racer1735
Service Attendant
Having returned home from my trip to Texas, I thought I'd do a report on my Amtrak Experience going from Crawfordsville-Chicago-Fort Worth on Dec 1-2.
My son and I made advance reservations in coach on #51-The Cardinal from Crawfordsville to Chicago, then had a standard bedroom (roomette) on #21-The Texas Eagle from Chicago to Fort Worth.
We woke up early on Dec 1, eager to get to the unmanned plexiglass shelter that passes as a station in Crawfordsville, but was informed that the train was running approximately 2 hours late. The scheduled arrival was to have been 7:48 a.m., but theoretically would be closer to 10 a.m. Weather was in the 20's and snow falling when we arrived in Crawfordsville and was glad that the space heater in the shelter was turned on and working great! After just a few minutes, we heard the 'blat' of an air horn and grabbed our bags to walk out track-side. But it was a CSX freight that appeared, and as it rumbled past the engineer opened his window and shouted 'your train is an hour behind me!' So his update proved to be closer to reality than what either Amtrak's website or 'Julie - the automated operator' could tell us!
Finally, the Cardinal arrived, approximately 3 hours late. It had one F59 as motive power followed by a five-car consist (3 Amfleet coaches, one Viewliner sleeper and a cafe car). We found two seats (the train was about 3/4 full; sleeper was sold out and coaches had a few seats open by the time we boarded), waited for the conductor to take our tickets, then went to the cafe for a sweet roll and coffee/chocolate milk.
The café attendant was very friendly, considering the train was nearing the end of its run, but the food selection was nothing to get stirred up about! I did have the sweet roll heated up, and the coffee was hot.
We then returned to our seats for the duration. Our stop in Lafayette was a bit longer than normal as there were quite a few passengers getting on the train, as well as a large family that disembarked. We rolled through the station at Rensselaer, and the conductor informed us that we would not be stopping in Dyer, IN and our next and final stop would be Union Station. Then it was on into the maze that surrounds the South Side of Chicago. We stopped for about 15 minutes just outside of Dyer and once we got moving again we didn’t make another unplanned stop until we reached the CUS platform.
We got into Union Station at 12:50, so we only had two hours to burn instead of the originally scheduled five. Just enough time to go to the Metropolitan Lounge to check our two bags to Fort Worth and drop our two backpacks off with the red cap. We then walked two blocks in typical Chicago-winter weather (very cold and windy) to the Sears tower. Walked in, paid our 21 bucks, went to the top, got our picture taken, went back down, forked over another 21 dollars (!) for the photos and headed back to Union Station. My son noted that we had 25 minutes until we boarded and would have to eat quickly, which we did, grabbing two Chicago-style hot dogs, a fruit punch and an Old Style. We ate in 10 minutes and went back to the lounge, collected out backpacks and sat down until they called train 21/421.
One quick note regarding the personnel in the Metro Lounge…I've read a few previous posts regarding some 'disgruntled' or 'unfriendly' workers in the Lounge; we found nothing of the sort. The three ladies working the desk were very helpful and friendly (this was my first Amtrak trip in over 15 years and had several questions to ask) and the red cap recognized my son when we returned to claim our backpacks and produced his before we'd even asked for it…along with a smile and nice greeting!
First class (sleeper) passengers get to board first, and the attendant led us down the hallway and out to the proper track. My really thought it was neat to see all the trains lined up either nosed in to the platform or backed in ready for departure...that is, until one of them let off the relief valve on its airbrakes and he about went through the roof!
Train 21/421 was on track 12 and we were the last car on a 7-car Superliner-equipped train...2 F59's followed by a sleeper, diner, lounge, 3 coaches and our sleeper. We were in car 2130 (compartment 2). I believe that our car was one of the Superliner 1 sleepers as it had an awful (in my opinion) avocado green décor in the downstairs restrooms while the rooms themselves were a combination blue/purple.
Our car and the coach in front of us were considered to be Train 421 and were to be pulled in San Antonio for the run to California. In one of the mysteries of life, when I was making our reservations, the fare for train 21 was about $80 higher than for train 421, even though we were looking at the same departure and arrival cities. So technically, my son and I were in cars heading to Los Angeles. In talking with several other passengers, they weren't aware of this, nor that there may have been a rate disparity depending on which train number they were booking on at the time.
We settled into our car and met our attendant, Chris. In talking with him, we learned that he'd been with Amtrak for 25 years and really enjoyed it. His service over the course of the trip just proved that fact.
