Railing About Amtrak

My wife and I recently rode Amtrak as one leg of a trip from Denver to Salt Lake City, a 520-mile stretch frequently described as the most scenic route in the U.S. The scenery was breathtaking but Amtrak was a disaster from beginning to end.

The air conditioning (in a sealed car) worked sporadically. There was one observation car for at least eight passenger cars. Windows were dirty. The large, open plastic garbage bag provided for refuse filled to overflowing in a few hours and was never emptied. At 4:30 p.m. we were informed that the dining car had lost its air conditioning, and some kitchen equipment was not working. At 7:30 p.m. we were served soggy sandwiches, cookies and cans of warm soda.

We arrived in Salt Lake City hours after our scheduled time of arrival, utterly exhausted and absolutely certain of one thing: Amtrak, generously subsidized by our taxpayer dollars--NOT!

MATT and SYLVIA SCHWARTZ

Laguna Hills