It’s 43 Hours From LA to Chicago. These Train People Like It That Way

When you board an American long-distance train in 2025, you are trading the airport routine for entry into a realm where there is neither TSA or WiFi.

Aboard Amtrak's Southwest Chief train from Los Angeles to Chicago. Christopher Reynolds / Los Angeles Times

By Christopher Reynolds Los Angeles Times

We were well into our journey from Los Angeles to Chicago, surrounded by cornfields and grain elevators, when the train halted and a voice rang out.