I guess being out of the States for 4 years and being in a country where rail service is almost non existent and has become a political footbal, Amtrak looks good. The article does leave out some of Amtraks role in shorter line operation and Amtrak was never allowed to
be a complete entity on its own except in the Northeast corridor. However its success on other railroad ROWs as the SAn Jaquin and the San Diegan with the help of the State of Calif has been phenominal.
MAybe with the soaring fuel costs and the inconvenience of air travel things will change, but I am not sure as there still this anti rail sentiment in the air and I guess nothing really has changed since I left.
I enjoyed the ride on Amtrak although the delays where the worst part of the
trip along with breakdowns. I used the trains a lot especially when I needed to go on a job and needed to carry tools and equipment. IT was well worth the extra time just to avoid the hassle of airports and be able to keep my luggage with me.
I really hope things will improve. I know there is the private vs public operation issue here that people always will bring up and at this point I cant really comment which would be better for Amtrak.
HS