Passenger rail is a lifeline for me.  It is my connection to my children, grandchildren and great grandchildren.  I cannot fly.  I have crippling anxiety, acrophobia, and get debilitating vertigo if I fly.  Train travel lets me relax and enjoy my trip.  It enables me to visit my family members.  

My husband retired in 2008 after he was diagnosed with Cancer.  That diagnosis made us look into when I might be able to retire.  We found out that I would be eligible for early retirement on July 7, 2009.  We started planning.  Where would we live?  Seattle was much too expensive to stay there.  We had lived in Florida for 11 years and did not want to go back there.  Between us we had 4 adult children, who lived in Toledo, Beavercreek, Pittsburgh and Phoenix.  Our research told us that Ohio was about to start their 3C rail project.  When it was completed it would be our pathway to all our offspring.  We decided to move to the Toledo area, and bought a condo in Sylvania.  We figured we would still able to drive while the rail line was being constructed.  It would be finished just when we would no longer have driving as an option.  Perfect!  But then Governor Kasich decided to return the $400 million to the feds and scrap the 3C.  We felt like victims of bait and switch.  Here we were stuck in a place that would keep us from visiting our loved ones within 10 years.  

My husband died in Fall 2021.  When he became ill, we moved to Beavercreek to be near my son.  He knew I would need help with caring for my husband.  I still live in Beavercreek.  I still can drive, but not on Interstates and not more than a couple of hours at a time.  My 2016 Jeep Cherokee sits in my garage 99% of the time.  I use it to get groceries or go to doctor appointments.  I drive to Columbus once a year for the All Aboard Ohio annual meeting.  It has just over 29,000 miles on it. Public transit in my area is not an option.  I have become more or less a prisoner in my own home.  Last February I traveled to my granddaughter's wedding in Gilbert, Arizona.  My son drove me to Cincinnati the afternoon before my train was due to leave.  I had to stay in a hotel until midnight, then get a taxi to the train station for a 1:41 AM departure.  Fortunately, I had found a taxi driver who was always willing to be my transportation.  That is not as easy as you might think.  Taxi companies and ride-share companies are willing to take a reservation, but they cannot guarantee that a driver will pick up the reservation.  I need a guaranteed ride in order to get to the station on time.  After boarding the train in the middle of the night I just slept until it was nearly time to reach Chicago.  When I reached Chicago, I had to get a taxi to a hotel, where I had to spend another night.  The Amtrak Cardinal, which serves Cincinnati, only runs 3 days a week.  The Amtrak Texas Eagle, which gets me to Maricopa, Arizona, also runs only 3 days a week.  BUT THEY ARE NOT THE SAME THREE DAYS.  So, even though I arrived in Chicago at 10 AM, and my connecting train leaves in the evening, I had to spend a night in Chicago and sit in the Metropolitan Lounge most of the next day waiting to board.  

Spending two nights in hotels before ever leaving the Midwest added at least $500 to the cost of my trip.  If the Cardinal and Texas Eagle both ran daily I would only have to spend one night, in Cincinnati.  When the 3C&D line is built, and if the Cardinal and Texas Eagle go to daily service, no nights in hotels would be necessary.   Unfortunately, I will most likely not be able to take advantage of that line because I will be close to 90 years old, if I'm lucky enough to live that long, and most likely won't be traveling any more.

I fear that Ohio will decide to pass on the 3C&D, just as they did on the 3C.  If that happens, I feel I have only one choice.  My grandchildren are about to start their freshman and junior years in high school.  In four years, when they will both be in college, I will move to a state that has good public transit and has an Amtrak station.  My son and his wife will also move.  I am sure that I am not the only one who will make the decision to move away from here rather than spend their last years unable to drive and with no other options.  And I am equally sure that young people will choose to live in states with good transit and easy rail access.  My 6 grandchildren range in age from 14 to 34.  They all would rather not drive if they had options.  Not proceeding with the 3C&D would be a HUGE mistake for Ohio's future.  Ohio could become the crossroads of America if the projects currently being planned are allowed to come to fruition.