When you pay to go on the train, where does that money go?

Question

Please help! I am doing a project and can't find any information! Please!

Answer 1

More interesting is where the money comes FROM.  It's not all you.  Hardly any passenger service in the world is profitable.  So your dollar is matched by government subsidy, typically at a 50% farebox ratio, give or take quite a lot. (Amtrak is one of the most efficient, with farebox ratios around 80% for much of its existence, so your dollar gets matched with 25 cents from the gov't.)

Together that $2 (or $1.25) pays for the expenses of operating the passenger railroad as a business.

What expenses do passenger railroads have?  Same as any other business, except a few unique ones:

- Big #1 is track, bridge and signal maintenance, if they own the track.

- Maintenance of locomotives and cars

- Maintenance of stations and parking lots

Answer 2

Typically this money goes to various areas ranging from maintenance (railroad right-of-ways, locomotive/car maintenance, etc.) to employee wages.  Regarding commuter and passenger railroads, as you are referring to, few, if any, earn a profit so all of the revenues they bring in are put back to cover expenses (which, they never cover fully and is why they are city/state/federally sponsored).

Answer 3

It goes to partially pay for the operating expenses of the RR. Good passenger service can not possibly be profitable and affordable. It must be partially subsidized by gov't somehow. In return you get (hopefully) reliable safe transportation, less congested highways, fewer highway fatalities, less reliance on foreighn oil and for some people a way to completely wean themselves from automobiles. It is surprising how many people in Europe choose to forego autos because the public transportation network works well enough to make  them unnecessary.

Answer 4

Well, if it's paid to Amtrak, it goes right down the drain..........