I’m sure some will agree and disagree with the facts reported in this article, however it is a newspaper reporting news on railway preservation so I feel like it’s very on topic to share.

https://www.times-news.com/news/scenic-railroads-engine-no-1309-still-unable-to-run/article_5313161e-5c3f-11eb-aa74-3b87e7c8ae91.html?fbclid=IwAR19ZuR9b34FK50HCvgPYg1hkEUVv7zZWDZ68fRPhDbCoMtmC8-scKuIvjg

“WMSR officials are proposing a $3 fee per ticket to help with track maintenance.

Flanigan said the railroad board knows what needs to be done. He said the Federal Railroad Association has inspected their tracks and trains and has given them a report containing the areas that must be improved in order to operate.

Flanigan said Engine No. 1309 “still has got some things that need done to it. But we are moving forward to get those things taken care of and get operating this summer.”
“

I wasn’t aware there were still track issues at WMSR? Is that track issues to allow 1309 to operate? Or track issues that will allow any passenger train to operate?

I am assuming (you know what can happen going down that path) that the track issues are related to the Frostburg turntable. A thread from last May covers that topic pretty well. It's always possible that a closer inspection found issues with the main line itself.

viewtopic.php?f=1&t=43645&hilit=frostburg

"Track issues" can be almost anything. If they are based upon the FRA track safety standards, they can be anything from a loose joint bar to bad ties and track gage. The FRA does an inspection and produces a sampling of the track conditions based upon the track class and operating conditions (CWR versus jointed rail, passenger versus freight, etc.). One of the most common issues is joint ties, and they tend to come in batches as the ties age. Geometry can also be a big issue, especially at higher speeds.

Without knowing what was written up, everything is speculative and it could be some minor things or some major ones. Based upon a rough estimate of how much money they want to raise through the fee, it looks like some decent work such as ties, gage, or track alinement.

Bart

Social media response to this article was about as negative as that of any honest critiques of a U.S. president, mostly "attacking the messenger" with overt hostility, accusations of bias, and claims of ignorance over the long-standing issues. And, of course, sincere belief that "steaming up the loco and moving it back and forth some feet under its own power" = "in service."

Time to do up another batch of popcorn.............

Overall not a bad article. Matter of fact it contained some good news that the WMSR has received a substantial grant from the state of Md. that should give them the funds needed to finish her restoration??

My WAG is that sometime this 3rd. or 4th. quarter the 1309 will be back in service.

Hope springs eternal. Ross Rowland

I agree Ross. It doesn’t appear that anything is incorrect in the article but I’m not sure about the track work issue.. the article makes it sound like the FRA won’t let the WMSR rub passenger trains currently. If it’s issues with the weight of the locomotive or the turntable that’s a different issue.

$3 per ticket surcharge is a terrible idea imho from a public relations standpoint.

Glad that 1309 is finally "on the road" to being finished. But I thought they already had a board or whatever to monitor WMSR finances? Seems like every two or three years this same subject comes up. An annual audit is normally business-as0usual for an organization like this one.
Ned

Politicians gotta bluster and look busy to justify their positions.

Don't automatically assume the newspaper understood what they heard, or got the story right.

I'm always astounded being in public meetings, reading about it in the next days newspaper, and asking....is that the same meeting I was at?

Very early on in my career I was misquoted by a green reporter out to make a name for herself, I was almost fired as a result, when she didn't understand the difference between an audit adjustment accounting reversal and an embezzlement that horribly embarrassed the agency I was working for, and was blown into a local headline. It wasn't hostile, but it was ignorance. Journalism classes don't teach you business, or accounting, or railroading. Never forget that.

I did find it very strange that the railroad preservation community was all over the test runs of 1309 on New Years Eve, but the local newspaper didn't think it newsworthy. Go in the paper and search for it, it's not there.

Having been right in the middle of actual newsworthy events, both international and local, and seeing the 'news' reports on them, I have to agree completely. Maybe 25% of what you see in any given media story is somewhat accurate, at best. The rest is just entertainment and uneducated supposition these days. Maybe if we had media that just reported factual news instead of trying to be artistic 'journalists' we'd be able to tell what was really going on in the world.

Or English composition, grammar or spelling for that matter.

Relevant quote:

Transportation journalism retired with Don Phillips. Everything else is a game of telephone.

That’s why I brought up the question about the track issue. I haven’t been to WMSR in a few years but it doesn’t seem like the FRA wouldn’t allow them to run because of bad track unless track maintenance went really downhill since my last visit.

So was that mis-written in the article? Or not understood in the meeting?
But if they are suggesting a $3 surcharge on tickets that’s major track work that apparently needs to be done.

The rest of the article seems pretty much just reporting facts... but maybe I’m missing something. Wouldn’t be the first time!

Regarding the proposed $3 fee for needed track maintenance - most people hate add-on fees (at least, I do). Why not just raise the base fare $3 and leave it at that. If you ever look at the breakdown on your phone bill you will see just how many taxes and fees are added in.