Chicago-San Diego in early December?

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Ferroequinologist

Lead Service Attendant
Joined
Jan 18, 2016
Messages
374
I'm trying to decide if I should reschedule a trip on the SW Chief from Chicago to LA and then San Diego in early December. I know everything's unpredictable these. Any thoughts? I should add I have decided to fly to Chicago from the East Coast and stay one night so as not to miss the connection which would completely mess up plans.
 
I wouldn't recommend cross-country travel right now--or any time until a Covid vaccine becomes available--unless you really need to go.

If your need for travel is urgent and can't be postponed, best to travel in whatever way minimizes the risk of falling ill far from home with a disease that has killed more than 200K people in this country. And bring along supplies for self-care in case you need it.

In the scenario OP proposes, I'd worry about multiple opportunities in various settings for exposure to Covid--and opportunities for you to infect other people if you're infected without symptoms.
 
I'm trying to decide if I should reschedule a trip on the SW Chief from Chicago to LA and then San Diego in early December. I know everything's unpredictable these. Any thoughts? I should add I have decided to fly to Chicago from the East Coast and stay one night so as not to miss the connection which would completely mess up plans.
I agree with the posters who say postpone this trip until things are more settled Healthwise, and the LD Trains are once again running Daily( the Cardinal and Sunset are exceptions)
and the Food Service has gotten Lots Better!
 
I agree with the posters who say postpone this trip until things are more settled Healthwise, and the LD Trains are once again running Daily( the Cardinal and Sunset are exceptions)
and the Food Service has gotten Lots Better!

How long from now will that be? Two or three years? And will the LD trains ever return to daily or will the whole LD system collapse?
 
Right now the answers are Blowin' in the Wind.

Well know more after the election, and what happens with the New Congress and the status of the Pandemic in the New Year.

Why the election? You think Democrats will give more funding? The pandemic is not going to go away soon and a vaccine is expected to be about 50% effective - so this is going to drag on and on.
 
Why the election? You think Democrats will give more funding? The pandemic is not going to go away soon and a vaccine is expected to be about 50% effective - so this is going to drag on and on.
Congress doesnt want to do anything right now, except get reelected, so as lawyers like to say, "it depends"( on the election and the Status of the country in January. )
 
I agree that it's unpredictable but the virus isn't going to vanish. And a vaccine is NOT going to be anywhere near 100% effective. That means social distancing and masks will have to be practiced for a long time.
 
Any thoughts?
If you're able to adhere to the recommendations (masks, distancing, quarantines) for the duration then I say go for it. If you think you might struggle to stick to the plan then maybe wait for things to get better.

Why the election? You think Democrats will give more funding? The pandemic is not going to go away soon and a vaccine is expected to be about 50% effective - so this is going to drag on and on.
Yes, especially considering that one of the biggest Amtrak proponents is in the running for federal budget veto power.

https://www.marieclaire.com/politics/a32363173/joe-biden-amtrak-joe-meaning/https://www.huffpost.com/entry/why-america-needs-trains_b_412393
 
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It seems to me that every aspect of life contains some risk, a gamble...
We can sometimes move the odds in our favour if we have the correct information for any given situation, any given moment.
Keeping away from contact with the virus is a 100% a good move. Mixing with anyone at all carries some risk of catching the virus. We each have to decide ourselves where the risks are, and the quality of our information about such risks.

For myself, being in an older age group, I would not consider non essential travel in the near future. It may never be possible to enjoy travel, or any aspect of my life as it was a year ago, or things may gradually improve... I accept that reality.
 
Why the election? You think Democrats will give more funding? The pandemic is not going to go away soon and a vaccine is expected to be about 50% effective - so this is going to drag on and on.
The vaccine is not expected to be about 50% effective. Rather that is the cutoff for the FDA to accept a new vaccine. At least that is my understanding and I'm guessing that's where you got your 50% effectiveness number.

With reference to the election, although Amtrak happily has bipartisan support, Democrats are usually looser with the purse strings than Republicans. I don't think having Amtrak Joe as president will make a whole lot of difference, except maybe as a bully pulpit (but maybe not even that given that we have so many problems right now), as Congress holds the purse strings.
 
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If you're able to adhere to the recommendations (masks, distancing, quarantines) for the duration then I say go for it. If you think you might struggle to stick to the plan then maybe wait for things to get better.


Yes, especially considering that one of the biggest Amtrak proponents is in the running for federal budget veto power.

https://www.marieclaire.com/politics/a32363173/joe-biden-amtrak-joe-meaning/https://www.huffpost.com/entry/why-america-needs-trains_b_412393
'Amtrak Joe' sure didn't do crap for Amtrak while 8 years as VP other than claim he rode 7000 times.
 
