Letters to the Editor: Off-the-rails idea to privatize Amtrak is not the approach required in an advanced economy

To the editor: Once again demonstrating his indifference to key facts, Elon Musk compares Amtrak unfavorably with other countries’ passenger rail systems (“Amtrak CEO abruptly resigns from the nation’s passenger railroad,” March 20). In other nations with advanced economies, a primary responsibility of the central government is maintenance of an effective passenger rail system. By contrast, our national government treats Amtrak the way Cinderella was treated by her stepsisters.

What is needed is a larger, more aggressive federal role in promoting passenger rail. This is one of the best pathways to a substantial reduction in fossil fuel use combined with affordable transportation for the general public. Electric cars alone, especially Musk’s luxury electric vehicles, won’t get it done.

William L. Winslow, Santa Monica

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