Train talk

I am a frequent Amtrak rider and advocate of passenger rail, as well as an active member of NC Con Net. Revitalizing intercity passenger rail and rail transit is a cause I hope the environmental movement champions to a greater degree in the coming years. Moving more people and goods by rail will greatly reduce CO2 emissions and engender more centralized development patterns. Anyway, here are answers to your questions:

1) Trains are often delayed, thanks to chronic underinvestment in passenger rail in the US. The most frequent direct cause is congestion of freight trains, with which Amtrak must share tracks in most of the country. The freight railroads own the tracks, and although the law says they must give Amtrak preference, the law is poorly enforced. Another cause is equipment failures, which are becoming more frequent as Amtrak's equipment ages without sufficient funding for replacement. But don't let this discourage you: on-time performance has improved significantly over the past year and most delays are less than 2 hours.

2) I think it's worth the extra time because it's a more enjoyable ride. You can walk around freely on a train, socialize with others, and eat in the café or dining car, all of which are difficult to do on cars and airplanes.

3) I have never gotten motion sick on a train. I can read a book for hours on a train, whereas I start getting dizzy after 15 minutes of reading in a car or on a bus, and after about 30 minutes on a plane. Trains offer a very smooth ride, except in a few spots where track conditions cause bumps and jolts.

4) Parking is free at all Amtrak stations in North Carolina, but space may be limited since ridership has gone up. There have been isolated reports of car windows being broken near train stations, but as long as you take the usual precautions of not leaving anything valuable in a visible spot in the car, it'll be fine. I've left my car at the Greensboro depot for extended periods and I've never worried about it.

5) Yes. Amtrak has refurbished the interiors of most of its fleet. Coach seats recline farther and offer more legroom than any airline seat, and overnight trains offer sleeping cars (though often at a hefty premium). Bathrooms are generally clean, but be prepared for the rare exceptions.

6) Coach seats are very spacious, with two seats on either side of the aisle. There is more space between each seat on overnight trains than on daytime ones, and some seats have footrests. The sleeping roomettes are pretty small, but I am 6 feet tall and I can fully recline in a roomette bunk.

7) A great source for all sorts of information on passenger rail issues is the National Association of Railroad Passengers (www.narprail.org), of which I am a member. For environmental facts specifically, see this page or Amtrak's Travel Green page. I hope you enjoy your trip and I look forward to reading your impressions of the experience.

Wow! Thank you so much, Malcolm. I really appreciate your feedback on the questions, and the links to Amtrak's Travel Green page. I've already checked it out! Hopefully, I'll take a trip to either Charlotte or Washington DC sometime in October, and I'll report back here then.

I am checking to see if you are the Malcolm who was taking Amtrak and my friends & I meet you in a charming hotel when the fire alarm went off. I was wondering if you wrote your book??

Mindy,

I travel by train to Washington DC to visit family. It certainly beats driving.

I can board the train at the Cary train station and travel to Union Station in Washington, downtown and close to my family member’s office. Parking at the Cary station, like the Raleigh station, is free. The trip takes about seven hours, about the same as driving if you include a few stops. On the train I have a seat that has more leg room than first class on airplanes. I can put my lap top computer on the fold down tray and have room to open it, unlike the situation on many airline seats. Many of the seats have 110 volt outlets, so I don’t have to rely on my computer’s battery.

I am free to get up and walk at any time, very important for someone as restless as me.

Most of the time I can find an empty table (or side of a table) in the snack car, making it even more comfortable to use my computer. I can usually plug in my computer at the table.

I often ride the TTA bus into downtown Raleigh from the Cary train station. On several occasions I have taken Amtrak from Raleigh back to Cary-a rather quick trip. It is more expensive than the bus, but I would rather wait inside at the Raleigh train station than stand at the bus stop.

As for your specific questions, I agree with Malcolm’s reply.

This is awesome, John. I'm very restless (and a little panicky when confined to tight spaces!) so it would be wonderful to have the option to move around a bit. I'm very excited about my train trip. Right now, I'm looking at doing a short trip (like to Charlotte) in October, just to try it out. If that goes well (which it sounds like it will!), my boyfriend and I might try a longer, overnight trip. We were thinking about Bangor, Maine just because both of us have heard of it, but know nothing about it! I'd like to reclaim my idea of traveling...and allow myself to enjoy the traveling itself, as well as the destination and the arriving back home.

Train travel is a great way to travel with children (who get so restless in cars). I traveled by train from Charlotte to Raleigh by train with my young children (and a couple of other families) for the day just for fun--as a kind of "field trip". It was great fun for the adults and the children. Also, I recently traveled from Charlotte to Washington, DC for a long weekend. This trip does take longer than by car (1 full day of travel each way) and is more expensive, but the children loved being free to roam, play cards, read books, watch movies, and I read books and enjoyed the rural scenery. Highways are mind-numbingly boring, but trains pass through beautiful rural areas, small towns, and interesting urban areas. And once we got to DC we didn't have to pay for parking--just walked and took the great transit (and cabs). I wish the schedule for Charlotte to Atlanta was more optimal (currently one leg of the trip departs @ 2:00am) as I hate the car congestion of that drive especially.

Good to know! Charlotte and DC are my two most-frequented destinations so that might be one of the first trips I try.

I traveled a couple of times across the country by Amtrak from AZ to KY. It's expensive; so I did it in winter. Travelling in the West is much different than east of Chicago. Western bound trains are less crowded and have an observation car with couch type seats that face ceiling to floor windows. Hey, it's a beautiful country in winter, too! You travel with the same passengers for days. In the dining car, they try to seat your party with other people, to encourage socialization. I met European students and retired folk enjoying not driving behemoths down the freeways (before gas became prohibitive!). I met probably a third of the travelers, between the differing cars. I traveled alone and found it quite a social event!

I was not able to afford a sleeper car; and the seat I was assigned (yes, reserved) in the coach car was the most uncomfortable of any I have endured, including cattle car style airplanes. So I slept, lying down, on the marginal couches of the observation car. A number of other people did this also. I can generally sleep well anywhere; this served me.

The snack car at that time was also a smoking car; fun to hang out in, but as a non-smoker, oppressive. These, as you have noted, are in the east, as well.

East of Chicago, trains were always more crowded; but still a relatively friendly mode of travel. For these long trips, I always took a handwork project... something I could work on and talk, watch the gorgeous scenery go by. One time I completed a mola (only one I've ever done!) I gave to a friend at one end of the trip; another, I worked on an embroidery project.

I had a great time. Amtrak allows a few open-ended stops (you can get off and back on a few days later; your choice of stops). A great,fun, relaxed, and social way to see the country! There are 3-4 routes across the country at various latitudes. If I could afford it, I'd take all of them, stopping to see country, family and making friends all the way across.

lw wherever you go, there you are

It was a great amtrak ride. The scenery, the food, the service and the sleepette were wonderful!!! I will travel east next time.

I would like to know of other scenic rides.