As Amtrak expands service, replaces cars, riders have high hopes

In 2019, Amtrak Executive Vice President Roger Harris was at Union Station to show off some revamped coaches. Harris is now president of Amtrak, which plans to add more new train cars, as well as an additional daily train, between Chicago and Minneapolis-St. Paul. (Rich Hein/Sun-Times)

When Steve Moscarelli boards an Amtrak train, he feels like he’s stepping into a parallel universe.

“When you’re on Amtrak, you’re in a bubble,” said Moscarelli, a business traveler. “It’s like being on a cruise, but you’re on land and you get to walk around.”