will periodically make sure that each passenger has a ticket, relieving the conductor of that responsibility. 12. OPERATING & MAINTENANCE COSTS

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1 12. OPERATING & MAINTENANCE COSTS Operating and maintenance costs are those costs associated with operating the passenger service, including not only the trains, but also the passenger stations and other needed support services. The items comprising the operation and maintenance of a passenger rail system include the following: Train Operations Station Operations Train Maintenance Maintenance-of-Way (station, tracks, etc.) Administrative and Overhead Costs All costs in the discussion that follows are expressed as annual costs in 1998 dollars. Train Operations In the discussion that follows, it was assumed that the employment conditions of the intercity operations of Amtrak will apply to the commuter rail operations. Similarly, the wage rates applicable to Amtrak were used for developing the estimate of costs for service in this corridor. Train Operators Under federal rules, if a train is operating on a run that takes more than four hours, a twoperson crew is required in the locomotive cab. Since the length of time for a train to run between Georgetown and Kelly is expected to be approximately 2.5 hours, a single-person locomotive crew is acceptable. Conductor Each train will have a conductor, who will assist passengers on and off the train when required and generally be in charge of the train s operation. Since it is expected that a proof-ofpayment system will be used, ticket inspectors will periodically make sure that each passenger has a ticket, relieving the conductor of that responsibility. Ticket Inspectors The proof of payment system to be used for collecting fares means that each passenger will board the train with a ticket coupon showing they have paid the appropriate fare or purchased the appropriate pass. (Those tickets will be available from ticket vending machines as well as from other authorized sales outlets.) On board the train, roving ticket inspectors will pass through the train and inspect the ticket coupons, on a spot check basis. Since this inspection is done on a random basis, there doesn t need to be an inspector on each train at all times. This reduces the number of inspectors needed. Train Crew Costs The wage costs for the train crews is estimated using rates currently in effect under national labor agreements. The allowance for their annual salaries, including fringe benefits is: Train Operator - $73,000 Conductor - $58,000 Ticket Inspector - $50,000 With 16 trains scheduled for operation during each weekday, and providing an allowance for three relief crews (to cover days-off for vacations, etc. as well as for unexpected sick time), this requires a full-time train crew staff of 19 operators and 19 conductors. For weekend service, four crews plus one relief crew will be needed. For calculations for the weekend trains, the above annual salary costs are reduced to cover the two-day weekend calculation. Since the ticket inspectors are roving, a full time crew of six inspectors will be needed on weekdays and two inspectors on weekends. Section 12-1

2 Train Crew Cost Calculation - Weekday Operations (1998$) 19 train $73,000 per year $1,387, $58,000 per year 1,102,000 6 ticket $50,000 per year 300,000 Annual Train Crew Cost $2,789,000 Train Crew Cost Calculation - Weekend & Holiday Operations (1998$) 5 train $30,000 per year $150,000 5 $23,000 per year 115,000 2 ticket $20,000 per year 40,000 Annual Train Crew Cost $305,000 Train Miles Calculation The other costs for operating trains are normally calculated as a cost per mile of train operation. Using the schedule developed in Section 10, the calculation of train miles is: Train Mile Calculation - Weekdays Number of Length in Runs per Run Between Stations Miles Weekday Total Miles Georgetown to San Marcos Kelly to San Marcos Georgetown to Kelly ,442 Total Weekday Miles 3,668 Annual Miles (243 workdays - without holidays) rounded 892,000 (Note: While the schedule was established to provide the same level of peak-hour service on both the Austin and San Antonio end, the need to reposition trains to meet the schedule requires two additional runs on the Austin end than on the San Antonio end. The details of this schedule will be included in the Final Report.) Section 12-2

