Amtrak’s for-profit regulation

[George K]

George Will's column:

https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/amtraks-for-profit-regulation/2016/05/11/02c2c880-16e4-11e6-924d-838753295f9a_story.html?postshare=6781463070981293&tid=ss_fb

 

[Grandpa D]

I read that. (I follow Will on Twitter; he promotes his columns.) He was, more or less, using Amtrak as an example of the problems with Public/Private corporations. Not sure I agreed with everything he said. Usually he's right on.

 

[Dutchrailnut]

the regulations does not say that Amtrak must make a profit.

the regulation basically states that Amtrak is not a Government agency, and must be run as if it were a for profit corporation.

 

[BCL]

Amtrak is pretty much a quasi-government entity. The federal government owns the stock, or at least nearly all the stock. The charter is a bit different than other forms of public transport, but that's really what it is. On top of that, Amtrak's police are trained at federal government facilities, which aren't available to private entities.

 

[neroden]

QUANGO is the term used in the UK. ("Quasi Non Governmental Organization"). In New York, we tend to call them Authorities, though the official term is Public Benefit Corporation. They're exceedingly common, though there aren't very many at the *federal* level in the US.

 

[Alex M.]

Perhaps it is finally time to recognize that Amtrak is, for all tense and purposes, one glorified national transit network and change the law to reflect that fact, thereby putting to rest once and for all the lie that it is "for profit".