Kerry posted:
Per Railstar they were down 12 full days and 3 half days and estimated a loss of 9000 passengers. Their ridership was reported at 72,617. Their 2007 goal is 80,000.
**SNIP**
The CHS reported that they have spent over 3 million on the project thus far.
Is this "3 million" dollar figure just the amount of money the CHS has spent on the Loop since the GLRR, Inc. pulled out? If so, it makes some interesting financial calculations. According to the Feb 1 2006 Clear Creek Courant article linked to below, the railroad sold 65,665 tickets in 2005. Adding the two years worth of ridership together gives:
65,665 + 72,617 == 132,282 passengers carried during the two years
Dividing the passengers carried into the amount of money spent gives:
$3,000,000 / 132,282 == $21.69 per ticket
.... in other words, the CHS spent $21.69 for every ticket that Railstar sold. According to the
www.georgetownlooprr.com website, the cost of a ride is $18.75 for adults and $14.25 for children (15 and under). Therefore, each adult ticket sold represented a *loss* of $2.94 while each child ticket sold represented a *loss* of $7.44.
The Courant article also says that, according to Ron Trottier, the railroad had planned for between 80,000 and 90,000 riders in 2005. If we take the 80,000 number and assume that 80,000 passengers had actually ridden during both years (2005 and 2006), we end up getting the amount they are charging for an adult ticket:
$3,000,000 / 160,000 == $18.75
Even if they had carried 80,000 passengers each year, they would have lost money each time they sold a child's seat!
Anyway, I find the numbers interesting. I'm not sure if I can conclude anything from this other than tourist railroading sure seems to be unforgiving. I also see why there is so much emphasis on concession sales at Silver Plume and Devil's Gate.
--
Chris Webster
[www.speakeasy.org]
