PERHAPS THEY ARE SERIOUS ABOUT THE HIAWATHA CORRIDOR. Beyond Brilliance, Beyond Stupidity is a compendium of Orchids and Onions Awards in urban planning. One development worthy of an Orchid is this report from Milwaukee's Business Journal on plans for the Amtrak Wisconsin service.

The Milwaukee-to-Chicago trip currently takes about one hour and 30 minutes. The goal is to reduce the travel time to about one hour and five minutes, [Amtrak spokesman and former WNIU newscaster Marc] Magliari said.

Regular readers of Cold Spring Shops will know that this goal represents genuine progress. The best scheduled time, long before either the Superintendent or Mr Magliari were born, was 75 minutes, nonstop. A run time of 65 minutes inclusive of stops at Mitchell Field, Sturtevant, and Glenview will require average running times between stations approaching 90 miles per hour.