We departed CUS on time and headed southwest. At times the train would seem to really move…we outpaced most of the traffic along the corresponding interstate heading from Joliet towards Springfield, but then we'd pull onto a siding and sit for 10-15 minutes until a freight rumbled past. Just outside of Lincoln, IL, the conductor came over the intercom to inform us that we were going to have to pull into a siding and sit until an eastbound Amtrak train passed. We then proceeded to pull into a stub-siding where we sat for about 10 minutes, then backed out onto the main line before heading on towards St. Louis.
I did have one chuckle about this time…keeping in mind that Amtrak is pretty much a second-class citizen on all the tracks it covers, we pulled into one small town in Illinois just as darkness fell. As we sat at the station, I noticed the town was having a parade, which had made it as far as the crossing at the station, where it came to a standstill because our train had blocked the crossing! So the entire procession, police car leading the way, veterans with flags, bands, etc. Just stood there in the snow, waiting for us to move!
Had dinner at 7:30, which was the second seating option. I had a flat-iron steak with vegetables, ice tea and ice cream for dessert while my son had macaroni and cheese off the children's menu. In short, all of our dining car experiences were nothing short of excellent. Food was very well prepared and delicious, service was spot on and we really enjoyed meeting 'new' couples at our table. My only suggestion would be to cut back on the serving portions…I enjoy eating, but every meal we had was too much for me to finish…maybe this is where Amtrak might be able to save a few bucks (but keep the dining cars…they are what make the train!).
The train was running about 45 minutes off schedule when we pulled into St. Louis. By this point, the train was nearly full, with the majority divided between either disembarking in Arkansas or East Texas, or going as far as Austin or San Antonio to connect out west. We also had a LARGE group of Mennonites on the train. I had noticed that they were also on the Cardinal that we had taken earlier that day. I visited with one girl who said they were from Lancaster, PA, heading to Alpine, TX (they don't know what they're in for!), where they will then bus to Mexico to meet a group of Russian Mennonites and work at their school for one month.
After the stop in St. Louis, we had Chris make up our room and went to bed at about 10:30 p.m. What better way to fall asleep then the gentle rocking of the train with the sound of the horn softly sounding in the distance? I awoke just as we made our stop in Malvern, AR, so we were now closer to two hours off the schedule. In getting prepared for the day, I happened to notice the shower room was available, so I took my first shower on a train. Have to say that it does make a difference…plenty of hot water and the water stayed on the entire time (not the 30 second bursts that the instructions prepare you for). We then had a breakfast…I had the French toast while my son had pancakes and both were excellent. Then back to our compartment to pass the time until lunch.
We made good time once we got to Marshall, TX, passing several smaller stations without stopping, and when we got to Fort Worth, we were just one hour off the schedule. We backed into the station just as the train from San Antonio pulled in, and were joined by the Heartland Special, which was waiting for us before leaving for Oklahoma City. So, three Amtrak trains at the station together...looked pretty nice.
All in all, a great trip, my son really enjoyed it (all he wants to do now is talk trains and I have to roll down the window in the car anytime a freight goes by, regardless of how cold it is outside!). I guess I'll have to find an open weekend sometime soon to catch either the Cardinal or Hoosier Service for a weekend trip to Chicago!
My son and I made advance reservations in coach on #51-The Cardinal from Crawfordsville to Chicago, then had a standard bedroom (roomette) on #21-The Texas Eagle from Chicago to Fort Worth.
We woke up early on Dec 1, eager to get to the unmanned plexiglass shelter that passes as a station in Crawfordsville, but was informed that the train was running approximately 2 hours late. The scheduled arrival was to have been 7:48 a.m., but theoretically would be closer to 10 a.m. Weather was in the 20's and snow falling when we arrived in Crawfordsville and was glad that the space heater in the shelter was turned on and working great! After just a few minutes, we heard the 'blat' of an air horn and grabbed our bags to walk out track-side. But it was a CSX freight that appeared, and as it rumbled past the engineer opened his window and shouted 'your train is an hour behind me!' So his update proved to be closer to reality than what either Amtrak's website or 'Julie - the automated operator' could tell us!
Finally, the Cardinal arrived, approximately 3 hours late. It had one F59 as motive power followed by a five-car consist (3 Amfleet coaches, one Viewliner sleeper and a cafe car). We found two seats (the train was about 3/4 full; sleeper was sold out and coaches had a few seats open by the time we boarded), waited for the conductor to take our tickets, then went to the cafe for a sweet roll and coffee/chocolate milk.
The café attendant was very friendly, considering the train was nearing the end of its run, but the food selection was nothing to get stirred up about! I did have the sweet roll heated up, and the coffee was hot.
