Amtrak admits they let their systems become outdated and unsafe. Virtually all the bridges, stations and tunnels have gone beyond their design lives. Guess what? The American taxpayer gets to foot the bill once again. It’s exactly the same as how we were forced to bail out the banks. They intentionally wrote loans knowing they were destined for default.
Amtrak gets stimulated too
Amtrak thinks they’re too big to fail. The problem is they’re a linchpin of the Green New Deal so the taxpayers will get shafted, then they can get shafted again. Think of it as a stimulus payment for an ailing industry.
The only reason Democrats want to keep trains rolling is to get you out of your car. Around $80 billion of the next $2 trillion Congress shells out is expected to subsidize passenger rail. They couldn’t wait to tell everyone on Twitter.
Thanks to His Wisdom, they tweet, “Amtrak will create jobs and improve equity across the country.” They haven’t done squat for decades but promise “we are ready to deliver.” They are convinced that “America needs a rail network that offers frequent, reliable, sustainable and equitable train service.” Because they expect a huge deposit to their bank any day now, they’re stoked. “Now is our time, let’s make rail the solution.”
The solution to a problem that only Democrats have. Cars. For some reason, liberals get really ticked off that people dare to live in the suburbs, then drive to work all by themselves in a vehicle meant to hold at least 4. Most liberals don’t know that train engines, sometimes five or six per train, run on diesel, and virtually never get shut off, even when the train is parked for hours or days.
Once the bill gets the congressional seal of approval Amtrak can finally start repairing the “bridges, stations and tunnels that have gone beyond their design lives.” By 2035, they promise, they will serve “up to 160 more communities, adding more than 30 new routes and making more frequent trips on existing routes.” Woo Hoo.
Most Americans don’t mind taking transit. The problems occur at the end points. You either need your car or someone else’s to get to the station from home. Then when you are at work, you’re either stuck at the office or limited to local transit options, huddled in with the unwashed masses, not just other civilized train commuters.
With @POTUS's infrastructure plan, Amtrak will create jobs and improve equity across the country, and we are ready to deliver. America needs a rail network that offers frequent, reliable, sustainable and equitable train service. Now is our time, let’s make rail the solution.
— Amtrak (@Amtrak) March 31, 2021
Service to new cities
Amtrak admits that the biggest part of the project will be to “improve service in its northeast corridor where it connects many cities with frequent trains.” The airplane replaced the train for most long travel but commuting into New York City from places like Connecticut and Massachusetts remains the lifeblood of passenger rail.
Those are the folks who desperately need new stations and other infrastructure because they already use them. They’re angry at being ignored for so long until it becomes a big green new deal.
Amtrak is hoping to connect some of the major cities in the wide open west with all the infrastructure bailout cash. The rails are already there, running freight, but no passengers. The company sees an opportunity in providing “service to new cities, including Nashville, Louisville, Las Vegas and Phoenix.” A Phoenix to Las Vegas route is one idea which makes a lot of sense, provided there are abundant stops along the way.
Buses make the trip daily, or at least they did before Covid closed the casinos, and the route they take runs along the existing freight line the entire way. That particular route makes sense only because daily workers wouldn’t be the main users. An extension to the Grand Canyon, San Diego, or the Mexico Border would make it a perfect way to connect the region’s most popular vacation options. Any commuters who use it would be an added bonus.
Meanwhile, passenger rail executives who fancy themselves as a modern day James Taggert have “aspirations of boosting their passenger rail service so that it’s available.” His Wisdom Joe Biden is all for it.
He loves playing choo-choo and riding the train. He “relied on the train heavily to commute from his home in Delaware to Washington, D.C., when he served as senator and vice president. He has so many frequent rider miles they call him “Amtrak Joe.”
