Amtrak will never overcome its deficit, but public support for a national long-distance train system means that Amtrak is here to stay.
"Amtrak will need subsidies declining from $1.8 billion to $1.5 billion a year.. But Gunn, who has experience with five metropolitan transit systems (in Toronto, Boston, New York, Philadelphia and Washington) knows that America is big and mostly thinly populated, and that rail passenger service makes sense for short runs in densely populated areas. Nowhere in America are there the conditions that make Japan's high-speed trains profitable: dense population, negligible air service and very high gas prices. In 2000, Americans took 665 million plane trips and 22.5 million Amtrak trips... Amtrak -- long-distance trains, legislative logrolling and all -- should be counted as a cost of democracy. It is here to stay, like true love, only more so."
Thanks to ITS Headlines
FULL STORY: Amtrak and its subsidies are not going away

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Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools
This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.
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Learn the tools for implementing Universal Design in planning regulations.
Gallatin County Department of Planning & Community Development
Heyer Gruel & Associates PA
JM Goldson LLC
City of Camden Redevelopment Agency
City of Astoria
Transportation Research & Education Center (TREC) at Portland State University
Jefferson Parish Government
Camden Redevelopment Agency
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