Buffett's Bet On Railroad Tied to Efficiency Over Vehicles

[stjr]

Warren Buffett is a visionary and it's made him lots of dollars.  Maybe JTA, the TPO/MPO, and COJ should be checking out his latest thinking!  Hmmm... invest in rail or a for-profit Outer Beltway Toll Road?  "WWWS".  What Would Warren Say?

Warren Buffett's blockbuster deal this past week for Burlington Northern Santa Fe Corp. was based partly on the view that railroads are more efficient than trucks when energy prices are high.

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB125755485686735097.html

[stjr]

Here is another comment:

But Buffett seems to be making the opposite bet on the federal government’s attitude toward railroads, which are more fuel efficient than trucks and less taxing on the nation’s crumbling highway infrastructure. If the Obama administration spends stimulus money upgrading rails or taxing carbon, which would hurt truckers, then Buffett could benefit directly.

http://blogs.wsj.com/deals/2009/11/04/maybe-buffett-just-likes-playing-with-trains/

[CS Foltz]

Well the Wizard of Omaha, or whatever they call him, has a pretty good track record to this point! If I had his money I would be playing both sides of the possibilities also....that would be covering ones buttocks!

[mtraininjax]

LOL, he is a businessman, he knows the economy will come back and BNSF moves more grain and coal than any other railroad. He bought a business at a discount during a recession, and knows it will come back in a few, and he just doubled the return for his investors.