2 bottles of water per person per trip has been reduced to 1

[C&O RR]

So the original story last month was that people in the sleepers would only get 2 bottles of water per person for the entire trip. In order to save mega bucks the official policy is 2 bottles per room per trip (equals 1 bottle per person if two people are in the room).

I just got on the SWC in Chicago and was talking with the attendant when she got her water delivery of 72 bottles. There will not be any additional bottled water delivered along the route. She told me that each of her 30 rooms will only get 2 bottles for the 3 day trip with the 12 extras used when someone gets off along the route and a new person occupies the room. Yes there is a limited emergency stash in the lounge car that can be tapped, but management is counting bottles and matching that up with rider count. :blink:

 

[Bob Dylan]

There they go again! Next two people in a room will be sharing one bottle! Guess that will save millions!!

 

[niemi24s]

This is no big deal to me as I've never had any problems consuming the potable water from any Amtrak sink faucet. I just feel sorry for the onboard staff and this Mickey Mouse situation they find themselves in. And for those who are wondering, "Mickey Mouse" was the term we used in the Air Force to describe a situation that was...uh...er...well, made us scratch our heads in abject befuddlement.

 

[C855B]

Sometimes the potable water is just nasty. We also encountered the bottled water "shortage" on the trip we're on now, and the crap from the tap out of CHI was revolting. Haven't tried eastbound yet.

Two in the room beats the zero we got both ways on one trip late last year. :wacko:

 

[Pooh2]

We just returned from a trip on the California Zephyr. There were two bottles in the room (for two of us) when we started on the first day. We were given more water whenever we requested (each drank two bottles per day). It did not seem to be a big deal.

 

[Cina]

Agreed, on my trip we each had a bottle waiting in the roomette, and our excellent SCA gave us each two more the next day (without us asking!) he also had ice available and kept the coffee going all day, so he was basically the James Dean of hospitality.

 

[Tennessee Traveler]

Apparently the distribution of water, etc, depends on the OBS crew and SCA's. I traveled on CONO and CZ for 4 different trips in June and was supplied with two bottles each time I boarded with voluntary additional water any time I requested from SCA's(4 different SCA on four different trip 3 of which were on the CZ).

 

[seat38a]

On the Coast Starlight and Empire Builder, extra water was available on request but they were not replenished in the rooms automatically.

 

[neroden]

The trains are supposed to have tanks of POTABLE tap water, and I believe still do. Bottled water is incredibly environmentally wasteful anyway. A program of readily available plastic cups and "drinking fountain" taps is the way to go.

If there's a problem with the tanks, or with the sources used to fill them, it should be *fixed at source*. Equivalent of a Britta filter, perhaps? I know some of the sources are just fine; New York City tap water is among the best rated water in the United States.

 

[Devil's Advocate]

I'll admit I have a hard time trusting Amtrak's water tanks. I'm not sure who is tasked with cleaning or certifying them but that water looks and tastes weird. Perhaps there could be a compromise with filtered water provided from an Igloo water cooler? That seems reasonable enough to me.

 

[VentureForth]

The trains are supposed to have tanks of POTABLE tap water, and I believe still do. Bottled water is incredibly environmentally wasteful anyway. A program of readily available plastic cups and "drinking fountain" taps is the way to go.

If there's a problem with the tanks, or with the sources used to fill them, it should be *fixed at source*. Equivalent of a Britta filter, perhaps? I know some of the sources are just fine; New York City tap water is among the best rated water in the United States.

No... 3oz cone shaped or tiny Dixie paper cups are the way to go. These trains have all been outfitted to supply them. Don't know what the difference between 1950 and 2015 is, but it seems to me tiny bits of water and disposable paper cups were the way to go. Plastic is environmentally irresponsible in whether stacked cups or bottled.

I'll bet they stopped using paper when people started throwing away plastic in the tiny trash cans next to the water fountains...

 

[amamba]

I have no problem filling up my nalgene bottle from a potable water spigot on the train. i just want to be sure, like others have mentioned, that the water tanks are appropriately cleaned and sanitized to ensure that the water is indeed potable.

I agree that bottled water is incredibly wasteful - certainly in terms of the plastic waste, but also in terms of the fact that sometimes the water is coming from municipal water supplies or depleting ground water in California.

 

[andersone]

if you think water bottles are the answer, just Google The Story of Water (I can' post links) form the Stuff Org and you will cringe every time you use one again.

