Two things:
(1) On my recent trips on the EB and CS, each train had a coach-baggage car with six bike racks. The baggage area remained empty throughout the trip, and I still had to box my bike. I wish Amtrak would let us use the racks, as boxing a bike is a pain.
(2) In SEA, I found a dumpster full of perfectly good used bike boxes which had all been cut in half. I expressed my disappointment to the baggage guy; he said that they used to leave the used boxes out for reuse, but word came down that they were to destroy the used boxes so that we would have to keep buying new ones. This is nickel-and-diming at its worst. Taking a bike on Amtrak is difficult enough already; Amtrak should not destroy resources and degrade the rider experience just to scrape up a few short-term dollars. They will lose far more money when riders figure out that megabus is faster, cheaper, and less hassle.
(1) On my recent trips on the EB and CS, each train had a coach-baggage car with six bike racks. The baggage area remained empty throughout the trip, and I still had to box my bike. I wish Amtrak would let us use the racks, as boxing a bike is a pain.
(2) In SEA, I found a dumpster full of perfectly good used bike boxes which had all been cut in half. I expressed my disappointment to the baggage guy; he said that they used to leave the used boxes out for reuse, but word came down that they were to destroy the used boxes so that we would have to keep buying new ones. This is nickel-and-diming at its worst. Taking a bike on Amtrak is difficult enough already; Amtrak should not destroy resources and degrade the rider experience just to scrape up a few short-term dollars. They will lose far more money when riders figure out that megabus is faster, cheaper, and less hassle.