Hi,
This is food for thought not targeted to any of the threads.
A seat on a train, ship, plane, bus or other public transpotation provider has value UNTIL depature of the transport. Then the unoccupied seat is valueless.
The recurring item is that trains and planes have wanted to sell as many seats as possible for the largest income.
In the railroad era prior to public being transported by airplanes, long distance trains were profitable. However a Chicago-New York might also stop in Gary IN and Pittsburg, PA. So a ticket from Gary to Pittsburg has a paying seat for only a portion of the run. The railroad would sell short, reduced price tickets to fill the seat that was empty (in this instance) from Chicago-Gary and from Pittsburg-New York.
When competition from Airplanes overtook the long distance service from the railroads, the ICC prevented the short haul fares from covering the entire train (many other reasons might also be the raeson) and the passenger train started loosing money.
When the Airlines were the time machine of the era (replacing the train in the 1800s), they also tried to fill seats on flights. When the caused by 9/11/2001. changed our way of doing business, the time machine for doing business became the near instantanious net-meeting method and the low fares the airlines offered to fill seats would not cover the cost of the airline.
These quick simplified examples are not rock solid but rules of thumb.
These show that there is a minimum cost to a physical plant - in the case of the C&TS it is 64 miles of physical plant that short runs (UNLESS you wish to abandon the middle 30-40 miles - removing the rails) will not be able to support.
Short runs DO have their place but the entire picture can not be ignored.
One profit center is the osier dining building.
Unlike Silvarton, there is not much there so a 2-hour stroll is not possible.
It might be possible to set up a mock 1880 western town on the Big Horn tail track. Why? It gives a place people can go to and stroll. Have a short one hour ride as optional item #1. A short trail ride from there to somewhere might make people want to stay overnight in the Big Howrn 1880 town - item #2. How about a chuck wagon cook-out for tender feet - item #3. If you have a few of these type items, they might make a family want to stay a night or two. The consessionaires might be people from teh Shamrock Hotel or the Dutch Mill. The place could be used by hollywood just like Old Tuscon and bring in occasional additional monies. With 168, a true 1880 era feeling could be made. If hunters would like to use the place for a month or two after the normal season, here's another reason to add trains and not have to fight snow.
A ghost town package sold to the easterners as a trip to the movie set/Jamestown Virginia/Plymouth Plantation type living museum for a coulpe of nights. Then a rail visit to a true ghost town of Sublette could be added with a tour of the town. Only one trip on the C&TS I took was there a stop and there were no docents or signs or brochures explaining the the historic nature of the place and what the buildings were.
There are always options and thinking outside the box is always good but most seem to be very costly in start up. In an economically depressed area like where the C&TS is, I'd think buy in by the governemnts, the people around the area, the marketing and sales especially the niche market but high(?) profit catering to Eastern concepts and the railroad would be needed.
An example. At Stone Mountain Park east of Atlanta GA, there is a several mile look around the mountain. 4-4-0 locomotives and open platform coaches wee the consists. I recall in the 1960's (I was between 5 and 15) that the train had a show. Sometimes it was Southern Belles strolling through the cars - then a robbery with the robbers ripping off the hoop skirts and leaving the women in fully covers underwear - followed by men in blue or gray chasing the robbers. Sometimes it was an Indian attach with the indians yanking wigs off the "scalped" whites and Indians tearing dresses of the Sothern Belles.
This sort of short show is what sticks in my mind and it might not fit historically with the truth about the C&TS but it will stick in the memories of the younger set and they will want to return for the memorable show.
Food for though.
Doug vV
