Alaska Railroad

I would like to thank Bill Sheffield and the rest of the board directors of the Alaska Railroad, along with the rail’s head boss, Mr. Cyst Turdesen and chair Linda Larceny, for a deed well done with respect to “Brotherly & Sisterly Love”! See, it was a beautiful evening out at the Georgeson Botanical Gardens, in Fairbanks. It was “Music in the Garden” night, and it was a very beautiful evening with temperatures of 80 degrees complemented by a slight breeze - keeping the blood sucking mosquitoes at bay. It was a great time for young and old as Celtic music serenaded the background, courtesy the Red Hackle Pipe Band. It was an evening missing nothing at all. Then the 8pm “Special” Denali Star rolled on through, commencing its trip from down south. And as the mighty pride and joy engines - those painted like a field of gold to resemble the Alaskan flag - pulled the passenger train cars across the U of A campus, we all started to wave. It was a salute where such was due, highlighting a beautiful day in Alaska! See, the line up of the train has the Alaska section of run-down worn-out cars followed by the Binkley cruise ship double decker like luxury cars – pretty empty the latter considering it was close to solstice time here in the interior? How much for a train ride in luxury? But with the segregated Alaskan passenger train cars winding through the farm like setting, that is where the garden wavers were focusing the attention, giving it up for the arriving passengers – true Alaskans. This late in the day, it is considered the “non-peak” hours of operation, so this is wherein the elderly, the disabled, those on Medicaid have an opportunity to get out and sight-see - at reduced fares. See, the Alaska Railroad receives its fair share of appropriations under the FTA “Grants” corporate welfare program, thanks to Congressmen Donald Duck, and with that “handout” the rail boss is required by law to provide “reasonable” travel schedules along with accommodations at “half fare”, to assist those without. You could see it in the passengers’ faces, proud to be an Alaskan, proud to be a U.S. Taxpayer and reaping the benefits of the “public transportation” programs paid for by the taxpayers that allows for those without and tiring a break. Especially during doldrum like economic times when breaks are few and far between. Half fares are indeed worth the while and wait, during “non-peak” commuter rail times, so it is how we get our money’s worth from regurgitated taxes on our incomes. Yes, Bill and Company gets close to $40-million a year in appropriations to keep the railroad advancing towards a viable “public transportation” infrastructure that can accommodate the rich and the poor. So it is required by law to provide this opportunity, with the “half fare” program. Wow, maybe getting old here in Alaska has its merits. Imagine, paying only a “half-fare” to travel in comfort and enjoy the scenery, from Anchorage to Fairbanks. And since the rail has daily service during the summer months, a few nights in Fairbanks with ARRP discounts then a return trip home again at “half-fare”, it’s not a bad deal at all and I don’t have to deal with the Cruise Ship crap – especially those bus drivers “Under the Influence”. So thanks Bill, for taking care of the elderly, the handicapped and those without, so they also can enjoy the beauty of this state and not have to spend their retirement piggy-bank in return! 

Note: In reality, the Alaska Railroad offers no such reduced fare program as required by law, except in the winter when that train travels only on weekends! “Reasonable”? How about “Blood sucking Mosquitoes”!