Senators go to bat for Amtrak

We applaud the efforts of Sens. Conrad Burns and Christopher "Kit" Bond to save Amtrak. Burns and Bond joined Amtrak CEO and president David Gunn at the Whitefish depot this past weekend for a ride on the Empire Builder to Cut Bank.

Burns hailed the importance of Amtrak to Whitefish. About 57,000 passengers get on and off the long-distance train at the historic Whitefish depot, the biggest station on Amtrak's line between Minneapolis and Seattle.

Bond is the chairman of the Senate's transportation subcommittee that funds Amtrak. He said the Bush administration "is trying to bankrupt Amtrak" and vowed to not allow that.

Whitefish has had a long relationship with the railroads — beginning with the Great Northern and currently with Burlington Northern Santa Fe and Amtrak. Both rail companies rent space in the restored depot downtown.

With gas prices down slightly from near-record prices, and Montana's economy increasingly reliant on tourist dollars to keep people working and businesses open, Amtrak's importance to the state will only continue to grow. If the Empire Builder is shut down, what will replace it?