I recall reading that Amtrak in the northeast was upgrading their fleet of trains to faster trains. Still, seems the norhteast has the country's best train record for being on time. Besides, how many hours is it from New York to DC on the train. Not much. ? THe real problem for Amtrak , I have read is the lousy condition of the tracks. But, they can't do much about it because the track in owned by the freight trains.