Remember that level of interest is not foreordained but rather varies directly [[well, perhaps more like exponentially...) with service quality. If the train from Detroit to Chicago went 150mph and had ten trains a day, a lot more people would be using it.

[[I'm not saying we should build that service, just saying that it's hard to judge "level of interest" without talking about a specific service plan.)

This is worth a look. East Lansing and Ann Arbor would provide a lot of built-in market. Is there freight on this corridor? A delay-free experience could build ridership quickly and take a few cars off of 96.