If Amtrak wasn't operating at such a loss, how many other alternatives would spring up? You would have more buses for one competing along their routes, though there are already a lot that do. These losses are nothing new. If a private firm were to do this, it would be considered predation. From the Associated Press:
While Acela Express made a profit, "The more heavily utilized Northeast Regional lost almost $5 per passenger."
U.S. taxpayers spent about $32 subsidizing the cost of the typical Amtrak passenger in 2008, about four times the rail operator's estimate, according to a private study.
Amtrak operates a nationwide rail network, serving more than 500 destinations in 46 states. Forty-one of Amtrak's 44 routes lost money in 2008, said the study by Subsidyscope, an arm of the Pew Charitable Trusts. . . .
While Acela Express made a profit, "The more heavily utilized Northeast Regional lost almost $5 per passenger."
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Amtrak loses $32 per passenger
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