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Rail Travel News is a twice-monthly print publication, published since Dec 10, 1970.
Publisher: Message Media Company,
PO Box 9007,
Berkeley CA 94709.
Website copyright © 1997-2005 by Message Media Co.

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Our Secretary of Transportation, in his current role as Secretary of Propoganda, is flying around the country, looking for friendly places to pitch his non-program for reform of Amtrak. One of his favorite phrases claims we have empty trains, that noboby rides, to places nobody wants to go to.

In the meanwhile, on March 16:
Train 3 left Chicago with 149 passengers. 46% of these passengers came from other connecting trains.

Train 5 left Chicago with 123 onboard. 55% of these transferred from other trains.

Trains 7-27 left Chicago with 150 onboard. 51% had transferred from other trains.

If the Secretary's aides were ever instructed to research who really rides trains and where they ride, they would have found transferring passengers
traveling through Chicago on March 16 between the following station pairs, just a representative sample:

Toledo-Fullerton
Martinsburg-Ft Madison
Elkhart-Hutchinson
Elyria-Lamy
Waterloo-Needles
Utica-Flagstaff
Byron-Kansas City
Hammond LA-Lawrence
Lansing-Kingman
Lapeer-Williams Junction
Grand Rapids-Winslow
Raton-Santa Barbara
LaJunta-Dunsmuir
Newton-Tacoma
Victorville-Salinas
Pittsburgh-Helper
Utica-Creston
Syracuse-Mt Pleasant
Byron-Ottumwa
McComb MS-Reno
Elko-Eugene
Salt Lake-Merced
Alliance-Seattle
Erie-LaCrosse
Matoon-Minot
Detroit-Grand Forks
Harpers Ferry-Minneapolis
Albany NY-Spokane
Carbondale-Havre
Galesburg-Pasco
Grand Rapids-Winona
Fargo-Klamath Falls
Libby-Olympia

Quite a list of places nobody wants to go to, but all part of a total national rail passenger transportation system. Wake up, Secretary Mineta!
Similar travel patterns are found on all of our long distance trains.

Mr. Mineta's co-conspirator, the senator from Utah, claims Salt Lake is served only a few times a week, with only 2 or 3 passengers per train. He,
too, needs a shot of truth serum. Train 5(16) stopped in Salt Lake City on its way to California, with 19 passengers getting off and 9 getting on.

On Train 3: Newton had 24 on/off, Raton counted 27 on/off, Needles totaled 13 on/off.

On Train 5: Osceola 15, Hastings 17, McCook 25, and even 3 at Elko.

On Train 7-27: LaCrosse 42, Devils Lake 23, Williston 21, and Selby 10.

Nobody goes to these places by train? Well, certainly not Norman Mineta.

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