[4] The Hilltopper had warm supporters in Byrd and West Virginian congressman Harley Staggers but it was "cited by critics as an example of everything that was wrong with Amtrak".

[5][6]: 51  Beginning on January 8, 1978, the Hilltopper was combined with the Night Owl, creating through service from Boston to Catlettsburg, Kentucky.

[8] The Hilltopper was one of five routes cut on October 1, 1979, as part of a reorganization by the Carter Administration, and the only of the five where no federal injunctions were obtained to keep service running.

[9] As recently as October 2019, passenger rail advocates are pushing for restoration of east-west service from Christiansburg and the Blue Ridge Mountains to the Hampton Roads area, via Roanoke, Lynchburg, Charlottesville, and Richmond with a "Commonwealth Corridor."

[10][11] A 2021 feasibility study for the corridor conducted by the Virginia Department of Rail and Public Transportation estimated that the service would cost $416.5 million to get started, and generate 177,200 annual riders by 2040.