 

[Devil's Advocate]

if you think water bottles are the answer, just Google The Story of Water (I can' post links) form the Stuff Org and you will cringe every time you use one again.

Here are some relevant links...

 

[caravanman]

On my first visit to India, the chai (tea) was served in tiny pottery cups that one threw out the window after use. These were gathered up from the tracks, ground down and refired again to make more cups. Sterile one time use and recycling too.

Nowadays the cups are plastic and litter the countryside...

Ed

 

[Devil's Advocate]

I'm having to break this up do to forum restrictions on inline videos but here is another one in which folks might be interested...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zYuH4pJ2v2E

 

[Pastor Dave]

Not that it is of any value to the conversation regarding whether or not it is miserly to restrict bottled water, I read an article back indicating that the plastic bottles have some sort of chemical in them that can reduce men's testosterone levels. So maybe the manly man will need to be satisfied with the sometimes barely-potable potable water from the tap.... :blush:

 

[C855B]

... Don't know what the difference between 1950 and 2015 is, ...

A few big things come to mind. First is we've gained vast amounts of knowledge about sanitation in public spaces. Second is standards have become lower for personal behavior, demeanor, dress, appearance and personal cleanliness in public. Third is young children are poorly supervised - how many of you have visited a buffet-format restaurant and witnessed a toddler run his or her fingers through everything within reach?

The water cooler dispensers and paper cups characteristic of vintage passenger cars are wonderful bits of nostalgia, but they had to go the way of toilets that directly flushed to the tracks. We know better now.

 

[fillyjonk]

I'd be a lot better with the "potable" water if there were a filter (esp. one that would trap bacteria, that's my big worry, bacteria and molds growing in the tank) between the tap and my cup. I use the drinking fountain at my workplace but I SEE the guy cleaning it and I trust his procedures, I don't know for sure when the tank on a sleeping car was last cleaned.

I know bottled water is wasteful but in emergency situations it can be a lifesaver. One of the first things brought in after a natural disaster is cases of bottled water. I know they managed before it but I suspect the distribution is fairer and easier using it rather than expecting people to scrounge up a container and line up at a tap.

 

[neroden]

Not that it is of any value to the conversation regarding whether or not it is miserly to restrict bottled water, I read an article back indicating that the plastic bottles have some sort of chemical in them that can reduce men's testosterone levels.

BPA (or BPB, or several similar chemicals)? Same chemicals cause elevated blood pressure. :sigh:

 

[neroden]

The trains are supposed to have tanks of POTABLE tap water, and I believe still do. Bottled water is incredibly environmentally wasteful anyway. A program of readily available plastic cups and "drinking fountain" taps is the way to go.

If there's a problem with the tanks, or with the sources used to fill them, it should be *fixed at source*. Equivalent of a Britta filter, perhaps? I know some of the sources are just fine; New York City tap water is among the best rated water in the United States.

No... 3oz cone shaped or tiny Dixie paper cups are the way to go. These trains have all been outfitted to supply them.

I'm cool with classic Dixie cups, though I absolutely use far more water than that (so I fill my enormous glass water bottle).

 

[jebr]

Better than to do what? Sure, it's better than having a water cooler that hasn't been cleaned, but my understanding is that the potable water tank (and the spigot used to fill it) has to meet FDA requirements for cleanliness, which includes disinfecting it, etc. on a regular basis and only using certain hoses (that are specially designed to not touch the ground) as well.

Then again, I did drink straight out of the well(?) spigot on the farm as a kid, so maybe I'm not the best source. (I do have a water filtration device on my kitchen tap at home, just because I like the taste better.)

 

[Bob Dylan]

We could always go back to glass bottles to replace the plastic, the world has plenty of free/cheap silicon ( sand) and we used to do fine when everything came in glass! ( ie milk, sodas, juice etc.)

However the Koch Brothers and the other greedy oil Barons will fight to the death if government tried to implement this common sense proposal!

Scene from "The Graduate" where an older guy is giving Benjamin advice about how to ensure his future: " Plastics!"

 

[C855B]

... Same chemicals cause elevated blood pressure. :sigh:

As does hanging-out in online forums.

 

[dlagrua]

I buy 16 oz Poland spring bottled water at COSTCO for less than 20 cents each. The no name water on Amtrak probably costs them 5 cent per bottle. Boy they are really getting cheap with the passengers that pay the most. Its sickening.