A few takeaways from the above cited article:
He recalled an Amtrak trip from Phoenix to Chicago in 2011.
“One thing I noticed (was) that all the stations along the Phoenix to Chicago were beautiful and in the heart of the cities and not in the middle of an industrial park like ours is,” Carmody said in an online comment.
My problem with his story is that Amtrak hasn't served Phoenix since 1996. In discussion of how convenient he found stations to downtown, the nearest Amtrak station to Phoenix is Maricopa, about 40 miles to the south.
She wished Port Huron downtown could be the first thing travelers see when they get off the train.
Does that really matter when arriving at 12 Midnight? What downtown businesses will be open at that hour?
Freed agreed BWAT taking the reins made sense. He pointed to the summer's unveiling of a bike share program, which was also spearheaded by the agency usually associated with its bus system. Port Huron Township officials additionally referenced the relationship in the hope to develop a multimodal hub with Amtrak and bus services in the area.
Once again, intermodalism is great.... but what intermodalism will exist after 12 midnight or before 6 AM? It would not pay for the local transit agency to run its full slate of bus routes all around the city to accommodate the Amtrak passengers arriving and leaving the city.