The last Freedom Train in the nation will make its final run today. The San Jose to San Francisco route was chosen by the widow of the late Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. because the distance between the two cities is roughly equivalent to the 54 miles traveled by King and his fellow protesters when they journeyed from Selma, Alabama, to Montgomery 50 years ago this March.
Declining ticket sales and difficulty obtaining sponsorship for the event are the reasons Monday's ride will be the last one.
"A person that doesn't come out to celebrate Martin Luther King probably doesn't know about him. They're not aware of what he's done -- to make this country the great country that it is today," said Ocie Tinsely, African American Heritage House.
The final Freedom Train is scheduled to depart from San Jose's Diridon Station at 9:45 a.m. Monday and travel nonstop to the Caltrain station at Fourth and King streets in San Francisco.