When making a connection that is not guaranteed, at Chicago, is there a rule of thumb for how much time to allow between trains? With the long distance trains it is often reccomended to allow for an over night in chicago to be sure to make your outbound train. But what about the shorter inbound routes? For example, I will be taking the Hiawatha from Milwaukee to Chicago to catch the Capitol Limited with a 6:40 departcher time. My head says the 3:10 departure from the airport should leave me 2 hours and 10 minutes in Chicago. Taking the 1:10 seems extreme leaving me 4 hours of sitting time in Chicago. BUT, what if there is an accident, say a train / car incident? Added into this is my sit time in Milwaukee in case there is an issue with my 90 minute trip to the Milwaukee station. (allowing another 20 minutes here) And yes,I know there is lots to see in Chicago, but i have been there seen that on several other trips. Anyone want to share their rule of thumb?
How much time to allow for connections?
- Thread starter Fred Wis.
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the_traveler
Engineer
Have you entered from Milwaukee Aitport to (your final destination) to search for trains?
If so, the connection in Chicago would be guaranteed.
And even if (as you said) some accident with the 1 pm train, they may even cancel the 3 pm train. They use the same equipment.
If so, the connection in Chicago would be guaranteed.
And even if (as you said) some accident with the 1 pm train, they may even cancel the 3 pm train. They use the same equipment.
Generally, I'll try and make the connections that Amtrak lists as the "default" when building an itinerary. For the Hiawatha > Capitol Limited Connection, it appears the 3:10 PM connection would be the one. If they're booked separately, Amtrak may be able to add a note or link them in some way if a call is made in advance to Amtrak.
If there's no official connection, for Amtrak I'd follow their rule of thumb for 1 hour for short-distance trains and 2 hours for long-distance train connections (based on which train I'm connecting from.) If it's from long-distance bus to long-distance bus, I'll leave two hours if there's no official connection as long as it's with the same company. I always am extremely hesitant about cross-carrier connections that aren't ticketed through Amtrak (or the carrier, if it's a non-Amtrak itinerary) - usually in those cases I'll leave 4-6 hours, minimum, unless I'm extremely confident and feeling a bit dangerous. Since the connection is not protected, it'd be extremely difficult to get any exceptions for rebooking and such due to a missed connection. Local transit and airport-specific shuttles (even longer distance ones, if they're aimed at the airport transport market and are basing their pickup/dropoff on my flight's departure time) don't apply and I'll usually leave either the recommended time just as if I was driving there.
If there's no official connection, for Amtrak I'd follow their rule of thumb for 1 hour for short-distance trains and 2 hours for long-distance train connections (based on which train I'm connecting from.) If it's from long-distance bus to long-distance bus, I'll leave two hours if there's no official connection as long as it's with the same company. I always am extremely hesitant about cross-carrier connections that aren't ticketed through Amtrak (or the carrier, if it's a non-Amtrak itinerary) - usually in those cases I'll leave 4-6 hours, minimum, unless I'm extremely confident and feeling a bit dangerous. Since the connection is not protected, it'd be extremely difficult to get any exceptions for rebooking and such due to a missed connection. Local transit and airport-specific shuttles (even longer distance ones, if they're aimed at the airport transport market and are basing their pickup/dropoff on my flight's departure time) don't apply and I'll usually leave either the recommended time just as if I was driving there.
The 1:05 PM train from Milwaukee becomes the 3:15 PM train from Chicago. It wouldn't affect him unless the 1:05 PM train from Chicago was affected on its way to Milwaukee.
I've connected from Hiawatha to long distance trains many times. Unless I had a specific, particular reason to extend my layover in Chicago, I've always just used the train that Amtrak defaults to, which in your example, would be the 3pm train from Milwaukee.
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cpotisch
Engineer
I would recommend you look at the OTP for the train you'd be connecting from, and just make sure it reliably makes that connection. Each train is different, so there is no magic number that works for all connections.
Purchasing travel insurance to cover such instances may provide a solution...but can be rather expensive...
Dakota 400
Engineer
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Maybe I am too paranoid about making connections in Chicago, but when I need to make a LD train/plane connection, I will book a hotel overnight just to be sure that I make the train or plane, whichever is the mode of transportation I will be next using.
I do the same thing with cruises. I will never fly or take the train to the port of embarkation that is due to arrive on the day of sailing. I always arrive at least one day prior to sailing day and sometimes two days depending upon time of year. That's what I am doing this December for my Silver Meteor trip to Fort Laudedale to connect with a cruise: arriving two days early.
I do the same thing with cruises. I will never fly or take the train to the port of embarkation that is due to arrive on the day of sailing. I always arrive at least one day prior to sailing day and sometimes two days depending upon time of year. That's what I am doing this December for my Silver Meteor trip to Fort Laudedale to connect with a cruise: arriving two days early.
cpotisch
Engineer
I agree. And worst comes to worst you have a day or two in your connection city. In the case of Chicago and Fort Lauderdale, there's not much wrong with that.
tricia
Conductor
Except for the added cost, in both time and money for lodging, food.... Amtrak's unreliability makes for costlier travel, which means fewer train trips for many of us.
Dakota 400
Engineer
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Yes, the cost of a trip increases. But, one's blood pressure with the risk of a stroke or a heart attack decreases in my estimation.
A personal example illustrating Dakota's above statement: I live near Spokane, and have taken several trips on the Coast Starlight. In order to do so, one can either make the same day connection from Spokane to Portland on the Empire Builder and catch the CS from there, or take the EB to Seattle, overnight there, and catch the CS in Seattle. I always opt for staying overnight in Seattle. It is well worth the extra day and extra expense for me rather than sweat out the connection in Portland. Besides, there are worse things I can think of to do than spend a day in Seattle.
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tricia
Conductor
Few people have unlimited time and money. I definitely agree that adding an extra overnight to prevent a missed connection is wise and worthwhile. But adding days and expense to an itinerary, to accommodate Amtrak's unreliability, often puts that itienrary out of reach, at least for me.
I connect from STL. I avoid the Eagle, even if it's Amtrak's guaranteed connection, and take one of the Lincoln service trains. Which of those depends on what I'm connecting with. For the SWC, EB and CZ, I take the earliest one and sleep until Joliet. Everything else it's the 6:40 am.
Just curious...if you are taking the SWC, wouldn't it be better for you to connect in KCY?
That is the scheduled connection. It's one hour, and the last few times I've been on the River Runner, it's been 30 to 90 minutes late.
One hour or less connection at 11pm means dinner is in the lounge car. Since this is a train trip by choice, frankly, I'd rather have breakfast/lunch in Chicago and dinner in a dining car than breakfast/lunch at home and dinner in an Amcafe.
You can call ahead for Jack's Stack in KCY and pick it up across the tracks. Takes about ten to fifteen minutes if you call early enough to have your order ready. We used to do a same day turn when the schedules were reliable.
One hour or less connection at 11pm means dinner is in the lounge car. Since this is a train trip by choice, frankly, I'd rather have breakfast/lunch in Chicago and dinner in a dining car than breakfast/lunch at home and dinner in an Amcafe.
You can call ahead for Jack's Stack in KCY and pick it up across the tracks. Takes about ten to fifteen minutes if you call early enough to have your order ready. We used to do a same day turn when the schedules were reliable.
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