Sign up for our daily briefing
Make your busy days simpler with Axios AM/PM. Catch up on what's new and why it matters in just 5 minutes.
Catch up on coronavirus stories and special reports, curated by Mike Allen everyday
Catch up on coronavirus stories and special reports, curated by Mike Allen everyday
Denver news in your inbox
Catch up on the most important stories affecting your hometown with Axios Denver
Des Moines news in your inbox
Catch up on the most important stories affecting your hometown with Axios Des Moines
Minneapolis-St. Paul news in your inbox
Catch up on the most important stories affecting your hometown with Axios Twin Cities
Tampa Bay news in your inbox
Catch up on the most important stories affecting your hometown with Axios Tampa Bay
Charlotte news in your inbox
Catch up on the most important stories affecting your hometown with Axios Charlotte
An Amtrak train. Photo: Spencer Platt/Getty Images
Amtrak wants to boost its financial performance by prioritizing fast-growing, shorter routes in the South and West while cutting expensive, long-haul routes across the country, the Wall Street Journal reports.
Why it matters: Amtrak believes its best success stems from investing in shorter routes in growing areas — for example, Atlanta, Georgia. to Charlotte, North Carolina — that could feasibly compete with air travel. But any move toward cutting the legacy coast-to-coast routes could anger rail enthusiasts and would require the approval of Congress, which has supported such routes in the past.
Go deeper: The troubling string of Amtrak crashes