DesertDude
Train Attendant
- Joined
- Sep 18, 2014
- Messages
- 86
Like many other AU members, I'm glad to see that funds are being committed to rehabilitating the Southwest Chief route. The SWC was facing an existential threat, and enough people stepped up to the plate to keep the train on the Raton Pass route. This is remarkable, given the small population base between Lamy and Garden City. I hope that everything goes as planned, and that Amtrak can serve those communities for years to come.
That being said, I worry more now about the Sunset Limited. I won't rehash all of the SL's problems here as many other threads on this forum already have. But I will say that in any sane world, the Sunset Limited from LAX to NOL would be a very successful train (and here I'm not even talking about restoring the train NOL-FL). If you count Phoenix, the SL serves 4 of the 7 largest cities in the U.S. along with several other large metros (New Orleans, El Paso, Tucson, and the Inland Empire). This route is overflowing with retirees who have time for train travel. Yet it still only runs 3 times a week, serves San Antonio at an ungodly hour, and annoyingly bypasses Phoenix and Las Cruces. These factors, among others, hurt the train's performance and make it an easier target for anti-rail politicians.
Although the SL is arguably one of the most endangered Amtrak routes, I can't find an advocacy group for the SL on Facebook or elsewhere (I'm not counting the gulf coast train advocacy group(s)). It would be nice if people were fighting hard to make the SL better BEFORE it faces a major existential threat. If we wait until the "powers that be" consider discontinuing the train, we may not be as lucky as those who've fought for the SWC.
That being said, I worry more now about the Sunset Limited. I won't rehash all of the SL's problems here as many other threads on this forum already have. But I will say that in any sane world, the Sunset Limited from LAX to NOL would be a very successful train (and here I'm not even talking about restoring the train NOL-FL). If you count Phoenix, the SL serves 4 of the 7 largest cities in the U.S. along with several other large metros (New Orleans, El Paso, Tucson, and the Inland Empire). This route is overflowing with retirees who have time for train travel. Yet it still only runs 3 times a week, serves San Antonio at an ungodly hour, and annoyingly bypasses Phoenix and Las Cruces. These factors, among others, hurt the train's performance and make it an easier target for anti-rail politicians.
Although the SL is arguably one of the most endangered Amtrak routes, I can't find an advocacy group for the SL on Facebook or elsewhere (I'm not counting the gulf coast train advocacy group(s)). It would be nice if people were fighting hard to make the SL better BEFORE it faces a major existential threat. If we wait until the "powers that be" consider discontinuing the train, we may not be as lucky as those who've fought for the SWC.