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Amtrak is running a spring special of $99 one-way on weekday ACELAS NYC to DC, and $79 NYC to Boston, if one buys tickets 2 weeks in advance. I am not sure what this means, but if they could add more cars to ACELAS (possible at all?) and get the ACELA price down a little bit more, maybe that would encourage most people to use them and free up lots of old REgionals for other use????
TBlack Member # 181
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Interesting study in marketing. The Acela takes 3.5 hrs. Boston to NYP @ $79. The Regional takes 4 hrs. @ $62. The Bolt bus (subsidiary of Greyhound) takes 3.75 hrs. @ $17.50. So far, Bolt is stealing customers from the Regional, and it looks like Acela is trying to capture those that don't want to ride the bus.
MDRR Member # 2992
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They can't add any cars to Acela trainsets because there are not any to add...
M-F approx 80% of Acela ridership is business clientele (sp). Due to the downturm in the economy, the business ridership has decreased, thus the lower fares to stimulate ridership and assumingly encourage regional ridership to upsell.
Even the Delta shuttle NY-Was/Bos has announced plans to downsize from 737's to regional jets.
Gilbert B Norman Member # 1541
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I concur with Mr. MD that the downturn in both Acela and Regional ridership can only be attributed to the economic downturn and not to any public dissatisfaction with the product.
I only hope that if expansion of the existing Acela sets to, say, eight cars each is feasable, that such is not derailed by the current downturn; I'm confident the business will return when the economy improves.
In the meantime, Ms. Sojourner has the opportunity to "try it out' at a price that is apparently acceptable to her.
Interesting to learn that Delta will be assigning "puddle jumpers' to the Shuttle. Lest we forget, AirTran and JetBlue have both withdrawn from such. American, if they are even still in the market, went to Eagle (their wholly owned regional carrier), sometime after 9/11.
Can USAir be far behind?
Oh and while related to the downturn, unrelated to rails:
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Heard a presentation on Acela Express at a transportation professional group lunch back in December. Assuming the money could be found, the Amtrak speaker said the first option being looked at is replacement of the Acela Express cafe counter area with about 24 to 32 coach seats. That would be a small increase in capacity. Longer term, apparently Mr. Boardman has plans to ask Bombardier for price quotes on more cars. I have been told privately that Acela Express was originally designed with only one power car, with a cab at the other end of the trainset, but because then-FRA administrator Jolene Molitoris got nervous about "push pull" operation, the trains were modified to have two power cars, and therefore can be lengthened without a loss of performance (in fact, at present, I'm told, they can make the schedule even with one power car out of service).
sojourner Member # 3134
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I was looking into prices NYP to Boston in July, when I may be going to Maine (to visit Augusta) via Boston. July is prime travel season, and it's after this ACELA special was supposed to be over. On several days I put in (after July 4th week, so not because of tha tholiday), while the 6:50AM is still at the lowest price you quote, TBlack ($62), the 8:30 and the next regional to Boston are both higher--in fact, just a few dollars less than the ACELA at around the same time! Most odd. .
I can probably overnight with my friend in NYP and catch that 6:50, but it is a tad early to get to Penn Station!
BTW, speaking of Bolt, I don't know what that is, but Greyhound seems to have bought Vermont Transit too. I hope they are keeping Vermont Transit personnel, buses, etc. . . .
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