I might need to go to Nawlins or Tampa in the next few months and I wondering about taking a train. Has anyone here used Amtrak lately? How are the accommodations, seating, cost, convenience, etc.? I don't like to fly and am [censored] that busses are pretty uncomfortable?
Anyone Riding the Rails?
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JHZR2
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I ride amtrak from Phila. to DC all the time. VERY good ride, much faster than driving. It is pricey though.
For the regional lines, there is far less ridership, so there is much more space, and things can be more pleasant. Since there is AC power, a laptop or movie player can be used without issues.
That said, the regional trains stop often, and so are much slower. Between DC and Phila., the difference between the regional and the express is about 15 minutes, and about 30 min to 1hr faster than driving. For the regional from Philadelphia to Pittsburgh, there is no express, but the train is a good 2-3 hours slower than driving. Then again, you can do work or enjoy yourself the whole way.
Regional trains are pretty cheap, its the boston-DC area that is $$$, because lots of folks use it. Given the cost of tolls and wear and tear, the train was a cost-effective way of doing Phila.-Pittsburgh before gas was $3.40/gal.
JMH
For the regional lines, there is far less ridership, so there is much more space, and things can be more pleasant. Since there is AC power, a laptop or movie player can be used without issues.
That said, the regional trains stop often, and so are much slower. Between DC and Phila., the difference between the regional and the express is about 15 minutes, and about 30 min to 1hr faster than driving. For the regional from Philadelphia to Pittsburgh, there is no express, but the train is a good 2-3 hours slower than driving. Then again, you can do work or enjoy yourself the whole way.
Regional trains are pretty cheap, its the boston-DC area that is $$$, because lots of folks use it. Given the cost of tolls and wear and tear, the train was a cost-effective way of doing Phila.-Pittsburgh before gas was $3.40/gal.
JMH
I used to take the Amtrak from Grand Rapids to Chicago then to Winona, Minnesota all the time. Never had a bad experience with it. Sometimes you can find the prices really cheap if you get the last minute ticket specials or if you book way early. I like the seats too, and if you're lucky you can get a car that has power outlets at every seat (great for laptops, cell chargers, etc.) Lots of leg room too.
My last 2 experiences between New Haven, CT and Boston were good ones. Take a look at a train car, then a plane fuselage and ask yourself, "If this were full which would I rather spend X hours in?" Given the state of the airlines financially and the undue focus on the security the balance is tipping towards the train for casual travel....
Does anybody know if there's a train between New Orleans and the Southwest? I looked it up about a year ago, and I recall Amtrak required you to go first to Chicago, then from Chicago to Albuquerque (!). Is there a line that runs along the I-10 path, say through El Paso, Texas?
good idea, I never thought about riding a train before. Buses are out of the question for us, planes are starting to get that way too with the question of safety, driving on vacation with high gas prices is hard with our own vehicle. Are train prices reasonable? let me visit amtrak.com, do they have competitors?
In my experiences, Amtrak is very expensive.
In most cases it is more expensive than airfare.
No wonder no one uses it.
Even with the pain of security checks at the airport, you could still get there much faster than train, and cheaper.
In most cases it is more expensive than airfare.
No wonder no one uses it.
Even with the pain of security checks at the airport, you could still get there much faster than train, and cheaper.
JHZR2
Staff member
Depends on where youre going, and the fact that you are guaranteed to be able to do work on the train. Makes the "value proposition" of the train superior for some circumstances... not all.
JMH
JMH
Used Amtrak last night. $5 for a week end pass of unlimited train riding .
[Chicago and suburbs]
[Chicago and suburbs]
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Amtrak is awesome!!!
very smooth. you sit high up and can see a lot.
the on board food isn't that good and it costs a lot. Bring a small ice chest or pick-nick basket with food
very smooth. you sit high up and can see a lot.
the on board food isn't that good and it costs a lot. Bring a small ice chest or pick-nick basket with food
I don't know if all of the routes are working yet along the gulf.
oilBabe and I used Amtrak last October. We went from Kirkwood, MO to Hermann, MO and returned the same day. We were meeting some friends to enjoy Octoberfest, wine, etc.
