Hello All

[Devil's Advocate]

Hello all,

I'm new to this forum but I'm definitely not new to Amtrak. I've managed to ride the Southwest Chief, the Sunset Limited, and Acela "Express" over the years. And just last weekend I got my first ride on the Texas Eagle. It was the usual mixed bag with 50% on-time performance and some employees (station clerk, lounge server) really impressing me with their professionalism while others (coach attendant, conductor) apparently had no clue what customer service involves. The first time I saw the coach class attendant she was walking by quickly blurting out "Where ya gettin' off?!" to each passenger from behind their chair. It didn't matter what you said in reply, she would just keep repeating that same line until she got the answer she wanted and then she'd immediately walk off to ask the next person. After that she walked by again openly cussing "oh ****" about god only knows what. Later on when I kindly asked her when the late train was expected to arrive she instantly spat out the original scheduled time while already facing away and walking away with no interest in giving actual information or seeing if there was anything else I needed to know. Having had the opportunity to ride trains in places like Germany and Japan it never ceases to amaze me how inefficient and inept America's rail system has become by comparison to most every other industrialized country. As much as I enjoy riding trains I almost never recommend them to anyone here at home because it's handled so poorly that it's sure to disappoint them. Which leaves me all the more amazed that this forum even exists, but somehow I came across it and here I am!

-Dax

 

[GG-1]

Which leaves me all the more amazed that this forum even exists, but somehow I came across it and here I am!
-Dax

Aloha and Welcome

 

[the_traveler]

As much as I enjoy riding trains I almost never recommend them to anyone here at home because it's handled so poorly that it's sure to disappoint them.

Welcome!

The same can be said about airlines too! I've had an occasion where I was booked to Albany, GA instead of Albany, NY! (Because the codes are ABY and ALB, and someone in another country doesn't know they are over 1,000 miles apart! ) I've also sat both in the gate area to board for over 1 hour after the scheduled departure time - without any word why the delay! And I've also sat on the plane for 15 minutes at the gate - because the agents "forgot" to show up and bring the jetway out to the door! And don't get me started about having to get to the airport 1-2 hours early to go thru "Security"!

I once let my sister off near the platform and went to park the car. Before I even found a parking space, the train arrived! I still made the train! Try that at JFK or O'Hare!

I'll take a train easily over a plane!

 

[had8ley]

Welcome Dax...things aren't really that bad on most routes. The TE manages to catch some sloppy equipment which may go from NOL to SAS and return with little or no TLC and this effects both the OBS and train crews attitude. At least we have sleeper and meal service on all major LD trains. When the post office took the mail off of the trains in the 60's and moved it to the airlines the Southern Pacific cut off all sleepers and diners on the Sunset Ltd. All it had was coaches and what they called an "automat" car. We called it the barfamat car and the employee in charge expected to get a tip for changing dollar bills. (I often wonder if that one person was responsible for the invention of the dollar bill changer.) Things will get better as more equipment comes out of Beech Grove and the worn weary cars can get the overhauls that they so desperately need.