Kheldane

LOL, I know! I saw that FAQ. The funniest part was where it said something like "Why should government pay for rail?". I thought that was especially ironic...

I was looking at the Nashville Star website - man, this thing is going to be awsome. I'm going to have to drive out to the east side and pretend-commute in one morning just to experience it. We definitely need to have the October forum meet on the train (does it run saturdays? - I should check the site). Of course, I question why they had to spend so much on the stations - looks like a huge waste creating so much overhead. But then again, I question a lot of things The photo section of the site was awsome...I wish all suburbs had this!

If one were to ride it every day at $10 per day that would be about $200 per month. I hope it works somehow, but I have my doubts.

$10 per day? Maybe vehicle wear and tear would average out to $2 per day, but for most people, auto depreciation is an obscure concept that seems far removed from their day-to-day cash flow needs. That price will turn a lot of people away. Now I do agree that some people will pay more to avoid traffic and stress. But I really don't see how you could expect a large number of commuters choosing the rail for economic reasons based on the $10 price. Don't forget that people do value the independence of having their own vehicle in the city to go places after work or in case they have to make an unexpected trip during the day. As for insurance, I doubt many people will be able to convince their insurance company to lower their rates. Maybe if the rail system planners had been smart they would have worked out some kind of exclusive insurance sponsorship deal where ridership would be tracked by the rail and communicated to the insurance company - thus proving to the ins. that people truely did ride the rails X number of days a month. And for you to say that there would never be delays on the rail route seems a little over-optimistic to me. Based on my experience in riding subways, el.trains, and commuter rails in other cities, there can always be delays. Missing crews, broken crossing guards, conflicting freight traffic (surely the line is used for freight as well), bomb threats, police activities, inclement weather (fallen trees laying across the track after a tornado or ice-storm). You get the idea - there will be delays - - just delays of a different nature from what the auto commuter is used to. For example, no one ever calls in a bomb threat on your Escalade that necessitates you spending hours combing through the hidden compartments, but that could happen on a train. Especially considering the security attitude in this country now. Broken track switches, cross-tie fires, track maintenance..........

All I can say is ...DAMN. If that's true then this commuter line will truely be dependant on high gas prices to earn riders. I tend to think the people who most need to ride the rails (from an economic and pollution standpoint) will also be the ones who are least likely to give up their gas-guzzeling SUV's and trucks. Anyone who is concerned about transportation economy has already purchased a fuel efficient car that can get them to nashville and back for less than $10 per day. Of course, there could be a few riders who are willing to pay that much not to have to fight traffic, and possibly a few more who ride just for the novalty factor. Still, I think they could have and should have designed the system in such a way that the price would be $7 per day. All those fancy stations they're building are competely unnecessary (I'm thinking of the DT station, but I assume similar structures will be built along the line?). All they needed was a wooden platform and a gravel parking lot at each stop (except dowtown). If they wasted time and money by painting the rail cars in matching colors then they deserve to go bankrupt.

What is the price for a round-trip ticket from Leb to Nash? I didn't see that mentioned in the article...

They don't make enough, I'll tell you that! They need to make all the interstates and most state highways toll roads, and reduce the gas tax accordingly. It's totally wasteful for drivers statewide to fund additional highway projects, only to have them clogged with single-occupancy commuters. A product offered below the market clearing price will inevitably lead to a shortage. It seems like there is always a shortage of open roadway in nashville - - - this is a direct consequence of the fact that all the roads are free. Thus, there is over-consumption. If there were tolls, maybe people would think ahead about the most economical way to get from point A to point B.