🚂 I have just completed a too-long Ipsos survey about Amtrak and felt that this was the right emoji to use. Living in DC and traveling often to New York and Boston I dream of a high-speed train, the kind Japan has had for 60 years, zipping through the East Coast. Acela is not it: boarding is haphazard, the seats are grimy, the food is an embarrassment and I could tolerate all of that if not for the 70–80 miles per hour it averages. By comparison, average speed of Shinkasen trains is 150–200 mph. Sad.

Matthew Yglesias had a good writeup of the topic a few years ago, and of course nothing has changed since then except for Amtrak getting an additional sheen of “sustainability” that will make them want to change even less. The Ipsos poll even asked me about “land cruises” — slow rides through scenic routes with stops for sightseeing — but did not mention high-speed rail at all. The questions revealed Amtrak’s priorities: wallow in mediocrity, hide behind low carbon emissions and don’t give a rat’s ass for improving service.