crescent-zephyr
Engineer
- Joined
- Oct 21, 2015
- Messages
- 4,673
There was... on a corridor run. (I think Empire for some reason?). If you want to look at that example look at the Downeaster, where the state (?) supplies the staff for the cafe car. Pretty good menu, lots of local selections. It doesn't handle the same volume as some Amtrak trains but it appears to work pretty well. The Sandwich and local candy I had on board for lunch was WAY better than the traditional Cafe offerings.Wasn't there a plan to employ Subway (or a similar chain) as part of a test run on at least one Amtrak route until the union balked at the idea? I'm not anti-union myself, but if this is the very best quality they can manage then I would hope they would be willing to get out of the way and give someone else a try.The problem is labor cost in a railroad restaurant car apparently. No one is willing to work under the conditions prevailing a railroad restaurant car operating on a train over two or three days for the pay grades that prevail in on ground restaurants. apparently.
The thing is.. that's corridor trains. The trains are stocked and staffed out of one location. And at the end of the day, the employees go home, just like a "normal" job.
Long distance dining cars? Certainly some unique challenges. As I mentioned... Iowa Pacific has done a pretty good job. The Hoosier State, while still a corridor type train, has deadhead crew moves, so the overnighting is part of the job.