Conductor issues tickets - current status?

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Barciur

Barciur

OBS Chief
Joined
Aug 13, 2012
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599
Location
Lancaster, PA
Hello

I am planning on taking an AMTRAK soon that's short and I don't know when I'll be going, so I figured I'd just buy a ticket on board. i would like AGR points for this, however. My question is, what is the current status and method of getting AGR points for conductor-issued tickets? I searched for this issue on these boards, but I only found stuff from 3 years ago and I figure this won't be of much use.
 
Rather than buy on board give Amtrak Res a call as soon as you figure out your run and you should get a lower fare; Conductors generally have to charge Full Pull for on-board purchases. Or if you have a Smart Phone you should be able to make the Res right there and have the barcode on phone for the Conductor to scan.
 
Thanks for the suggestion; Keystones from Parkesburg to Lancaster are always the same price, so that part is irrelevant, but I didn't think about calling to reserve. That might avoid me some hassle then!
 
They might be a bit higher in price on Friday and Sunday.

I should add that using points for a 20 minute or so train ride isn't a great bang for your point. I think it's $6.50 to go Parkesburg to Lancaster.
 
Not only for you, but for all reading this. Even if you have a reservation at any fare (even low bucket), unless you have printed your ticket or have the QR code printed out or on your smartphone, a conductor generally can only sell tickets at the highest fare!
 
Per Amtrak.com

OnboardOn most Amtrak trains, only the full, undiscounted, unrestricted fare will be available for purchase onboard the train. This is regardless of reservations made or fares previously quoted. To secure the best available fare, passengers should purchase tickets prior to boarding the trains
Click to expand...
 
Acela150 said:
They might be a bit higher in price on Friday and Sunday.

I should add that using points for a 20 minute or so train ride isn't a great bang for your point. I think it's $6.50 to go Parkesburg to Lancaster.
Click to expand...
My intention is to get 100 points for the ticket, not use my points to buy the ticket! ;)

That is my question - can I report the ticket for 'missed points' on a conductor-issued ticket?

Sorry if I didn't make it clear..
 
Yes you can, but it will take a lot of time to get credit. Why not just purchase it on your smartphone, including your AGR number, and it will post automatically within days? :huh:
 
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Also it's a cash only fair. A passenger got on the wolverine awhile back and needed a ticket for chicago. $85 CASH and if he didn't have it he would be put off in Detroit.
 
Well if you were going to pay by credit card, why wouldn't you buy over the phone/internet/Quik Trak?
 
Several times I have seen the conductor use the credit card machine in the lounge car for a passenger to pay for tickets on a reservation not paid for.
 
the_traveler said:
Not only for you, but for all reading this. Even if you have a reservation at any fare (even low bucket), unless you have printed your ticket or have the QR code printed out or on your smartphone, a conductor generally can only sell tickets at the highest fare!
Click to expand...
The conductor can look you up with your ID if you can't get the code up on your phone. I have seen it done a few times in my travels. I always have paper tickets, but sometimes it will not scan, so he asks for my ID then inputs the name and the reservation comes up and he lifts it that way.

People should do their best to have the reservation code or paper ticket, but he can look you up as a last resort.
 
There is no lounge car on the Keystones and there is no Quik-Trak in Parkesburg.

The Keystones west of Philly are unreserved and other than a Fri/Sun "peak" period, there is

no difference in fares regardless of how far in advance you purchase (other than a penalty for

buying on-board when you board at a staffed station).

All that being said, no one has provided an answer to the OP's actual question of how you go

about getting AGR points for a ticket purchased on board. I don't know the answer, myself.
 
I do not know how post-Electronic Ticketing COTS works but if the Conductor uses his keypad to run an on-board purchase he may have the ability to key in your AGR #. If not keep your copy of the receipt and call AGR within a day or 2 of finishing your trip; they should be able to cross reference.
 
I think it'd be best just to call and ask about getting points for on-board tickets. I don't think I've ever had the missing points form work for conductor-issued tickets.
 
In the pre e-ticket era I could understand boarding and paying with a credit card if there was no mechanism to receive a ticket at an unstaffed station. But in the e-ticket era there really aren't many scenarios where you would need to pay the Conductor with a credit card...
 
I've called before when I purchased a Business class upgrade on a Pacific Surfliner on board as the station I was boarding at was unstaffed and the machine didn't work. I paid with a credit card. All they did was imprint the credit card information on the ticket form (rubbing it with the back of a pen) and gave me a carbon copy of it. They just wrote the starting and ending points as well as the price on the ticket and punched the value of it. No name or other information was written in.

To receive the points I called AGR and they asked for some numbers off the ticket. I was then credited 100 points for the on board paper ticket after they located it in the system.

This may have changed recently but that was how it worked based on my experience.

As for purchasing on board, I have seen on many a Capitol Corridor train conductors first asking the passenger if they have a smart phone. If they do they will direct the passenger to the Amtrak mobile website and have them buy a ticket off of that. I assume they do this because it is easier for accounting and tracking purposes as well as for the Conductor (although most will help navigate through the website). They have always taken Cash and Credit as far as I recall. Passenger information generally isn't written in on conductor issued tickets on that route either IME and seat checks (receipts) will also be printed after an E-Ticket is scanned for further tracking purposes in the near future.
 
I was down in the Philly area today did a points run on the Keystone and starting a multi-segment trip over three days to SYR (tomorrow is just NWK-NYP to 'hold' the main portion of my trip), on-board paper tickets on the Keystones are definitely alive and well. I think there all still old punch form type tickets. I heard some punching.

As I got off in Ardmore for my layover (and to continue dashing to get other SEPTA Regional Rail stations using the Independence Pass I also bought for the day). There was a woman who asked the conductor if she could buy a ticket to 30th Street station on board and the response was "You Bet." She was quite happy to be able to board. Ardmore does have a Quik-Trak machine inside the station but its locked tight after 1:00pm and on weekends when the SEPTA ticket agent is off duty.
 
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