It seems to me that every aspect of life contains some risk, a gamble...
We can sometimes move the odds in our favour if we have the correct information for any given situation, any given moment.
Keeping away from contact with the virus is a 100% a good move. Mixing with anyone at all carries some risk of catching the virus. We each have to decide ourselves where the risks are, and the quality of our information about such risks.

For myself, being in an older age group, I would not consider non essential travel in the near future. It may never be possible to enjoy travel, or any aspect of my life as it was a year ago, or things may gradually improve... I accept that reality.

Very well said. Your post states precisely where I am at this time in my thinking.
I keep being tempted, though, to "break out of my bubble" to try to enjoy some small bits of my pre-Covid life, i.e. dining in a restaurant. Then, I read some news that discourages me from doing so. Is an evening of fine dining worth then discovering that along with my Rib Eye Steak (medium rare, thank you), I was served a dose of Covid-19?
 
'Amtrak Joe' sure didn't do crap for Amtrak while 8 years as VP other than claim he rode 7000 times.
I'm curious what you expected a Vice President to do for Amtrak. Was there a vote for additional funding that was split 50/50 and Joe cast the deciding vote against it? Which VP's do you believe did more for Amtrak than Joe did? Senator Biden already had a good track record on using and supporting Amtrak and he's credited with helping Obama to see the benefits of promoting passenger rail including Amtrak. Many of the Amtrak cars I rode were repaired from funds allocated during this period. The largest passenger rail proposals included tens-of-billions for projects involving improved and expanded passenger rail but after the first couple years the balance of power changed and later pro-rail initiatives were blocked, suspended, refused, or rescinded at both the state and federal levels.
 
The vaccine is not expected to be about 50% effective. Rather that is the cutoff for the FDA to accept a new vaccine. At least that is my understanding and I'm guessing that's where you got your 50% effectiveness number.

With reference to the election, although Amtrak happily has bipartisan support, Democrats are usually looser with the purse strings than Republicans. I don't think having Amtrak Joe as president will make a whole lot of difference, except maybe as a bully pulpit (but maybe not even that given that we have so many problems right now), as Congress holds the purse strings.


I've seen the 50% figure in many sources, also that it could be considerably less for those who are elderly. Here is one quote from Anthony Fauci:

"We don't know yet what the efficacy might be. We don't know if it will be 50 percent or 60 percent. I'd like it to be 75 percent or more," Fauci said in a webinar hosted by Brown University. "But the chances of it being 98 percent effective is not great..."
 
I've seen the 50% figure in many sources, also that it could be considerably less for those who are elderly. Here is one quote from Anthony Fauci:

"We don't know yet what the efficacy might be. We don't know if it will be 50 percent or 60 percent. I'd like it to be 75 percent or more," Fauci said in a webinar hosted by Brown University. "But the chances of it being 98 percent effective is not great..."
The key point in Fauci's statement is that we don't know yet what the efficacy will be. That is one of the things that will hopefully be determined during the ongoing Phase III trials.
 
For myself, being in an older age group, I would not consider non essential travel in the near future. It may never be possible to enjoy travel, or any aspect of my life as it was a year ago, or things may gradually improve... I accept that reality.
I'm accepting that possibility, sure not liking it. However, I'm also not into testing the reliability of any 50-60% vaccine.
Good luck to Ferroqui---- on what he decides on his trip. I feel plenty safe reading travel reports.
 
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I'm curious what you expected a Vice President to do for Amtrak.

When I read the poster's comment, I wondered the same. Mr. Biden was the VP. His job was not in "calling the shots" for Amtrak. If he becomes the CEO, then, he would have the authority to try to "call the shots for Amtrak" providing a majority of 535 members of Congress agree.
 
The key point in Fauci's statement is that we don't know yet what the efficacy will be. That is one of the things that will hopefully be determined during the ongoing Phase III trials.

He said "We don't know if it will be 50% or 60%". I think it's clear from what he said that it isn't going to be 90-100% effective which means that masks and social distancing will continue until there is herd immunity. A vaccine (if safe) will help but is not very likely going to be a panacea.
 
Apart from breaking ties in the Senate -- and potentially presiding over it to abolish the filibuster -- the Vice President doesn't really have much power. The vice presidency is worth "a bucket of warm ****" according to FDR's vice president John Nance Garner.

When he was in the Senate, Joe Biden did a lot for Amtrak.
 
Taking a long distance train has always been on my bucket list and I would've this summer if not for the pandemic. Now I'm worried there won't be any such thing as a long distance train if I wait until every is back to "normal".
 
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