What difference would it make if the CHS alienated a large portion of the railfan community? As a railfan myself, I hate to say it but I don’t think any semi-major tourist railway would miss us railfans. We are a very small portion of their revenue and often more headaches then we are worth. So what if they alienate us? They are NOT trying to get the Loop running us.
As for the towns, well you may have a point there but besides a few posters here, I don’t know if the CHS has alienated the town. The ironic thing here is that 35 years ago, another group of people almost alienated Georgetown by rebuilding the Loop. And now the town can’t live without it. Funny how things change.