One of the issues that I think will hurt Amtrak here in the long run is the idea that the entire train must be ADA compliant, creating 18 inch wide seats for all the coaches in order to have a wheelchair wide aisle through the entire train. Let me be clear, my wife is handicapped and uses a wheelchair or scooter for anything more than 40-50 feet of movement, so I agree with the principals of accessibility, I just wonder about the best way to implement them. Seems like having accessibility in specific locations on the train would make more sense for overall passenger comfort. I really doubt too many people in wheelchairs will want to move through the entire train while going 79 MPH, especially on a curvy line like SEA-PDX.

The model I would suggest is similar to what we experienced on an LNER Azuma trip in the UK last summer. In each coach the entry from the vestibule was wide and led to an area where up to 4 wheelchairs could be secured, along with a row of handicapped seating. The restroom was on the other side of the vestibule with a very large amount of room that could actually have a wheelchair in the room, along with a big door that had push button entry available. The snack and drink service was available to be brought to your seat by the attendant by using a phone app.

Instead we are going to degrade the experience for the majority of passengers sandwiched into airline sized seats. Just seems like it doesn't have to be that way, but such is way the U.S. ADA law is implemented.