I always took it as a song very much of 'the present times of its songwriting', but regretting the 'disappearin' of an aspect of American life. The song reflected my own experiences riding on Canadian passenger trains at the time, so, as I say, I didn't take it as about the past. In fact, I'm not even sure I grasped the 'disappearin' part when the song was new; Steve Goodman was more prescient than I was.