Amtrak still losing money on most passengers

Amtrak lost money on 41 of its 45 train lines in 2008, including a $145.23 per passenger loss on the Silver Star that serves Tampa on its New York-Miami run, a Pew Charitable Trusts research group reported Tuesday.

System-wide losses ranged from about $5 to $462 per passenger. The average loss per passenger was about $32, four times the $8 per passenger Amtrak computed using different methods, according to the study by Subsidyscope, which reports on how federal subsidies are used.

The high-speed Acela trains between Boston and Washington made a profit of $40.50 per passenger, compared with conventional trains between Boston and Richmond, Va., that lost $4.73 a passenger.

"The report does not make a judgment on what is right or wrong but is intended to make it easier to show taxpayers and policy makers how fares or routes could be changed, including proposed high speed rail lines," said Marcus Peacock, project director for Subsidyscope.

Subsidyscope calculated profit and loss per passenger by including depreciation on equipment, a calculation Amtrak does not use.

Amtrak officials said they are working with Transportation Department officials to devise a fair way to determine capital expenses following a 2005 Government Accountability Office critique.

The Silver Star's average losses were $5.41 higher than the Amtrak's average loss of $139.82 for long-distance trains. Northeast Corridor trains _ high speed and conventional _ showed a $9.57 per passenger profit while state-supported and short distance trains nationwide lost an average of $32.90, Subsidyscope reported.

"'Subsidy per passenger' is often used as a cheap shot against the long distance trains, which do not get properly recognized for the much longer average trip lengths of their passengers," said Ross Capon, president of the National Association of Railroad Passengers in Washington.

Amtrak's Auto Train, which carries passengers and their vehicles between Sanford and Lorton, Va., just south of Washington, lost $69 a passenger, Subsidyscope reported.