It was with mixed feelings that I read a Feb. 9 Tribune editorial entitled ”Remodel the Reagan budget.” Mr. Reagan`s budget should be remodeled, with a stick of dynamite.
However, your editorial`s insinuation that Amtrak is obsolete and unproductive is totally off base. Millions of Americans ride Amtrak trains every year and ridership is on a continual increase. Those of us who ride Amtrak do so because we will not fly. Amtrak`s need for subsidies has decreased as ridership has increased. Amtrak`s level of funding for fiscal year 1985 was $684 million. I agree that perhaps the money taken away from defense should not be spent on passenger rail service, but I would also argue that funding for Amtrak should be frozen at the fiscal 1985 level.
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