Sep18 |
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Don’t Flick Your Headlights At Cars With Lights Off
When rumors began to spread that Amtrak would soon raise its fares in 2005, what did you do? A little under a year ago, Amtrak announced that it was raising fares — some marked up 59 percent. While monthly pass sales have fallen, revenue is up a whopping 3 percent. Many passengers have decided to go the SEPTA/NJ Transit route to New York City instead of paying higher Amtrak fees. But, there was a time when the fare increase was just a rumor, and that forced one resident to make a move right then and there:
Yep. I always like to take rumors into account when making important life decisions. Amtrak fares up; ridership adapts [Inquirer] |
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Are you seriously criticizing this man for his decision? I think you would have taken “rumors” into account if you’d been in his position. The only unfounded part of this rumor, as any commuter, Amtrak agent, or train conductor could have told you, was the exact date and the specific amount of fare increase. In fact, when I tried to buy monthly passes on the phone and in person, I was warned of the increase by the agents. There were many people in his position, including myself, who made “major life decisions” such as what jobs to work at (which some of us don’t even consider that major of a decision) based on the Amtrak fare increase. A monthly pass increased from $633 to $1009. A rumor, according to my dictionary, is something of doubtful truth. This was a certainty, and only the exact date was rumored. I don’t blame James Walker.