WSJ a Positive Article
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PaulM
Engineer
Well put.
IMHO privatizing intercity train service is a brain dead idea. So is there any solution? I don't think unions are at the root of the problem. After all, there are other unionized businesses that don't feel like a Soviet hotel. I think a big problem is the archaic organizational structure; e.g., the TS/OBS silos, the lack of a on-board manager. Why is the conductor not responsible for customer service; but is responsible for ticket collection? Answer: because that's the way it's also been.
By the way, was that a section sleeper in daytime configuration in picture 3 with Fred MacMurray and Claudette Colbert?.
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Positive? Yes, but with lots of errors.
Coach on the train in no way compares with coach on the plane. Try and get up and walk around on a plane. Then go find a seat in an area with a great view or go buy yourself a sandwich when you have the munchies on a plane. Lastly, stretch out in your plane coach seat without hitting your knees, your neighbor or ... Then there are the baggage fees, long lines, fighting for overhead space, etc. But you do get a free soda and the world's smallest package of pretzels but only when they get to you.
The roomette is not shared unless you want to share it with someone. You buy the room, not a bed.
The food is not Michelin rated but is still better than the first class airline stuff. And the quantity at a meal is more. No need to bring sandwiches with a room. On the other hand, on the plane, you can get sloshed in first class. And you'll want to do it, knowing you'll have to go again through security sexual assault, long lines, hassles and fighting for overhead bin space or long waits for luggage on the return trip. It will drive anyone to drink.
Where is that internet on the LD trains?
It's just a bedroom, not a private car. What was he smoking?
Can't stand the in-room shower in a bedroom? Use the bigger one down the hall or downstairs.
In all my years, I have never been put with three strangers. A group of three will likely get their own table. You could be put with one person or two traveling together.
And of course, it's easy to get reservations when you have money to burn for last minute changes and two bedrooms.
Oldsmoboi
OBS Chief
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If by "arcane service" he means far more attentive and friendly than airlines but in an old school way, then yes I guess he would be right.
If by "arcane service" he means the old fashioned notion of not having to pay a fee to change travel plans (only the difference in ticket fare)... .then yes I guess he would be right.
I suppose I'm one of the lucky ones that has never had bad service from Amtrak. But if my past experience back and forth on the Cap Ltd and Pennsylvanian is any indicator... yes, I'll take more "arcane" please.
This last trip on the Cap was STAND OUT wonderful. Octavia is an awesome and funny dining car attendant who served me and jokingly helped me through my pre-coffee haze of figuring out what car I slept in. Carlos was a very attentive sleeping car attendant who checked in as we departed Chicago, introduced himself, and when a rough bit of track shook the car good, checked on everyone in it, and brought me a towel when he found that my open water bottle went ass over teacups. Oh.. and he knocks on your door in an interesting beat.
If by "arcane service" he means the old fashioned notion of not having to pay a fee to change travel plans (only the difference in ticket fare)... .then yes I guess he would be right.
I suppose I'm one of the lucky ones that has never had bad service from Amtrak. But if my past experience back and forth on the Cap Ltd and Pennsylvanian is any indicator... yes, I'll take more "arcane" please.
This last trip on the Cap was STAND OUT wonderful. Octavia is an awesome and funny dining car attendant who served me and jokingly helped me through my pre-coffee haze of figuring out what car I slept in. Carlos was a very attentive sleeping car attendant who checked in as we departed Chicago, introduced himself, and when a rough bit of track shook the car good, checked on everyone in it, and brought me a towel when he found that my open water bottle went ass over teacups. Oh.. and he knocks on your door in an interesting beat.
The author of the article half praises; half appologizes. I was not impressed, though many would latch on to the favorable things stated.
In significant balance of pros and cons, a deluxe bedroom trip on Amtrak far eclipses the best first class domestic airline travel, unless time is the imperative.
That's the one that I remember. And he called it that more than once. Very misleading.
PaulM
Engineer
I think you are describing "archaic", meaning old. I was also curious about the use of the word "arcane". I assumed it meant strange or odd. But according to a dictionary it means
I'll have to admit that is an apt term: the "few" being rail fans, but not the general public.
However, I must also admit that I noted in trip reports from the last few years major improvement in on-board customer service.
D.P. Roberts
Conductor
That was a good article. As a soon-to-be first-time rider on the SWC, I've also been on the lookout for articles about train travel. Is there any chance a "sticky" could be created with links to professionally written Amtrak reviews / reports? I think a lot of newbies (such as myself) would benefit from being able to find them more easily.
For example, I just found this link, which I thought was a well-written review of the SWC. It was a good account from a newbie, addressing questions many of us have forgotten to even think about. For example, the author of that article had booked her own roomette, but didn't know if the upper bunk could be sold to another passenger or not!
For example, I just found this link, which I thought was a well-written review of the SWC. It was a good account from a newbie, addressing questions many of us have forgotten to even think about. For example, the author of that article had booked her own roomette, but didn't know if the upper bunk could be sold to another passenger or not!
henryj
Conductor
I agree. I thought is was a very positive article written by someone that obviously knew nothing about trains before embarking and written in a positive way in a very conservative newspaper, the Wall Street Journal. I saw no reason to pick it apart for it's inconsistencies or inacuracies. We need more people like this to support our passenger rail system. We as a bunch of foamers and nit pickers cannot do it by ourselves. We need the general public on our side.
RailFanLNK
Conductor
I too, felt that by picking Amtrak out of the blue and not writing a scathing article about everything that supposedly sucked was a positive. I liked the article enough that I sent the link to a family that is friends of mine that are embarking on thier first Amtrak trip in two weeks.
TimePeace
Disillusioned.
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I agree we need more positive press, especially in papers like WSJ.
