The cure

All that needs to be done to improve the CATS ridership and its viability is to pick up the RR and move it to Albuquerque or west of Denver. Location must be along an interstate highway so that drop in visitors can impulsively see the train and stop. The ride must only be about 5-10 miles long. The cars must be immaculate. Color really doesn't matter as long as it is fresh and bright.
Now since the relocation is not a possibility, the next best thing is to make the cars fresh and bright (this has been proven again and again in the marketing sector, reference walmart, quicktrip and other businesses who are brightly colored and aggressively marketed).
Make it clean, clean, clean, but do not forget
the history.
The trip needs to be shorter and offered more often each day to pick up the drop in's.
The rr must be aggressively marketed. The rr infrastructure is there, it just needs riders at this point. Billboards on I-40 to pickup those who are going to Mesa Verde, and other venues in southern Colorado and N. New Mexico and influence them to divert to Chama for a short trip.
If visitors can be diverted from Taos, Santa Fe, and other passing through tourists for a short ride, then motel space is no longer as much of a problem. But to divert them, the presence of the RR must be smacking them in the face.
Maybe offer a weekly bus service from Santa Fe for the train tour....
Associate a casino with the rr. thats right make a deal with the devil.
Again above all the trip is too long, cut it down, and the wear and tear is reduced, the overhead should be reduced. and then viability might be realized at a lower ridership than is needed now.
'nuff for now
SAM