We, the residents of Greater San Antonio and Bexar County, call upon our elected officials to push for improvements to the standards of service provided by Amtrak to our city.

San Antonio is the seventh largest city in the country, and is also one of the fastest growing metropolitan areas, on top of being a major tourist destination. Good quality transit is a necessity for a large metropolis like ours. Instead of improving as the region has grown, the quality of our intercity rail service has steadily declined over the years.

As San Antonio continues to grow into a vibrant economic, cultural, and touristic center, we believe that our rail service should be built back even better than before.

We call for the following improvements:

1. A return of pre-pandemic food standards, namely dining cars on the Texas Eagle and the full length of the Sunset Limited and access to the dining cars for all passengers.

2. A return of the iconic observation cars on the Texas Eagle.

3. An increase in frequency on the Sunset Limited from three times a week to daily.

4. A return of the Sunset Limited to its full length from coast to coast, with an interim step of extending service to Mobile, Alabama.

5. An extension of Heartland Flyer service to San Antonio as part of its expansion to Wichita and Newton, Kansas.

These changes would acknowledge the growth and importance of our city by better connecting it to its neighbors and the nation as a whole. Congress recently made a historic investment in rail and we demand that these benefits be felt equitably across the nation. We call upon our elected officials to use whatever means they have available to encourage Amtrak to fulfill this national obligation.