AAF Rider and Ticket Data Revealed

[spuwho]

While AAF sued in an attempt to have the data kept sealed, ticket and station cost information was recently revealed as they pursue their high risk bond financing.

Per the Palm Beach Post:

http://realtime.blog.palmbeachpost.com/2014/06/20/document-notes-all-aboard-florida-ridership-data-and-costs/

By Kim Miller

A private prospectus for All Aboard Florida's successful $405 million bond sale Thursday allegedly has information regarding the company's ridership numbers and ticket costs, according to a report from TCPalm.

The document, as reported by the Treasure Coast newspaper, covers details on the express passenger rail from Miami to West Palm Beach, including a $23.77 ticket price beginning in 2016.

All Aboard Florida sued the Florida Department of Transportation last month to keep details such as ridership numbers and ticket prices from being released as a public document.

All Aboard Florida refused to comment Friday on the details of the bond prospectus, but the bond's risky nature was debated during the Treasure Coast Regional Planning Council meeting Friday. The bond carries a 12 percent payout, which is considered "quite high" when the typical high-yield bond is averaging between 5.5 percent and 6 percent.

"People were just questioning what kind of collateral they were putting up and why we are doing a $1.5 billion taxpayer-funded loan if it's so risky," said George Gentile, chairman of the Jupiter Inlet District, which attended Friday's meeting.

All Aboard Florida has requested a $1.5 billion Federal Railroad Administration loan.

Despite the bond's riskiness, it was a successful sale.

A Reuters story Friday said the market was "stunned" by the sale.

"There is risk here because no one has built one of these things for a long time," said Kotowski, an analyst at Oppenheimer & Co. in New York. "So it makes sense the investors would want to be compensated for that risk."

[spuwho]

Story continues....

By Kimberly Miller

All Aboard Florida expects to spend $29 million on the construction of its West Palm Beach station, according to private documents tied to a risky bond sale.

The cost is the cheapest of the express passenger rail lines' three stations, with Fort Lauderdale's price tag at $30 million and Miami costing a whopping $150 million.

The bond documents, first obtained by TC Palm, but now also reviewed by The Palm Beach Post, include ridership estimates and ticket prices that All Aboard Florida has sued to keep from being released as public information.

The one-hour trip from Miami to West Palm Beach will cost a coach passenger $30 during the first year of service. A business class customer will pay $36.60.

All Aboard Florida expects to begin running 32 trains per day on the FEC tracks in 2016. The bond prospectus says construction will begin as soon as the successful offering is finalized, which occurred Thursday.

An estimated 43 percent of riders will take the train for leisure activities. About 27 percent will be personal travel and 30 percent business travel.

The prospectus only addresses the Miami to West Palm Beach leg of the trip. The bond carries a 12 percent interest rate, something analysts said investors would expect for a such a unique project.

All Aboard Florida expects to have 130 direct employees by 2019 and spend $95 million to improve tracks and bridges. About $105 million will be spent on crossings and signals.

Total construction costs will be $795 million.

The prospectus notes that the company would like to connect its Miami station with commuter rail, but would need to drum up $44 million. Several funding options are being considered to obtain the money, including asking for a state grant.

Gov. Rick Scott has said no state taxpayer money will be used to pay for All Aboard Florida, but the company has applied for a $1.5 billion Federal Railroad Administration loan.

Ticket sales will make up 75 percent of the passenger Raul's revenue by 2019. Total revenue is predicted to be $92.4 million during the same year.

[tufsu1]

$30 one-way ticket is pretty high from Miami to West Palm Beach...especially compared to the cost of Tri Rail.

That said, there is a pretty big price difference in the northeast corridor between Amtrak Acela, regular Amtrak, and regional commuter rail...and all 3 seem to do ok.

[thelakelander]

I believe that fare is in range of the cost of a Pacific Surfliner ticket between LA and San Diego.

[acme54321]

The FEC corridor is also probably a lot more convienient for business people than TriRail, at least until TriRail starts running on the FEC.

[thelakelander]

^Pretty much.  Business people using Tri-Rail would have to also factoring in costs, wait, and travel time for transfers to reach DT Fort Lauderdale and Miami.

[thelakelander]

$30 one-way ticket is pretty high from Miami to West Palm Beach...especially compared to the cost of Tri Rail.

That said, there is a pretty big price difference in the northeast corridor between Amtrak Acela, regular Amtrak, and regional commuter rail...and all 3 seem to do ok.

I just noticed the regular fare from DT West Palm Beach to DT Miami will be $23.77. Business class would be $36.60.

It costs $6.90 to take Tri-Rail from DT WPB to Miami and another $2.25 to get from Tri-Rail to DT Miami on Metrorail. That trip is 1hr 43 mins on Tri-Rail and 15 minutes on Metrorail. So the question becomes, would one select to pay +$14 extra for a direct/luxury ride to reach DT Miami in 1 hour instead of 2? This is sort of like Uber verses Gator City Taxi.

[tufsu1]

By comparison, I used to go from Philly to NYC using SEPTA and NJ Transit....the trip cost roughly $10 each way

Amtrak regular service on the same route was about $25 but 30 minutes faster.

At the time, I was in college.....today I might pay the extra $15 to save 30 minutes.

Perhaps a better comparison for south Floridians is the I-95 express toll lanes vs. the free lanes.