Re: NSW State Rail...a nightmare that is getting worse

["Bill Bennett" <billbennett@oze.mail.com.au (spammerjammer)>]

"C. Dewick" <craigd@lios.apana.org.au> wrote in message
news:8d0h91$lb2$1@jedi.apana.org.au...
>
> >-Ticket prices are an outrage, and just keep going up. 35 bucks for a
weekly
> >into the city and rising.
>
> Under a completely private regime with the same level of service you would
> be paying about $120 for your weekly ticket, and that would just be to
cover
> running costs without any profit margin (to allow for infrastructure and
> other improvements).
>
> Saying $35 per week is expensive is just not true. If you drove your car
the
> running costs, etc. would come to at least $100 per week when *all* of the
> costs (not just fuel, parking, etc.) are taken into account. So rail
travel
> is damned cheap by comparison.
>

Actually I think the fares are too cheap. If people paid a little more for
tickets they might appreciate the service more. It's about $6 from where I
live (Thornleigh) to town during peak hours and less after 8.55am. It's $2
toll one way on the bridge, $2 toll each way on the M2, I defy anyone to
find a parking spot in the CBD for less than $20 a day and then there's all
those car costs. I reckon a car trip costs around $30 WITHOUT the capital or
maintenance costs. Rail fares are way cheap.

The only time it gets expensive is for short trips or when the whole family
is in tow, even then it is generally cheaper.