CONNELLSVILLE, Pennsylvania — It is 6:59 a.m., and Amtrak’s Capitol Limited is slowly pulling up to the station here that sits along the Youghiogheny River. For many people, this little station in one of the poorest counties in Pennsylvania is their only lifeline to travel to family and friends during the travel restrictions of the coronavirus pandemic.

Secretary of Transportation Elaine Chao said she understood that critical need in rural America. That’s why when she announced the Federal Railroad Administration’s $1 billion funding for Amtrak, it wasn’t just for the highly used Acela corridor routes connecting Boston, New York, Philadelphia, and Washington, D.C. It also included help for small routes just like this.