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business Monday 14 March 2022
Owner of Cog Railway proposes lodging on Mount Washington

By MICHAEL CASEY testing lab.
Associated Press "They have done their plan-
The owner of a historic rail- ning. The concept looks
way that runs up Mount good on paper but the
Washington is proposing to devil is in the details. That is
build upscale accommo- what we want to work out,"
dations and a restaurant Govatski said.
near the summit of New "You have to balance
Hampshire's highest peak. the economic value of a
Mount Washington Cog railroad like that against
Railway owner Wayne Pres- the potential for the en-
by said the nearly $14 mil- vironmental impact, of
lion project would station increased usage at new
18 rail cars at an elevation location near the moun-
around 5,800 feet (1,670 tain top," he continued. "I
meters) from mid May remain neutral until I can
through mid October. Nine really study what the im-
sleeper cars would accom- pacts are." Mount Wash-
modate up to 70 guests ington has been attracting
who would pay similar rates more tourists in New Hamp-
to those charged on other shire's North Country since
sleepers. "There is a de- the loss of the Old Man
mand for it. People want to A vintage coal-fired steam engine pushes a passenger car up the Cog Railway on a 3.8-mile of the Mountain, a gran-
stay up on the mountain," journey to the summit of 6,288-foot Mount Washington in New Hampshire, Sunday, Sept. 24, 2017. ite profile and state sym-
Presby said of the project Associated Press bol that crumbled in 2003.
that will require state and The mountain draws over
county permits and take to pipe sewage down the tion and visitor experience summit, resulting in hun- 300,000 visitors a year.
up to seven years to com- mountain and fiber-optic challenges" but he said dreds of people getting on The 65-year-old Presby, who
plete. "They want better upgrades, has the support it "deserves more careful and off trains at one time. has owned the railroad for
facilities than what are be- of the state. In exchange, consideration to impacts But he worries hotel guests nearly 40 years, said the
ing offered up there by the the Cog would agree to on highly sensitive natural could damage are alpine project would partly fulfill
state of New Hampshire not to pursue further ex- resources and viewshed plants including Bigelow's his vision of bringing back
and everybody else." pansion on the summit. aesthetics." sedge on the mountain hotels that once graced
The project, presented ear- A spokesperson for the De- David Govatski, a retired and stress out the rare the mountain in the 1800s.
lier this month to the Mount partment of Natural and U.S. Forest Service forester American pipit that nests Among them was the Sum-
Washington Commission, Cultural Resources did not who can see the site from in the area. Other people mit House Hotel, which
comes several years after immediately respond to a his home in Jefferson, op- worry plans for brightly-col- burned down in 1908.
Presby scrapped a plan to request for comment. posed the larger hotel. But ored rail cars — something It would also bolster the
build a 35-room hotel on It is unclear whether this pro- he remains undecided this Presby said could change Cog Railway's role as an
the mountain. That project posal will garner the same time around. to more neutral colors — economic engine, some-
came under widespread opposition as the larger Govatski believes the proj- would be out of place on thing the company has
criticism from environmen- hotel project, when thou- ect could ease congestion the mountain. prided itself on since the
talists and hikers, who ar- sands of people signed a from the throngs of summer The area where the rail cars train first started running
gued the 25,000-square- petition against it. tourists on the mountain, would sit has had its share more than 150 years ago.
foot (2,300-square-meter) Chris Thayer, who serves as since it includes a shuttle of activities over the years. The region, which has
hotel would damage the the Appalachian Mountain from sleeper cars up to the The Mount Washington among the state's lowest
fragile alpine ecology and Club's representative on summit, the highest peak in Auto Road is nearby. There median income, is heavily
destroy the scenic views. the commission, called the the Northeast at 6,288 feet are fuel tanks there, a heli- reliant on tourism. The train
Presby said the latest pro- proposal "creative in its ap- (1.91 kilometers). Currently, pad and there once were brings 150,000 people each
posal, which includes plans proach to summit opera- the cog goes right to the barracks for a jet engine season up to the summit.q
Uber charging customers new fuel fee for rides, delivery

The Associated Press Cit- said. The surcharge will sian oil, gas and coal in re-
ing record-high prices for be in effect for at least 60 taliation for the invasion of
gasoline, Uber is charging days, after which Uber said Ukraine.
customers a new fuel fee it will assess the situation. The amount of U.S. gaso-
to help offset costs for ride- The surcharges are based line in storage fell last
hail and delivery drivers. on the average trip dis- week as demand starts to
The temporary surcharge tance and the increase in increase with summer ap-
will be either 45 cents or gas prices in each state, proaching. The increase in
55 cents for each Uber trip Uber said. gas demand and the low-
and either 35 cents or 45 As Russia's war in Ukraine er trend in inventories also
cents for each Uber Eats has intensified, U.S. gas are contributing to rising
order, depending on lo- prices have reached re- prices at the pump.
cation, the company an- cord levels. A spokesperson for Uber
nounced Friday. The average price of gaso- rival Lyft didn't immedi-
It will take effect on line in the U.S. hit a record ately respond to a ques-
Wednesday. All the money $4.17 a gallon this week tion Saturday on whether An Uber sign is displayed inside a car in Palatine, Ill., Thursday,
will go directly to drivers, as President Joe Biden it was considering a similar Feb. 10, 2022.
San Francisco-based Uber banned imports of Rus- move.q Associated Press