Passenger Trains > Amtrak to accept cash again eff Sep 27

Cash for purchases will be accepted on board the trains and most stations. A few including Omaha, Spokane, NYC and La Junta CO will not.

Mistake.  It is gone.  Leave it that way.  Cash purchases is not where it is at.

Bob

It is a great way to launder money.  Let it come back.

Wash your hands after handling dirty money, but that is not how one gets Covid. When cafe car's WiFi breaks down, making transactions becomes impossible. Had that happen on an Adirondack 2 years ago.

joemvcnj Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Wash your hands after handling dirty money, but
> that is not how one gets Covid. When cafe car's
> WiFi breaks down, making transactions becomes
> impossible. Had that happen on an Adirondack 2
> years ago.

Or the mountains

Posted from Android

Seems like a way to save money? Less transaction fees. And covid is not transmitted on money

joemvcnj Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Wash your hands after handling dirty money, but
> that is not how one gets Covid. When cafe car's
> WiFi breaks down, making transactions becomes
> impossible. Had that happen on an Adirondack 2
> years ago.

WiFi is not required to transact a credit card transaction. It can easily be done offline, then uploaded and processed when service returns. Airlines have been doing this for years quite successfully after cash was eliminated for on board purchases. Before anyone bellyaches about fraudulent card transactions or declines for over limit, sure it happened, but the net recovered sales was substantially higher than when cash was used.

I once read a story that 80% of US cash had traces of cocaine on it...does that count as dirty?

Ha!  I could not resist.

Amtrak employees are delighted to accept cash tips.

I wonder how the Amish made out in the no cash era? They are the poster example of why Amtrak has to accept cash.

Posted from Android

jcoons Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> joemvcnj Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > Wash your hands after handling dirty money, but
> > that is not how one gets Covid. When cafe car's
> > WiFi breaks down, making transactions becomes
> > impossible. Had that happen on an Adirondack 2
> > years ago.
>
> WiFi is not required to transact a credit card
> transaction. It can easily be done offline, then
> uploaded and processed when service returns.
> Airlines have been doing this for years quite
> successfully after cash was eliminated for on
> board purchases. Before anyone bellyaches about
> fraudulent card transactions or declines for over
> limit, sure it happened, but the net recovered
> sales was substantially higher than when cash was
> used.

Just repeating my experience on train 68. No WiFi - No plastic.

Posted from Android

I am going to Atlantic City on Amtrak 42&43 from Latrobe too Philly then Limo to Atlantic City , NJ. That great  taking Cash again in cafe car in Business class.

They probably just brought food and Amtrak lost revenue...again.

Lackawanna484 Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Amtrak employees are delighted to accept cash
> tips.
>
> I wonder how the Amish made out in the no cash
> era? They are the poster example of why Amtrak has
> to accept cash.
>
> Posted from Android

That's one step in the right dir3ction, now let's see if they'll allow coach passengers back into the dining cars!

Posted from Android

ProAmtrak Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> That's one step in the right dir3ction, now let's
> see if they'll allow coach passengers back into
> the dining cars!
>
> Posted from Android

They won't sell many meals to the coach passengers. I saw the LSA putting in the information at his register and it was around $35-45 dollars a meal. 

grlhughes Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> ProAmtrak Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > That's one step in the right dir3ction, now
> let's
> > see if they'll allow coach passengers back into
> > the dining cars!
> >
> > Posted from Android
>
> They won't sell many meals to the coach
> passengers. I saw the LSA putting in the
> information at his register and it was around
> $35-45 dollars a meal. 

$35 to $45 per passenger is a good gross, it rivals profitable establishments like Applebee's (before the pandemic)

grlhughes Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> ProAmtrak Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > That's one step in the right dir3ction, now
> let's
> > see if they'll allow coach passengers back into
> > the dining cars!
> >
> > Posted from Android
>
> They won't sell many meals to the coach
> passengers. I saw the LSA putting in the
> information at his register and it was around
> $35-45 dollars a meal. 

That's just accounting, not a true cost. On a NEC Regional Business class ride last July, of course I went up and got my free coffee. He recorded my e-Ticket and rang up a dummy charge of $3.50 on a receipt. It normally costs coach passengers $2.00. So food service is nailing Business class revenue by a 75% markup. That could explain your average $40 a meal by the LSA.

joemvcnj Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> grlhughes Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > ProAmtrak Wrote:
> >
> --------------------------------------------------
>
> > -----
> > > That's one step in the right dir3ction, now
> > let's
> > > see if they'll allow coach passengers back
> into
> > > the dining cars!
> > >
> > > Posted from Android
> >
> > They won't sell many meals to the coach
> > passengers. I saw the LSA putting in the
> > information at his register and it was around
> > $35-45 dollars a meal. 
>
> That's just accounting, not a true cost. On a NEC
> Regional Business class ride last July, of course
> I went up and got my free coffee. He recorded my
> e-Ticket and rang up a dummy charge of $3.50 on a
> receipt. It normally costs coach passengers $2.00.
> So food service is nailing Business class revenue
> by a 75% markup. That could explain your average
> $40 a meal by the LSA.

Oh, so food service is not loosing money??  Dummy up actual costs, divide by projected sales, price product that is not actually sold to equal "profit"

Bob

robj Wrote:

> Oh, so food service is not loosing money??  Dummy
> up actual costs, divide by projected sales, price
> product that is not actually sold to equal "profit"

Goes to show it is all one product, and deciphering food service deficit is a pointless and head-spinning endeavor. Congress has since lifted Mica's mandate. Shall we charge people a quarter for every toilet flush ? What is the restroom deficit ? There is cost to maintain it. Older people go more often and shouldn't be subsidized by Millenials with lead bladders (sarcasm). 

When a 60 seat Business class car is there in place of a 72 seat coach, all they need do is charge 20% more to get the same yield from that car. But its fare is usually much more than that, so they can afford to pull $1.50 extra out of Business class revenue and credit the food service budget to cover the $2 retail for coffee.

Same goes for a split dinette. 15 business class seats are there instead of non-revenue tables, so 100% of the incremental revenue of the 15 seats goes to the bottom line. 


 



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 09/24/21 07:56 by joemvcnj.

grlhughes Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> ProAmtrak Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > That's one step in the right dir3ction, now
> let's
> > see if they'll allow coach passengers back into
> > the dining cars!
> >
> > Posted from Android
>
> They won't sell many meals to the coach
> passengers. I saw the LSA putting in the
> information at his register and it was around
> $35-45 dollars a meal. 

They'll be hurting a lot more if that was actually true!

Hilarious, because they accepted cash tips the whole time.  Apparently you can't catch COVID from a tip.