Posted on 08/06/2012 9:42:55 AM PDT by To-Whose-Benefit?
Amtrak spent $1.70 for every dollar it earned on food and beverage sales last year, leading to a loss of $84.5 million on the service, according to information provided to the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee this week.
Committee Chairman John Mica (R-FL) blasted the “inefficient and wasteful” record of the nation’s rail line, pointing out the substantial cost to taxpayers occurring with each transaction.
“Over the last 10 years, these losses have amounted to a staggering $833.8 million,” said Mica. “It costs passengers $9.50 to buy a cheeseburger on Amtrak, but the cost to taxpayers is $16.15. Riders pay $2 for a Pepsi, but each of these sodas costs the U.S. Treasury $3.40.”
Mica estimated the per-employee loss on Amtrak’s food and beverage service—approximately $85 million—at a whopping $68,476. Amtrak employs 1,234 in its concessions service. The division collected $121.4 million in revenue but recorded a loss of $206 million.
(Excerpt) Read more at blog.heritage.org ...
FUBARSquared
So the night manager of every fast food joint on the road can do something the Federal Government cannot, sell you a burger and fries profitably.
$16.15 for a stupid CHEESEBURGER? And who on earth besides the government pays $3.40 for a can of soda?
One thing is for sure, this food company isn't owned by Bain Capital.
Takes real talent to lose money selling food on a train.
Any company forced to pay government wages and benefits....
Guberment run, all I need to know..... =.=
Yet another of the thousands of indicators of the accountability of the Federal government.
ZERO.
I’ll sell them 20 oz. Pepsi for $1.25
They could actually make .75 each.
Who in their right mind pays $3.40 for a can/bottle of soda?
Oh, that’s right, the government. never mind.
The last time I was on Amtrak, The lunch counter closed at 12:00 so the person behind the counter could go to lunch. But don’t worry Obummercare will be different.
That’s insane. Their food prices are so high, there’s no way they can lose money unless there’s a lot of theft going on by the staff or they’re way, way over-ordering perishables.
“Mica estimated the per-employee loss on Amtrak’s food and beverage service—approximately $85 million—at a whopping $68,476”
Goobermint employees, losing us $68,476 each.
But the place holders in the Obamacare State Insurance exchanges are going to Save us money.
WASS.
Consider the high quality of private rail service in Alaska, which is allowed only because it stays in one state. When government is the only provider of a service, you have no choice. Competition brings lower costs and quality to the customer. The profit motive actually encourages savings as there is a motivation to save money, (increased profit). Without that motivation, there is no reason not to pay $4 0r $5 for a can of coke.
Do like third-world countries do, let vendors on the platform sell food at the stops.
1. No accountability for the purchase and use.
2. no accountability for the ultimate storage of food?drink items that do not spoil.
3. If you buy enough foodstuffs for 100 hamburgers but only have 30 riders, then the inevitable red ink occurs.
You forget they’re paying all their employees union wages. Get rid of the unions and many things the .gov does at a loss would have a chance of being profitable.
Milton Friedman
I’ll bet they manage to lose money on booze, too.
Don’t union wages count as “theft by the staff”? ;)
It is inconceivable that they could lose money on food and drinks. For example, I worked at a bar/resturant back in the mid 1980’s. We were closed on Mondays. Tuesday was our slowest night. Therefore, we started a special. $2 to get in and from 8-10 pm ALL Vodka drinks were free. From 9-10 pm they were $1. From 10-11 pm $2. From 11-12 pm $3. After that full price. People said we were crazy and could not make any money. We were packed by the end of the first month. You could not drink enough in the first hour to even break even @ $2. IT COST US $.09/DRINK. Of course , we poured the cheapest vodka you could buy. It became the busiest night of the week. Every Tuesday we had a line out the door. By the end of the summer we were pouring so much vodka, we got a better price from the liquor distributor.
It became the most profitable night of the week.
Hehe. They probably should.
Another thought. Sell a dining car concession. Let chefs compete to have the best dining cars on the line, charging whatever price they see fit. Assuming, of course, there are enough riders with enough money to get their interest.
Of course neither of these are acceptable since they would result in a net loss of Union jobs.
Well, remember the gov also buys toilet seats and hammers for over $600. BUT, they are all made by the cheapest bidder. When I worked for the national guard civil service, we were paying over $250 for batteries that lasted about one year, if lucky. We tested some OPTIMA batteries that cost about $100 when bought in bulk. Most lasted over ten years. One set lasted over 15 years. The next battery I buy for my vehicles will be OPTIMA.
Did you get it from a Russian industrial cleaning supply company?
Eez vodka if you say it eez vodka. You make own labels. Call it Lavender Loon and sell it for $50.
Back then(30 years) you could get Popov vodka for $7.00 for a 1.75 liter bottle, wholesale. You could buy generic booze for even less. You can get a lot of drinks out of a bottle ,including spillage and a plastic cup.
It is the same thing as McD’s asking you if you want to supersize that meal for $.30 more. That is because it was $.29 more profit. The drinks are where all the profit is in the food service industry.
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