3 Train Mile Calculation - Weekdays Number of Length in Runs per Run Between Stations Miles Weekday Total Miles Georgetown Kelly ,442 Annual Miles (122 weekend days and holidays) - rounded 298,000 Train Fuel & Maintenance Costs Other costs directly associated with train operations include: fuel routine inspections and maintenance heavy repair and overhaul Diesel fuel is generally used in the locomotives. A locomotive with head-end power (HEP) furnishing electrical power to the train for heating/cooling and lights averages fuel usage of approximately three gallons per mile. The cost of diesel fuel is estimated to be $1.00 per gallon. Maintenance costs for the trains is calculated using equivalent costs from other operating systems. For the locomotives, an allowance of $2.25 per mile provides for inspections, routine maintenance and heavy repair and overhaul. For the bi-level passenger cars, an allowance of $.60 per mile for the same purpose is used. As discussed in Section 10, each train will consist of one locomotive and two bi-level coaches. Calculation of Train Fuel & Maintenance Cost - Weekdays (1998$) Item Cost per Annual miles Total Mile Fuel $ ,000 $2,676,000 Locomotives $ ,000 $2,007,000 Coaches $.60 1,784,000 $1,070,000 Total Annual Cost of Fuel and rounded $5,800,000 Section 12-3

4 Calculation of Train Fuel & Maintenance Cost - Weekdays (1998$) Item Cost per Annual miles Total Mile Fuel $ ,000 $894,000 Locomotives $ ,000 $671,000 Coaches $ ,000 $358,000 Other Costs Total Annual Cost of Fuel and rounded $1,923,000 Maintenance-of-Way Maintenance-of-way (MOW) refers to the inspection, repair and general maintenance of track, bridges, stations and signal systems. Since the wear and tear is proportional to the amount of use made of the system, the cost per train mile basis is also used to calculate these costs. Based on the experience of similar systems, the maintenance-of-way is estimated to cost $5.00 per trainmile. Calculation of Annual Maintenance-of-way Costs (1998$) Item Unit Cost Train Miles Total MOW Costs - Weekdays $5.00/train mile 892,000 $4,460,000 MOW Costs - Weekends & Holidays $5.00/train mile 298,000 $1,490,000 Sales and Marketing Sales and marketing includes items such as ticket sales, maintenance of ticket vending machines, radio and newspaper advertisements, and production and distribution of marketing brochures promoting the service. Based on costs for similar passenger rail service, it is estimated that sales and marketing will cost approximately $2.50 per train-mile. Calculation of Annual Sales & Marketing Costs (1998$) Item Unit Cost Train Miles Total Weekdays $2.50/train mile 892,000 $2,230,000 Weekends & Holidays $2.50/train mile 298,000 $745,000 Section 12-4

5 Railroad Fees When passenger trains operate on tracks owned by another railroad, there are fees charged by the owning railroad for that use. Since the preferred route tracks are assumed to be owned by the agency operating the commuter rail service, no fees to other railroads are included in the calculation of operating costs. General and Administrative Costs General and Administrative costs (G&A) includes the costs of overall management and administration of the commuter rail operations. Included in this allowance are costs for security services. G&A costs are estimated to be approximately 20% of the costs listed above. Insurance Costs Typically, the organization operating the commuter rail services will need insurance coverage, including general liability, bodily injury and property damage coverage. While this cost varies widely, depending on many factors, an allowance of $1,000,000 per year is provided for this coverage. Summary The following table illustrates the operating and maintenance costs. Since the fixed cost applies to the weekday service and the weekend service is generally considered to be an increment added to the basic weekday service, the totals are presented as weekday service and 7-day per week service. These costs result in a cost per train mile of: Weekday Service $22 per train mile 7-Day per Week Service $21 per train mile Operating and Maintenance Costs Summary Item Annual Cost (millions 1998$) Weekday Service Train Crews $2.8 $3.1 Train Fuel & Maintenance $5.8 $7.7 Maintenance-of-Way $4.5 $6.0 Sales & Marketing $2.2 $3.0 SUBTOTALS $15.3 $19.8 General & Administrative $3.1 $4.0 SUBTOTALS $18.4 $23.8 Insurance $1.0 $1.0 Weekdays plus Weekend & Holiday Service TOTALS $19.4 $24.8 Section 12-5