This is why there are still railroad tracks and railyards in places that are far from Amtrak.

During WWII we had a strong and thriving railway system. People rode it across the country; it was considered vital to the country's health. We also had streetcars and subways in most American cities. And then, after the war was over, there was a push to build highways for all the cars, and the other ways of transportation were slowly abandoned, allowed to fall apart, or actively destroyed through legal means.