And I respect that many of you found this article positive.
I did not. It was full of inaccuracies, and condescending. There is a slightly positive spin, especially to a reader who has never taken Amtrak.
I am not "picking it apart." Lots of important details are just plain wrong. No, there is no excuse for such inaccuracies in a major daily newspaper. If such mistakes were made in important articles about business matters, this fluff piece would have never made it past an assistant editor's desk.
I think it was better than nothing - but barely.
And I respect that many of you found this article positive.
I did not. It was full of inaccuracies, and condescending. There is a slightly positive spin, especially to a reader who has never taken Amtrak.
I am not "picking it apart." Lots of important details are just plain wrong. No, there is no excuse for such inaccuracies in a major daily newspaper. If such mistakes were made in important articles about business matters, this fluff piece would have never made it past an assistant editor's desk.
I think it was better than nothing - but barely.
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Oldsmoboi
OBS Chief
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He used it in context of an old Soviet hotel....
G
Guest
Guest
There were a few errors in his facts about things that he did not experience, but I found his opinions pretty accurate. I would say arcane is a very fair judgement.
It is funny that some of you foamers look at Amtrak like it is "the precious" in lord of the rings and can't see any deficiencies.
It is funny that some of you foamers look at Amtrak like it is "the precious" in lord of the rings and can't see any deficiencies.
Devil's Advocate
⠀⠀⠀
I'm not against a list of commercial articles for purposes of getting a read on the beltway media's view of Amtrak. Just keep in mind that this "professionally written" article has enough misunderstandings and obvious blunders that it's hard for those of us who actually know something about how Amtrak works to take it very seriously. I don't think the author is trying to intentionally get it wrong, I think he just didn't have the wherewithal to actually research his original assumptions before publishing them. That's the kind of thing that any of us might do from time to time, including yours truly, but in the case of a paid media outlet it seems rather unprofessional.
D.P. Roberts
Conductor
Yes, it had several problems, and I think they've been fairly well pointed out in this thread. But for a first-time Amtrak rider, it's probably pretty helpful. I think many seasoned travelers like yourself forget what it was like when you didn't know ANYTHING about train travel. User-generated sites (tripadvisor, epinions, etc.) are full of people who will "NEVER AGAIN!" ride Amtrak because of their poor experiences, and they tell everyone they know about it. Many of these poor experiences could have been prevented with a little education.
For example, many first-time travelers book roomettes and are horrified at how small the space is. Five minutes of research on amtrak.com would have shown them exactly how small the room is, but for some reason many people don't bother. They see the bedrooms when they get onboard, and assume that's what they must have booked, and are sometimes quite angry when the SCA shows them to their assigned roomette (especially when the train is fully booked, and upgrading to a bedroom isn't possible). Many of us think a roomette is enough space for two, but the average first-time traveler probably will not. The author of this article was wrong in thinking that roomettes are shared, and that's not the first time I've seen that error. But I think overall, hearing "you really should try to spring for a bedroom" is probably good advice for people who don't know what they're getting into.
I'm a first time LD rider (but not till Nov
). I've been doing my homework (which is why I'm on this site every day ). It can be hard for me to picture how big/small something is by looking at a picture. That's why I'm glad I went to NTD in May. My daughter (who will be traveling with me) and I got to see the Viewliner's roomettes so we have a pretty good idea what our roomette will be like (though I know it's different from the Superliner).Speaking of the pictures, have you noticed that the roomette picture (at least one of them) shows a kid in the seat, not an adult. Makes you wonder if Amtrak is trying to make the room look larger.
lthanlon
OBS Chief
While I agree that the article has some positive aspects, my take is that it reeks of elitism and teachable moments. And I nearly projectile vomited when I encountered this steaming load of humble-bragging: "If you are not alone, get two adjoining rooms and suite them up. When I travel with my wife and two young daughters, we do this and giggle the whole time, visiting through the sliding door from one room to another."
RailFanLNK
Conductor
"Educate a first time rider", I've been doing that for about 3 years now and some folks on AU has thought it to be "dumb". I have found that every person who has walked into my home with NO knowledge of Amtrak leaves knowing most of the cons and all of the pro's of train travel. I have a family of three coming over Monday (11) night to get the "skinny" about rail travel. Its also going to be the first trip they have taken and never used an automobile which is so outside of their comfort zone. I applaud them for looking "outside the box" on this trip! There's only one couple that didn't find the time to meet with us about their first (and probably last) trip on Amtrak and lo and behold they "didn't like this, didn't know that" and all I could do is sigh and say, "should have met with us". :wacko:
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VentureForth
Engineer
I agree with about everything you said. I would like to say, though, that when I travel alone, I almost always sit with three strangers - whether the other three travel together (like a dad and his two boys on my last trip) or three strangers amongst themselves as well. As mentioned in the article, I'm just as much a stranger to them.
Some would perhaps say stranger than most.Here's the funniest part of the article I read:
Funny how that is perhaps the NUMBER ONE complaint that you hear about on this board - lack of communication.
As far as internet, all I can presume is that he's talking about the Coast Starlight there. I believe they have Wifi in the lounge car.
Over all, it didn't way overstate the train as America's hidden luxury. In fact, he made a very valid point that the cost is not going to be a reason why you take the train. And he pointed out what I like to point out to newbies - it's not the cost, it's the adventure. Travel with a reasonable dose of expectations and be plesantly suprised.
VentureForth
Engineer
I forgot another interesting quote from the article:
I just wish he told the reader where exactly in Chicago you can bathe (didn't imply getting a room at a pricey hotel). I quite enjoy the showers on the train. You haven't lived until you shower at 79 MPH!
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leemell
Conductor
From the way he is talking I don't think he even tried to use it. It is nonsensical.
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