Charles:  I, too, remember the days when a train trip was a pleasure.....and, as you say, it's been a while.  Today AmTrac trains have the lowest priority and will take to siding and wait for every freight train to pass.  The equipment is poorly maintained.  The entire system is poorly managed.  Yet, it's more expensive to travel any distance on AmTrac than it is to fly.....  I truly believe the goal is to make it so very, very bad that it can be totally eliminated and no one will complain.