From San Mateo County Times
MY WORD: Bay Area rail and airport
By Jim Kelly
SAN BRUNO--Your recent editorial is a thoughtful appraisal of Amtrak and makes good points, but a couple of errors need clearing up.
The San Joaquins, serving the Central Valley from Sacramento and the Bay Area to Bakersfield, do not extend to San Diego. The Coasters, between San Diego and San Luis Obispo, are separately administered and funded, although they're also contract-operated by Amtrak (they're currently California's fastest trains, hitting 90 mph).
While the Coasters carry mainly commuters -- on business, to jobs, to schools -- the San Joaquins are more inter-city, with a broader clientele. And it's the Sunset Limited, not the City of New Orleans, that crosses the Sun Belt between L.A. and Orlando.
Much is made of Amtrak's dollar "losses." Another view is that the company is underfunded by a penny-wise, pound-foolish Congress. Not that Amtrak managers haven't goofed, but the idea that passenger rail ought to turn a profit is unique to the U.S. Congress. Elsewhere, it's understood to be a vital public service whose costs are offset by user fees to the extent practicable, as with bridges.
There may be some room for privatization, but we've been there, remember? That's why our railroads dumped passenger trains to concentrate on freight. Without heavy public subsidies, our airlines might have to do the same.
I hope you'll revisit the Amtrak issue. But next time, do it in the context of how to integrate our various transportation modes -- air and surface -- to provide Americans and visitors with a far better travel experience than our country offers today. If other countries can do it, why not here?
My wife an I are just back from Chicago area. No one should have to endure what that entailed. We were lucky to get through security with little delay at each end, but our blessings ended there. Our aircraft were crowded, we felt trapped in our seats, the meals were a joke, as was the video "entertainment" with undecipherable soundtracks. The aisles, while OK for the lithe and limber, were tough to maneuver with carry-ons for a couple for seniors, one with a cane.
SFO requires an inordinate amount of walking to and from flight gates. For my wife, the only alternative was a wheelchair, though she usually doesn't need one for getting around. O'Hare did have electric multi-seaters within security zones.
SFO adds a final insult. Despite a rule against it, San Francisco taxis run short fares to nearby cities like San Bruno. Cabbies who grumblingly accept them usually don't know the way. So we spent 50 cents to call a South City cab. They're now banned from sensibly picking up passengers at curbside on the less-crowded upper level.
That meant we had to thread through heavy lower-level traffic to get upstairs, only to find the taxi was at the far end of a long line of S.F. hacks. SFO claims to be world class, but our Peninsula communities don't count in its world.
For us, taking the BART to Oakland's airport wasn't a fun trip, either. Travel-wise, the Bay Area is still in the Dark Ages. The Times could help.
Jim Kelly is a San Bruno resident. |
