Cooter Needs to be broken up
Author: coaststarlate
Date: 08-12-2008 - 19:51
Did you try and get a reservation on Amtrak lately? The American people are voting with their wallet. They want Amtrak. Our trains are packed. Do you really want to take your shoes off just to go to Portland (or and other destination?) When our government get its head out of the sand and looks at what is going on, maybe things will change. I doubt it. The current views I've read are that there will have to be a major calamity before the government does anything.
Did you look at the March issue of Trains Magazine? The map of Amtrak boardings. Seems kinda funny but Mount Vernon Washington and Cleveland Ohio have the same range of boardings. Well Cleveland is in the middle of a very heavily populated area, the trains pass through in the middle of the night, who wants to go downtown in the middle of night in the middle of nowhere to catch a train. Seems there is a huge potential for passenger rail, we just need the equipment and tracks.
Of course when the Chineese really start shipping their goods to Europe via the Russian Railways, the american freight railroads will go begging to Capitol Hill for more passenger trains and the money it brings to their companys.