Railroads may be necessary, but they haven't been good neighbors. No wonder folks would prefer they leave many areas...they are noisey, dump hazmat regularly, derail frequently, and in general are arrogant as hell. Those folks still suffering in Minot from the ammonia car wreck n dump surely don't see the railroad as desirable.

There's a reason why places are known as being "one the wrong side of the tracks". We need to clearly separate our 'railfanning' from the actions of the corporation that runs the trains we like to watch and photograph. The train can be fun: the corporation may just kill you and stonewall your survivors.