The trip there was without drama. Train was on time, departed and arrived as scheduled.
The return trip was horrible. You see, Amtrak has no tracks of their own. They "lease" (for the lack of a better term) track time from the freight railroads. So our train was probably 90 minutes late leaving Hermann, and then the 1 hour train ride took almost 3 hours. So instead of getting back to Kirkwood at about 11pm, it was 2am.
We had thought about taking the train to downtown St. Louis and then hopping on the Metro back into IL where we lived, but decided against this. That turned out to be a good plan, since Metro stopped running at about 1AM. We would have had to call someone to get us from the downtown train station.
So I would recommend Amtrak during the daytime hours. But for a short day trip, traveling at night, I couldn't recommend Amtrak.
I lived in Germany for three years and traveled all over Europe on the train, so I have great expectations for rail travel.
In Switzerland, you can practically set your watch by the trains, they are that timely.
The trip there was without drama. Train was on time, departed and arrived as scheduled.
The return trip was horrible. You see, Amtrak has no tracks of their own. They "lease" (for the lack of a better term) track time from the freight railroads. So our train was probably 90 minutes late leaving Hermann, and then the 1 hour train ride took almost 3 hours. So instead of getting back to Kirkwood at about 11pm, it was 2am.
We had thought about taking the train to downtown St. Louis and then hopping on the Metro back into IL where we lived, but decided against this. That turned out to be a good plan, since Metro stopped running at about 1AM. We would have had to call someone to get us from the downtown train station.
So I would recommend Amtrak during the daytime hours. But for a short day trip, traveling at night, I couldn't recommend Amtrak.
I lived in Germany for three years and traveled all over Europe on the train, so I have great expectations for rail travel.
In Switzerland, you can practically set your watch by the trains, they are that timely.
Originally Posted By: mechtech2
Used Amtrak last night. $5 for a week end pass of unlimited train riding .
[Chicago and suburbs]
That sounds more like Metra.
Amtrak's charter prohibits them from doing what you mention (travel between downtown and the suburbs). For example, I can board Amtrak at Naperville IL and head WEST, but I can't go east towards Chicago unless I'm connecting with another Amtrak train there.
Metra's weekend pass is a great value however.
Used Amtrak last night. $5 for a week end pass of unlimited train riding .
[Chicago and suburbs]
That sounds more like Metra.
Amtrak's charter prohibits them from doing what you mention (travel between downtown and the suburbs). For example, I can board Amtrak at Naperville IL and head WEST, but I can't go east towards Chicago unless I'm connecting with another Amtrak train there.
Metra's weekend pass is a great value however.
Originally Posted By: Benzadmiral
Does anybody know if there's a train between New Orleans and the Southwest? I looked it up about a year ago, and I recall Amtrak required you to go first to Chicago, then from Chicago to Albuquerque (!). Is there a line that runs along the I-10 path, say through El Paso, Texas?
The train you want is the Amtrak "Sunset Limited", which if I remember correctly runs three times a week each way between New Orleans and Houston, El Paso, Tucson, etc to Los Angeles.
There's no need to go via Chicago.
Does anybody know if there's a train between New Orleans and the Southwest? I looked it up about a year ago, and I recall Amtrak required you to go first to Chicago, then from Chicago to Albuquerque (!). Is there a line that runs along the I-10 path, say through El Paso, Texas?
The train you want is the Amtrak "Sunset Limited", which if I remember correctly runs three times a week each way between New Orleans and Houston, El Paso, Tucson, etc to Los Angeles.
There's no need to go via Chicago.
Originally Posted By: javacontour
The return trip was horrible. You see, Amtrak has no tracks of their own. They "lease" (for the lack of a better term) track time from the freight railroads. So our train was probably 90 minutes late leaving Hermann, and then the 1 hour train ride took almost 3 hours. So instead of getting back to Kirkwood at about 11pm, it was 2am.
