I'm sure the good folk in places like Cut Bank MT would just loooove how people like you want to take away their service. It's a lifeline they depend on. I don't see calls for ripping out the street in front of your house to build it elsewhere. Maybe you need to wake up to the fact that we are still the UNITED States of America and that transportation is what unites us. There is also a political calculation: There won't be any support for corridor service from the nether regions unless they have service also. Wake up.

I ride these trains. They are very well patronized and offer a way to SEE the country without staring at the back end of a truck or from 20,000 feet. Amtrak is a rounding error in the federal budget. We spend more on highways in ONE year than we have over Amtrak's existence since 1971. The better argument to make is that it should be supported on a par with aviation and highway modes. Get on board.