Has Amtrak ever looked at doors on the stairs?

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spinnaker

Lead Service Attendant
Joined
Mar 23, 2018
Messages
419
I was on the CZ last week, in the SSL. Despite all of the warnings for parents to hold the hands of their children when they move about the train a toddler was running loose in the SSL.

Next thing I know, whoosh the child goes disappearing down the staircase with a loud scream to follow. By some miracle the little guy seemed to be unhurt other than having the heck scared out of him. The poor kid was just crying like crazy when mom put him on her shoulder to take him away. . Really breaks your heart when you see that happen to a little one.

This kind of accident happens a lot at home with much more horrible results. That is why a lot of parents install gates at the top and sometimes bottom of stairs to keep accidents from happening.

I can see for an unaware adult and a lurch of the car at the wrong time can send them tumbling down the stairs. Has Amtrak ever looked at gates for the stairs? Maybe they have but decided that the fix is worse than the actual problem. I could see where a gate on stairs could be a problem. Problems with people not securing the gate and the gate getting in the way for loading and unloading.

Have they at least looked at handrails through the cars? Seems to be none except for the stairs. Maybe they would just be another place to bump yiu head, But they seem to work on commuter trains an buses? Maybe it is just a simple space issue on the train?

In the meantime I would hope that folks follow the same rules us sailors try to follow. One hand for the boat the other for you. Meaning hold on at all time while doing work on the boat. In the case of the parent's. One hand for you to hold on. The other for the kiddies.
 
Call me a hard nosed <whatever>, but to my way of thinking, letting kids 'run loose' in any environment is asking for problems. Whether it's falling down steps, running into the street, or slipping on a wet floor somewhere, there WILL be consequences.

Agree. This should be a parent's responsibility. Not Amtrak's. If you are going to bring your kid on a train (or anywhere else), don't expect others to do your job of watching out for their safety.
 
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The conductors and car attendants make frequent announcements to hold onto something as you walk through the train (the back of a seat, a table, the door frame, etc.) They also say that children MUST be supervised at ALL times. I've seen conductors chastise parents for letting their kids run loose.

Baby gates and the like could get in the way during an emergency. Installing them would prevent a swift egress.
 
A little kid running around a moving train without close supervision from a parent is the parents' responsibility, not Amtrak's. Amtrak make it very clear that children must be supervised, so why is it their responsibility to put gates at the top of all the stairs, which will make it more difficult for passengers (especially with bags) to go up and down the stairs. So no, I do not think Amtrak should be putting gates or doors on the stairs.
 
If a person's luggage placement is considered dangerous or problematic, the Conductor, who does this job every working day, is the person to judge it.

Most incidents are a balancing act, there are many minor infringments daily on Amtrak, just let the Conductor deal with it if they see fit?

(That is my last word on the topic... Now back to my plans for my next trip, bringing my electric kettle aboard, sleeping in the lounge car, and managing a few non Amtrak beers en route. Hm, maybe some chewy seeds for breakfast.. )
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Chill,

Ed.
 
If a person's luggage placement is considered dangerous or problematic, the Conductor, who does this job every working day, is the person to judge it.

Most incidents are a balancing act, there are many minor infringments daily on Amtrak, just let the Conductor deal with it if they see fit?

(That is my last word on the topic... Now back to my plans for my next trip, bringing my electric kettle aboard, sleeping in the lounge car, and managing a few non Amtrak beers en route. Hm, maybe some chewy seeds for breakfast.. )
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Chill,

Ed.
Did you mean to reply to the (now locked) "Camping out in coach??" thread? I agree with everything you just said, though.
 
A little kid running around a moving train without close supervision from a parent is the parents' responsibility, not Amtrak's. Amtrak make it very clear that children must be supervised, so why is it their responsibility to put gates at the top of all the stairs, which will make it more difficult for passengers (especially with bags) to go up and down the stairs. So no, I do not think Amtrak should be putting gates or doors on the stairs.

When you think about it, there must be dozens of places where you (or your kids) can get hurt on or near trains. It really does require a lot of vigilance . Unfortunately many people are oblivious.

Makes you wonder how many times Amtrak gets sued in a year. It always has to be someone else's fault and not the person that had responsibility for their own (or their children's safety)

There was a story I saw today about a young couple that forgot their passports in seat backs. They were blaming the airline for denying them entry to another country because they did not have a passport. Always someone else's fault.
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