Plastic clamshell with sharp edges, and cellophane windows with glue that eventually dries up and releases. Ripe for misadventure, a match made in h**l.
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I've called those boxes names that would make a long shoreman blush......
It's all about the cost of packaging and getting the product there intact, not necessarily in that order. 
Mark, couldn't agree more! We gave the grandchildren a starter set and experienced the same situation with the packaging. It was sharp, flimsy, and completely inferior to a similiar set purchased a few years ago. Certainly cost is a factor in business...it always is, but it seems to me to be a bad business decision to provide "flimsy" packaging for items that cost hundreds of dollars!
Hard to argue... Everyone wants boxes, pristine. I can't tell you how many cellophane windows I've glued back in!
I haven't bought new Lionel (or any other manufacturer's new trains) in many years - focusing on post & pre war.
But I am curious about what you guys are talking about. Any pics of the packaging culprit?
Rolling stock packages are recycled, so as long as the contents arrive unscathed, I'm happy. 
Yes.
You are referring specifically to starter kits, right? I don't know about that and won't venture an opinion. However, Lionel packaging for Legacy locomotives is very good.
For bad packaging of rolling stock, Weaver pretty much held that title when it came to their Ultra line in the 1990's and early 2000's. No clamshell, crappy cellophane - their cars moved around inside the box.
George
No problems or complaints about rollingstock locomotives track or starter sets and I’ve bought quite a bit. Packaging that is sound is often not very safe for children and can easily represent a hazard so children probably shouldn’t be packing and unpacking these objects.
@G3750 posted:For bad packaging of rolling stock, Weaver pretty much held that title when it came to their Ultra line in the 1990's and early 2000's. No clamshell, crappy cellophane - their cars moved around inside the box.
George
once the cellophane the car was immobilized in was removed from that cardboard spine, it was anyone’s bet what would happen in transit.
