The MTA would shut down the next day

Reader comment on: Richard Epstein on Tobacco Package Warnings

Submitted by Lyle (United States), Sep 4, 2012 14:28

What person in their right mind would invest in a continuously money losing venture? Recall that the MTA used to be private but was a continuous money drain on the railroads, so when AmTrak was founded it was shut them down or form the MTA (As in Chicago and other cities where there was significant commuter railroad activity). If you raised the fares high enough to pay out of the fare box then the ridership would decline so far that the same result would happen no commuter rail. It is just like Amtrak, only the Boston Washington line would run if privatized the others are all subsidized by either the feds or the state governments. (The alternative is to slap a $100 toll on the Harlem river bridges each way which might get some mode switching)

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