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Bill[_12_]

wrote:
On Mon, 18 Mar 2019 04:41:43 -0000 (UTC), Bill
wrote:

wrote:
On Mon, 18 Mar 2019 01:49:59 -0000 (UTC), Bill
wrote:

wrote:
On Sun, 17 Mar 2019 22:33:08 -0000 (UTC), Bill
wrote:

wrote:
On Sun, 17 Mar 2019 14:40:40 -0400 (EDT), Justan Ohlphart
wrote:

Keyser Soze Wrote in message:
On 3/17/19 12:18 PM, wrote: On Sun, 17 Mar 2019
11:33:45 -0400, Keyser Soze wrote: On 3/17/19
11:18 AM, wrote: On Sun, 17 Mar 2019 10:00:24
-0400, Keyser Soze wrote: On 3/17/19 9:09
AM, Mr. Luddite wrote: On 3/17/2019 8:55 AM,
wrote: On Sun, 17 Mar 2019
08:21:01 -0400, "Mr. Luddite"
wrote: The two recent crashes of the Boeing 737 Max
8 aircraft underscores to me why I am very hesitant to fly
commercially. I hate to fly commercial because it is invariably
a really ****ty experience that is almost entirely the fault of the
carriers. Around here, at least, the TSA-caused airport delays are
usually not bad...there are lots of lines, lots of checkers, and it
usually moves quickly. But the plane ride? It sucks, for every
reason possible...really tight seating, too many
rows,
even in first class, bathrooms smaller than they used to be, slow
service in any cabin, crappy, expensive food, dirty planes, takes
too long to get off the plane (overhead storage should be banned),
passengers who don't bathe or whose kids are out of control. It
really sucks. That is because you insist on the cheapest ticket
available. You pay for cargo, they treat you like cargo. Buy a 1st
class ticket and you get expedited boarding, expedited luggage, a
much shorter check in line and one flight attendant just for your
16-24 seats. You also get about twice the real estate on the
plane. Your experience isn't universal. Wife just returned from a
first-class round-trip dismal flying experience to the Left Coast, and
reported: the boarding and luggage aspects were not problematical, the
seats have less legroom than previously, the planes were not properly
cleaned between flights, the food was crappy, and all the bathrooms on the plane
the same size. She also had two parents with snarly kids right
behind her on the way back. Imagine how bad it was 10 rows back
if they were screwing her that bad on that carrier. It has not been
my experience tho. Oh, the seats would have been tighter, but
everything else could have been the same...dirty plane, small
restrooms, snarly kids, et cetera. No bad food to worry about, of
course, because none is served. It wouldn't break my heart to see a
few more airlines go out of business and be replaced by more decent
carriers, or, better, modern fast trains on modern trackage between
many cities. But we don't have $$$ for public infrastructure anymore,
just plenty of $$$ to waste on militarism.

You are dreaming.

His girl friend the bartender wants to get rid of planes so I guess we
will all be taking the train cross country some day. It will be 1869
all over again.

Yup. Trains. High speed. The Governor Brown debacle. Was going to cost
$500 million to build a high speed train from Los Angeles to San Francisco.
They got that much in it now and has part of the structure build in the
Central Valley between Fresno and I think Corcoran. Looking at in excess
of a $100 billion bucks now. I think when it went up for a vote originally
was $3-4 billion. Actually a train running on the already existing rails
that was a car train would be viable.

We have an "Auto Train" that runs from Northern Va to Sanford Fl (Of
George Zimmermann fame).
Last I heard it loses ~14 cents a passenger mile. That means to cover
the cost for 2 people and a car the ticket should be about $600, just
to break even. Of course that is not the whole picture. To get to that
14 cent per passenger mile loss, they are not telling you the states
are kicking in a subsidy. The reality in an un subsidized playing
field is worse.

Which even at $600 would probably be a good deal. Talked to a guy in the
Keys a few years ago. He said, he puts all the luggage for a couple months
stay in the trunk of the car and has a relaxing trip to Florida. San
Francisco to Los Angeles is about 375-400 miles. Taking the buck a mile
cost to run a car, you only pay $200 if you paid the same for a shorter
trip. But a relaxing trip. Chauffeured for $200.

Sanford is not really Florida. You are still ~300 miles from Key West.

But the guy got 1800 miles closer. May have been in Marathon where we
talked to him. We stayed about 1/2 way down.

It is only 855 miles from Lorton Va to Sanford Fla (where the Auto
Train runs). That is ~75 cents a mile by any honest measure and by the
time you drive to Lorton, get your car loaded (2-4 hours), take that
17 hour milk train ride down and get your car unloaded (2 or more
hours) in Sanford. I will be sipping a cold beer at Sloppy Joes before
you get out of Orlando. You are still 342 miles from Marathon. and
400 from Key west (not 300 my bad)
I made that trip (Md to St Pete Florida) dozens of times. I looked at
the Auto Train several times and I could never make it make sense to
me even at that highly subsidized price.

Thought it was 1800. The thing is you have your car at the other end. The
California train boondoggle means you still have to get a car, maybe Uber,
to get most places in Los Angeles.

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