By Mary Architzel Westbrook, The Virginian-Pilot; April 19, 2019
On an early morning train from Norfolk to Alexandria not long ago, a woman sat down across from me in the quiet car and tried to strike up a conversation. Over the next few minutes, she made a phone call and asked another passenger about the number of stops along the way before an Amtrak employee checked our tickets and reminded her of the car’s no-talking rule.
“I had no idea,” she said, following the employee’s gaze up to the blue and white “Quiet Car” signs that hang over the aisle, seeing them there, apparently, for the first time.