut down Amtrack and save taxpayers billions!!!
    If the government operates it we do not want it.

    Report Post »  
    • 65Mustang
      Posted on June 18, 2012 at 2:37pm

      Turn the postal service over to a private entity and we can save billions…same goes for AMTRAK.

      Report Post »  
  • Mr Sanders
    Posted on June 18, 2012 at 1:26pm

    Its two – for – one penalties to benefit! Its Three-Card Monte….

    Report Post » Mr Sanders  
  • Dale
    Posted on June 18, 2012 at 1:14pm

    Who owns NARP?

    Report Post » Dale  
  • biohazard23
    Posted on June 18, 2012 at 1:08pm

    Sheldon Cooper will be thrilled with this news.

    Report Post » biohazard23  
  • JUSTANOTHEROPINION
    Posted on June 18, 2012 at 1:05pm

    What’s the difference between this and paying tolls on roads that our tax dollar built. Soon we will be charged a fee to park in our own driveways and to enter our own homes. Ah, getting screwed at every turn, ain’t it great?

    Report Post »  
  • CatB
    Posted on June 18, 2012 at 1:03pm

    My father was a railroad engineer for over 40 years .. in retirement he could have taken the train for FREE …. he never did .. he said he survived the bad tracks and trains and wasn’t going to put his life in danger in retirement … this was a man who had two private aircraft that he flew .. was a former race car driver and Harley man. Hardly someone who avoids risk .. unless he thought it was too much.

    Report Post »  
    • lukerw
      Posted on June 18, 2012 at 2:06pm

      Abe Lincoln made Millionares out of RailRoad Builders, using confiscated property, all to support the Union Army Supply & Transportation System. So, while I think that RailRoads are an Efficient System… where the Tracks are, and the System Design, was made for Military Purpose and Not Civil Use. Of course, this System was converted to support Industry… but as Industries died or moved, the Tracks remained. Some times, you just must ask: What are we Doing, and Why?

      Report Post » lukerw  
  • capitalismrocks
    Posted on June 18, 2012 at 1:00pm

    So, you send money to this sink hole where they waste it, then you get a reduced fare and the taxpayers get saddled with the burden of making up for the lost revenue… ah, gov’t at its finest!!!

    Report Post » capitalismrocks  
  • lukerw
    Posted on June 18, 2012 at 12:58pm

    I love Trains… but I must drive a long ways to a Museum to see one!

    Report Post » lukerw  
  • RJJinGadsden
    Posted on June 18, 2012 at 12:52pm

    Get a free ride with Joe!
    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CWpND8GhBuU

    Report Post » RJJinGadsden  

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