AlanB and the_traveler, thanks for the clarification on a few things.

As for my comment about the labor unions and such -- I do agree that Amtrak's workers probably aren't overpaid. There is a huge difference between working in a restaurant in a 4-8 hour shift 5 days a week and doing a 3 day cross-country run on a train working 5:00 AM-10:00 PM every day. But it does appear the current system creates a situation where some employees don't care so much about providing a high level of service, as just doing the bare minimum to keep the job and collect the salary. This was evidenced on my trip by the difference in service levels between our sleeping car, and the one from the Texas Eagle that was added in San Antonio. While we had pretty attentive service, I repeatedly heard passengers that were in the car that joined us from the Texas Eagle complaining about how their call buttons were never answered, and they had to walk throughout the train in the evening to find their car's attendant to get their beds set for the night. In the mornings, they had the same issue about getting the beds put away for the day. At first I thought these comments were just coming from picky passengers that demanded to be waited on hand and foot, but this was not the case. The last evening of the trip there was a group of about six passengers from that car that made it all the way up to our car, which was the first one behind the crew's sleeping car, looking for their attendant. This was about 11:00 PM, and no beds had been made for any passengers in that car, and the attendant had not been seen in their car since before dinner. Our attendant told the group he'd go get the attendant for their car out of the crew car, which he did. But it was apparent that there was a big difference in the service level between the two sleeping cars on that train. That's where things need to change. I don't know if that's a union issue, or Amtrak management, or both, but that type of lapse in customer service is what drives people away, which just further hurts the business.

What I really find most disturbing is that it seems like the current attitude is that Amtrak can cut costs through service reduction to the point where it begins to approach a break-even balance sheet. Anyone who knows anything about service-oriented industries would tell you that while cost-cutting can help some in the short-term, it doesn't take long before it translates to severe reductions in service levels, which drive off customers, resulting in lower yields. It's a nasty cycle all the way down to bankruptcy. Cost-cutting should only be part of the equation. A little can help, but it has to be done in ways that don't drive off paying customers. What seems to be happening now is that costs are being reduced in the wrong areas (taking away the things passengers really notice) and this can only result in driving away business.

Of course, I'm sure I'm just preaching to the choir on here!