On certain lines, freight traffic is booming and the Amtrak trains have to "get in line" with all the freight and coal trains. It'll probably remain this way forever unless someone (the government?) decides to build dedicated right-of-ways just for the passenger trains, and that's not likely to happen given the NIMBY attitude that is prevalent in this country. Sure, it would be great to have a world-class private mainline just for Amtrak, where they can go 100+ MPH and not have to worry about freight train interference, but just wait until someone proposes construction of such a line. Every special interest group imagineable will turn out to fight it.
The return trip was horrible. You see, Amtrak has no tracks of their own. They "lease" (for the lack of a better term) track time from the freight railroads. So our train was probably 90 minutes late leaving Hermann, and then the 1 hour train ride took almost 3 hours. So instead of getting back to Kirkwood at about 11pm, it was 2am.
On certain lines, freight traffic is booming and the Amtrak trains have to "get in line" with all the freight and coal trains. It'll probably remain this way forever unless someone (the government?) decides to build dedicated right-of-ways just for the passenger trains, and that's not likely to happen given the NIMBY attitude that is prevalent in this country. Sure, it would be great to have a world-class private mainline just for Amtrak, where they can go 100+ MPH and not have to worry about freight train interference, but just wait until someone proposes construction of such a line. Every special interest group imagineable will turn out to fight it.
Mass transit is a great way to improve your immune system.
JHZR2
Staff member
Originally Posted By: css9450
On certain lines, freight traffic is booming and the Amtrak trains have to "get in line" with all the freight and coal trains. It'll probably remain this way forever unless someone (the government?) decides to build dedicated right-of-ways just for the passenger trains, and that's not likely to happen given the NIMBY attitude that is prevalent in this country. Sure, it would be great to have a world-class private mainline just for Amtrak, where they can go 100+ MPH and not have to worry about freight train interference, but just wait until someone proposes construction of such a line. Every special interest group imagineable will turn out to fight it.
The DC to Boston route that I ride is dedicated like that, I elieve. Its the Acela 110MPH line.
hey are talking about doing same from NYP or Philadelphia to Pittsburgh, as the right of ways cause a 5 hour trip to take 7 or 8.
I think such things have been worked on for a while, to set up a passenger rail right of way, but the ridership has to be high enough to justify it. Other than a few lines, I cant see it happening much.
That said, even if it takes longer, you can do work and enjoy yourself, or get a sleeper car, depending upon where youre going...
JMH
On certain lines, freight traffic is booming and the Amtrak trains have to "get in line" with all the freight and coal trains. It'll probably remain this way forever unless someone (the government?) decides to build dedicated right-of-ways just for the passenger trains, and that's not likely to happen given the NIMBY attitude that is prevalent in this country. Sure, it would be great to have a world-class private mainline just for Amtrak, where they can go 100+ MPH and not have to worry about freight train interference, but just wait until someone proposes construction of such a line. Every special interest group imagineable will turn out to fight it.
The DC to Boston route that I ride is dedicated like that, I elieve. Its the Acela 110MPH line.
hey are talking about doing same from NYP or Philadelphia to Pittsburgh, as the right of ways cause a 5 hour trip to take 7 or 8.
I think such things have been worked on for a while, to set up a passenger rail right of way, but the ridership has to be high enough to justify it. Other than a few lines, I cant see it happening much.
That said, even if it takes longer, you can do work and enjoy yourself, or get a sleeper car, depending upon where youre going...
JMH
Thanks, CSS9450. I was startled at the idea that to get to ABQ, which is along I-40, I would have to ride the City of New Orleans train to Chicago first, then out and down to get to northern NM!
Maybe I could do this, then rent a car in El Paso and check out southwestern NM!
Edit: I just looked at the price. For a little roomette (I'm not going to sit in a seat for 30 hours), it's $529.00 -- one way. Ha. No wonder nobody rides trains nowadays.
Maybe I could do this, then rent a car in El Paso and check out southwestern NM!
Edit: I just looked at the price. For a little roomette (I'm not going to sit in a seat for 30 hours), it's $529.00 -- one way. Ha. No wonder nobody rides trains nowadays.
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