I wanted to wait until all of the C&TS commission videos of the last 1/30/16 meeting were posted recently to make this post. Thanks to Sam Seiber, Steve Forney and Jason Rose for their continued work in documenting the Commission meetings for those of us not able to attend in person. I continue to be dismayed with the performance of the commission and to some extent management as evidenced from these meetings. I will address my specific concerns in several separate posts in the future as I think they are worthy of a frank and open discussion that hopefully this board will support and contribute to in a constructive dialog.
The most troublesome issue for me and I believe the future of tourist railroading is the handling of the youth (child) visitors. I had to make a very difficult decision this past year to not to visit the C&TS with my Grandkids. I didn’t feel the product being offered met our family’s needs, now sadly for 2016 the RR seems to be conflicted and unfocused on their commitment to the future (youth). The confusion seems to be from the top down as you listen to the questions of the Commission (Randall), management responses (Bates & Casford), regarding the schedule, fares and execution of the Kids Ride Free that is website posted and published (brochure). See C&TS Commission 1/30/16 meeting Clip 4 starting at 7:00 for the pertinent discussion.
C&TS 2016 Brochure
Here are some of my concerns:
Why when many schools are out in the first week in June and many families hit the road for vacation does the Cinder Bear/ Cumbres Experience start July 6 and end in the first week of August only offering 15 total trips running Wednesday/ Thursday/ Sunday during this one month period?
Why does the Cinder Bear trip take three hours departing Chama 10am and returning at 1PM for lunch? Most kids are going to need to be fed before 1PM. What is the charge for lunch (Cinder Bear/ Cumbres $6/ $11.75 for Osier?), and what does it consist of for adults and kids (Cinder/ Cumbres)? Why isn’t it called out on the website?
Why is the RR including the lunch in Chama vs. letting the local restaurants have this lunch business?
C&TS 2016 Fares and Schedules
Why does the Cumbres Express return one hour earlier to Chama at 12PM running the same days as Cinder Bear?
Kids Ride Free
*Kids Ride Free in coach from May 28th through Sept 5th, 2016 with a paid adult on a limited number of excursions.
The Antonito Trip #3 option is available every day except Saturday. Kids Ride Free is not available on Saturdays.
Between July 6th and August 7th, the Kids Ride Free program is also available on all train rides on Wednesdays, Thursdays and Sundays.
The lunch fee applies and will be charged at the time of the reservation. For additional children beyond paying adult, regular child fare applies.
Since the Cinder/ Cumbres excursions fall within the July 6 – August 7 window then effectively aren’t all these trips “free” to children with a paid adult?
Does an adult $79 fare (which includes a $6? lunch) for a one hour one way (Chama – Cumbres) rail trip seem reasonable compared to other tourist RRs?
Why isn’t there a family friendly package deal for say 2 adults/ 2 kids offered? Why couldn’t this be sold as standing room in the gondola for a family?
Why is there no accommodation in the open air gondola for kids so that they can enjoy (see over the side walls) for the open air experience vs. having a Cinder Bear designated coach seating?
C&TS Open-Air-Gondola
What other activities or packages are the RR, Friends or local community offering that enhance a family experience? With the stated average expenditure of $700- $1,000 for a trip/ vacation to visit the C&TS how does this engage children in railroading/ history and hands on fun?
Rod Jensen
Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 03/02/2016 01:25AM by rod.
