1987 article. The format was threatened by the arrival of fast food, served over the counter and with more payment flexibility than traditional automats. By the 1970s, the automats' remaining appeal in their core urban markets was strictly nostalgic. Another contributing factor to their demise was the inflation of the 1970s, increasing food prices which made the use of coins increasingly inconvenient in a time before bill acceptors commonly appeared on vending equipment. At one time, there were 40 Horn & Hardart automats in New York City alone. The last one closed in 1991. Horn and Hardart converted most of its New York City locations to Burger King. At the time, the quality of the food was described by some customers as on the decline. 2000s US revivals In an attempt to bring back automats in New York City, a company called Bamn! opened a new East Village Dutch-style automat store in 2006, but it closed in 2009. In 2015, another attempt was made, by a San Francisco company called Eatsa, which opened six automated restaurants in California, New York and the District of Columbia, but closed them all by 2019. The company rebranded itself as Brightloom, and continues to sell automation technology to restaurants (which includes software for ordering kiosks, mobile apps, digital signage, etc., to facilitate order pickup). The COVID-19 pandemic has inspired a new wave of automat revival attempts, to adapt to the disease and the desire for contactless dining. Joe Scutellaro and Bob Baydale opened an Automat Kitchen in Jersey City's Newport Centre shopping mall in early 2021, which uses technology similar to what Brightloom offers, and specializes in fresh food. Another is the Brooklyn Dumpling Shop, which as of 2021 still planned to open in the East Village, not far from the Bamn! location. Rail transport A form of the automat was used on some passenger trains. The Great Western Railway in the United Kingdom announced plans in December 1945 to introduce automat buffet cars. Plans were delayed by impending nationalisation, and an automat was finally introduced on the Cambrian Coast Express, in 1962. In the United States, the Pennsylvania Railroad introduced an automat between Pennsylvania Station, New York City and Union Station, Washington, DC, in 1954. Southern Pacific Railroad introduced automat buffet cars on the Coast Daylight and Sunset Limited in 1962. Amtrak converted four buffet cars to automats in 1985 for use on