Steam engines are expensive to run and maintain, the require constant upkeep.
It takes a few months to learn how to fire one, then you usually have a few more months of training to be an engineer.. so not everyone can do it, if there is a shortage of crew members, then it's virtually impossible to run the train versus running a ride.
Just like at all Paramount parks except maybe Wonderland, the concentration is on adding mediocre coasters to attract a certain type of customer, why constantly removing flat rides and other family rides such as the train. For them, it appears to be a pure cost factor, not taking into consideration how removal of such attractions takes away from the quality of the visit. They likewise removed the monorail from Carowinds, and the train from Great America (which was also used as a transportation mode from the front to the back of the park). King Island alone has had 20 some rides removed since its opening, most without similar replacement.
They have managed to take 4 wonderfully themed parks, KI, KD, Carowinds and Great America and make them some of the most mediocre themed, least diversified parks in the country, in my opinion.
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