Amtrak restoral part of COVID relief bill passed by Senate

Part of the COVID-19 relief package passed on party lines by the Senate last weekend including something directly impacting the Hi-Line — restoration of full service to Amtrak’s long-distance trains, including the Empire Builder.

Amtrak had cut days of service to long-distance routes and furloughed employees, citing loss of traffic due to the pandemic.

The members of Montana’s congressional delegation all called on the passenger rail service to restore seven-day-a-week runs and put the employees back to work, and the bill passed by the Senate included an amendment to add a bill sponsored by Se...