Amtrak is not reasonable prices compared to trains in like any other part of the world, except some parts of UK. Other than booking extremely early you're looking at 150$ plus tickets.
Which is genuinely infuriating when you subsequently board a half-empty train.
Which sucks for a public good. Imagine if roads worked this way (and no, surge pricing of express lanes don't count, since there's no discount for using it at the same time having booked it two months in advance). Or, like, water use.