What if Amtrak Never Existed?

As someone who frequents the Northeast Regional, I must say that this alternate timeline is terrifying. The idea of mid-distance travel being entirely dependent on either short-haul flying or buses (the latter of which are dependent on the inherently self-destructive interstate highway infrastructure) is enough to make my head spin!

If Amtrak didn't exist or failed to exist, then passenger travel here in the US would've been WAY move difficult than you've ever thought of

Very well made video! As much as I support privately operated passenger rail to compete with Amtrak, I admit Brightline and many other passenger rail corridors couldn't have existed if it weren't for Amtrak, and this video clearly showcases how and why. Thanks for the shout out, and for including Brightline's role in this AU.

Alternative Universe: what do you think would’ve happened if the post-World War II passenger rail boom actually happened? Many companies at the time thought that there would be a massive boom for passenger travel after 1945 but that boom never came. Once again, due to car dependency and air travel. It would be an interesting take to see a train, dependant America.

Alternate universe: what if the mandate for Amtrak was to provide the best service instead of having to profit? Service might be so much better, more desirable and less trashed around the world. This never happened because the Americans were brainwashed of how to run trains.

Although Amtrak is far from perfect, I appreciate that the nation went through with it instead of rejecting it. Without Amtrak, I probably would never have boarded my first train 4 years ago between the area I live at in Washington State and Northwestern Washington State (near Bellingham). I appreciate Amtrak for the Cascades route. I can't envision a universe without it. No train service north of Everett. There wouldn't be the Amtrak bus either. Greyhound would be in its place but it's just not the same. I can kind of envision Passenger rail being nearly non-existent if Amtrak never became a thing, except for California and the Northeast like said in the video.

This is a scary alternate history

As someone whose played this game a lot, it’s a surprise for one of my favorite transit YouTubers to make a video in it.

Next: What if there had been a program comparable to the interstate highway system to build high-speed rail at the same time as it was developed in Japan, mostly separate from the freight railroads but open-access so they or new operators could run on them? With tracks offering competitive travel times and vastly faster than road, the freight railroads might not have been so eager to get rid of their passenger trains.

The amount of research you put into these videos is insane--I've never been more thankful to Amtrak in my entire life!

Addendum notes from the AUTA Department of Subjective Information (updated occasionally): - The Alaska Railroad still exists and is virtually unchanged in this timeline - Commuter Rail is largely unaffected. Riders have pretty much the same options as our timeline, though with perhaps different branding and more delays on average. - NEPRA operates Shore Line East and the Hartford Line under contract - Texas Central exists but nobody takes them seriously - The Santa Fe Super Chief/El Capitan continued to run from Los Angeles to Chicago's Dearborn Station until the passage of the Staggers Act - There's a LOT of pushback to electrifying the Surf Line, hence why California is building a new electrified trunk line further inland - Agencies such as NEPRA receive federal funding. - Like our Acela, NEPfleet coaches are heavier than those used in Canada due to outdated US regulations. - NEPRA buys Contrail's passenger operating division as part of the latter's breakup. - With less secondhand passenger diesels from later years floating around, E and F units are used in commuter service until the 2010s. - CSX feels meh about Virgin Trains' expansion plans. Norfolk Southern had a collective (metaphorical) aneurysm when they saw them.

Great video here’s a fun idea for you. What if Amtrak and Conrail came about in the early 50s? Think British rail or perhaps some thing like Japan’s national network it would be very interesting to see what you would think about this early nationalized Network.

In the alternate timeline the film Silver Streak might have found a willing American railroad for filming locations.

Oh wow - this is like It's a Wonderful Life but for Amtrak! I can't wait to watch this after work today!

I yelled "I NEED THIS" when you mentioned a pedestrian crossing over the Whirlpool Bridge. I live in Toronto and often take transit to Niagara Falls, NY to shop, and having to walk all the way to the Rainbow Bridge to catch the NFTA is so annoying. The NFTA Portage Rd Transportation Center is also closer to the Whirpool Bridge.

The only reason Amtrak has lasted this long is that it's the NATIONAL Railroad Passenger Corporation and not the NORTHEASTERN Railroad Passenger Corporation. Because it's national in scope it's more or less enjoyed broad support over the years. If Amtrak hadn't existed there would be now passenger rail service outside of the Washington to New Haven line and very limited service to Boston (no electrification). This would have to be funded by the states involved. Some would do better than others such as in the case of NJT and MetroNorth. Others not so well as in SEPTA. Getting NECIP funded from the national government would also be a problem as a congressmen from out west would say "what's in it for me?". If you've ever wondered why contracts for defense systems are spread far and wide across the country now you know why. Having the Empire Builder keeps the NEC running. And finally lets end that fairy tale we keep hearing about how the NEC makes money. This is only partly true as the NEC makes money from the wheels up. The NEC needs billions for aging tracks, tunnels, bridges, electrification and other infrastructure. The simple upgrade of about 10 miles of catenary in New Jersey to constant tension catenary showed just how much it will cost to redo all that old PRR catenary. Now some people have suggested it would have been better to directly fund the private railroads to continue their passenger trains. By the end of the 60's the railroads simply wanted NOTHING to do with passenger operations. Whole departments and divisions were eliminated when Amtrak started. Amtrak also brought a unified fleet of passenger equipment with Superliners in the west and Amfleet/Viewliners in the east. Heck a lot of the hand me downs that Amtrak had in the early days didn't even play well together. A national reservations system and consolidating to one station in most cities (Chicago stands out) also helped. We can do better. All long distance services need to have a second train running about 12 hours apart as was the case on most routes just prior to Amtrak. Other lines need to be restored and tri-weakly (sic) trains need to run daily.

Idea: what if The Milwaukee Road never removed their electrification?

I wonder what would happen to the Texas Central in this situation? Would the service expand to include all the major Texas cities plus Oklahoma City and New Orleans or would it never even been considered?

This was a fun thought experiment, I haven't seen anyone else coming up with ideas like this. Nice job.

Nice alternative timeline video, i watched it while sitting on a highspeed train from cologne to berlin (250 km/h 155 mp/h for just 12€)