https://www.insider.com/review-amtrak-train-new-york-chicago-2021-7
Well, the guy sure can whine. If he wants to get to Chicago cheaply and quickly, fly for $70 (his quote); why on earth would he spend $500 just to try Amtrak at a known time of 19 hours in a room that is fully described as being certain dimensions?
Because Insider pays for content/junk news.
Rick
Have you ridden the LSL?
What I find amusing is that he complains about how cramped a roomette is and how he can’t walk around. Has he flown any time in this century? I guess he was expecting the Orient Express
Big difference. 19 hours vs 2.
His age group is not exactly Amtraks target market for sleeping cars. However, given what I pay on the Texas Eagle for RT Roomette $600-650. His price of $500 one way sounds rather steep.
If Amtrak chooses the Simens Economy sleeper design he will probably get a coach seat plus sleeping car accomodations because the Siemens economy sleeper you can’t stand up in…it’s so small, the most you can hope to do is situp in bed.
Rode the Orient Express Vienna - Paris. Could not “walk around” in my single-bed compartment either. Nor on the Blue Train Praetoria - Johanessburg - Cape Town.
John at end-of hallway.
$500?
Americans are square footage spoiled when it comes to hotel rooms.
It wasn’t always this way, the first railroad hotels had tiny sq foot rooms in the upper floors of their depots, look at all the former CP Rail hotels (now Fairmont) in Canada, their upper floor old building hotel rooms are tiny as well. I think it was something that started in the move to suburban homes in the 1950’s and grew worse from there. It’s horrible in North Dallas. Small homes start at 2,000 sq feet, average is close to 4,000 sq feet for a family of four. I live next to some 5,000-7,000 sq foot homes, some with a guest house or stable (Parker, TX - Home of Southfork Ranch from TV Series “Dallas”). Sell for $3-5 million each. Looks like they belong in Bel-Air, CA.
You don’t ride a train to look at TV…this guy HAS to be entertained or he dies. Try looking out the WINDOW…I find it interesting even at night…turn off the lights, close the drapes, pour a glass of Gran Mariner…and let your mind wander. It’s wonderful. And yes, i’ve taken the LSL from both Boston and NY, and loved both the Berkshires and the Hudson…is this guy brain dead? Can’t he figure out what to do if he’s not in a theater?
I admit that the shoe box lunches drove me away and I opted for a the Emporer’s room on the Canadian, but alas, COVID kept me home. I will not ride AMTRK until I can eat…full stop. I am longing for the Canadian before I die. I hope I make it.
GN-Fan: Exactly! The whole travel experience is not about getting from point A to point B, the space & time in between can be amazingly full of new information for you to process, think about, ponder, qustion, etc. I have spent most of several nights in the dome car of the Canadian in the dozen or so trips on her, mezmerized by the train’s lights revealing our passage through woods, fields, mountain passes, tunnels and towns: that is the icing on the cake. An open minded observer tends to be more empathetic, less judgemental and a whole lot more interesting to talk with than one who is locked into their travel bubble: at least that is my travel experience.
Just recently we rode in a roomette on the Cardinal, and we loved it. I even thought the food was okay.
To me it’s all about having your own space and looking out the window. I didn’t even read at all, just looked out the window.
Admittedly, it helps to be a railfan!
Is telling people how they should enjoy a trip a great way to promote that way of travel, though? If someone wants to watch Netflix, then that is perfectly ok.
Travel experiences? For the elderly and railfans fans. We are talking taxpayer subsidized transportation. If you want a land cruise, see if a for profit company will make a go of it. I doubt if many on here are interested in paying the true cost.
Airports and air traffic control are paid for with taxpayer dollars. Highways are built by government. Canals are …
Very stale whaadaboutisms.
Dragging in subsidies to other modes of transport is a tired old strawman. As your dear mother taught you, “Two wrongs don’t make a right.” Airlines should pay the full cost of the the air traffic control system and landing fees should cover costs and fees of building and operating airports, trucks and buses should be taxed to cover the disproportionate damage they do to highways and roads, barge operators should pay the money the Corps of Engineers spends maintaining waterways and the Coast Guard spends on aids to navigation, oxcarts should pay for…hmm, that’s a tough one. Unfortunately, the last prominent politician to attempt to make people pay for what they use (cleverly called “user fees”) rather than looting general revenues was Ronald Reagan and the usual forces defeated him. I like riding trains, I also like sailing and held a private pilot’s license (that ended when insurance went through the roof - lawyers have many sins to atone for) but I agree with Charlie and Randal O’Toole, other people shouldn’t have to pay for my hobbies. Read
And lest you dismiss O’Toole as a crank, let me point out that he is a card carrying railfan who volunteered on the SP&S #700 restoration project
One could argue effectively the role of subsidies by government is to expedite GDP growth. One could also argue they play a heavy role in build-up to World Wars like WWII that would not otherwise take place with just private spending. While it is true we could probably rely entirely on the free enterprise system for airline, road construction, and freight railroads. We would all be speaking German right now had that been our approach prior to a pending World War. Also the problem you run into with that approach is we would not be competitive with other countries (German autobahn), that spend tax money on their modes of transportation and we would fall behind in technology as well as GDP growth. Precisely why infrastructure spending is part of most economic stimulus plans. It is not only to jump start spending in the depressed economy but it is also to remain at the same level or to catch up from a behind position vis a vis other countries we are competing with.
In many parts of this country we started with a totally privately financed road system based on tolls.
Sorry but most of your examples are not analogous.