We then returned to our seats for the duration. Our stop in Lafayette was a bit longer than normal as there were quite a few passengers getting on the train, as well as a large family that disembarked. We rolled through the station at Rensselaer, and the conductor informed us that we would not be stopping in Dyer, IN and our next and final stop would be Union Station. Then it was on into the maze that surrounds the South Side of Chicago. We stopped for about 15 minutes just outside of Dyer and once we got moving again we didn’t make another unplanned stop until we reached the CUS platform.
We got into Union Station at 12:50, so we only had two hours to burn instead of the originally scheduled five. Just enough time to go to the Metropolitan Lounge to check our two bags to Fort Worth and drop our two backpacks off with the red cap. We then walked two blocks in typical Chicago-winter weather (very cold and windy) to the Sears tower. Walked in, paid our 21 bucks, went to the top, got our picture taken, went back down, forked over another 21 dollars (!) for the photos and headed back to Union Station. My son noted that we had 25 minutes until we boarded and would have to eat quickly, which we did, grabbing two Chicago-style hot dogs, a fruit punch and an Old Style. We ate in 10 minutes and went back to the lounge, collected out backpacks and sat down until they called train 21/421.
One quick note regarding the personnel in the Metro Lounge…I've read a few previous posts regarding some 'disgruntled' or 'unfriendly' workers in the Lounge; we found nothing of the sort. The three ladies working the desk were very helpful and friendly (this was my first Amtrak trip in over 15 years and had several questions to ask) and the red cap recognized my son when we returned to claim our backpacks and produced his before we'd even asked for it…along with a smile and nice greeting!
First class (sleeper) passengers get to board first, and the attendant led us down the hallway and out to the proper track. My really thought it was neat to see all the trains lined up either nosed in to the platform or backed in ready for departure...that is, until one of them let off the relief valve on its airbrakes and he about went through the roof!
Train 21/421 was on track 12 and we were the last car on a 7-car Superliner-equipped train...2 F59's followed by a sleeper, diner, lounge, 3 coaches and our sleeper. We were in car 2130 (compartment 2). I believe that our car was one of the Superliner 1 sleepers as it had an awful (in my opinion) avocado green décor in the downstairs restrooms while the rooms themselves were a combination blue/purple.
Our car and the coach in front of us were considered to be Train 421 and were to be pulled in San Antonio for the run to California. In one of the mysteries of life, when I was making our reservations, the fare for train 21 was about $80 higher than for train 421, even though we were looking at the same departure and arrival cities. So technically, my son and I were in cars heading to Los Angeles. In talking with several other passengers, they weren't aware of this, nor that there may have been a rate disparity depending on which train number they were booking on at the time.
We settled into our car and met our attendant, Chris. In talking with him, we learned that he'd been with Amtrak for 25 years and really enjoyed it. His service over the course of the trip just proved that fact.
We departed CUS on time and headed southwest. At times the train would seem to really move…we outpaced most of the traffic along the corresponding interstate heading from Joliet towards Springfield, but then we'd pull onto a siding and sit for 10-15 minutes until a freight rumbled past. Just outside of Lincoln, IL, the conductor came over the intercom to inform us that we were going to have to pull into a siding and sit until an eastbound Amtrak train passed. We then proceeded to pull into a stub-siding where we sat for about 10 minutes, then backed out onto the main line before heading on towards St. Louis.
I did have one chuckle about this time…keeping in mind that Amtrak is pretty much a second-class citizen on all the tracks it covers, we pulled into one small town in Illinois just as darkness fell. As we sat at the station, I noticed the town was having a parade, which had made it as far as the crossing at the station, where it came to a standstill because our train had blocked the crossing! So the entire procession, police car leading the way, veterans with flags, bands, etc. Just stood there in the snow, waiting for us to move!
Had dinner at 7:30, which was the second seating option. I had a flat-iron steak with vegetables, ice tea and ice cream for dessert while my son had macaroni and cheese off the children's menu. In short, all of our dining car experiences were nothing short of excellent. Food was very well prepared and delicious, service was spot on and we really enjoyed meeting 'new' couples at our table. My only suggestion would be to cut back on the serving portions…I enjoy eating, but every meal we had was too much for me to finish…maybe this is where Amtrak might be able to save a few bucks (but keep the dining cars…they are what make the train!).
The train was running about 45 minutes off schedule when we pulled into St. Louis. By this point, the train was nearly full, with the majority divided between either disembarking in Arkansas or East Texas, or going as far as Austin or San Antonio to connect out west. We also had a LARGE group of Mennonites on the train. I had noticed that they were also on the Cardinal that we had taken earlier that day. I visited with one girl who said they were from Lancaster, PA, heading to Alpine, TX (they don't know what they're in for!), where they will then bus to Mexico to meet a group of Russian Mennonites and work at their school for one month.
After the stop in St. Louis, we had Chris make up our room and went to bed at about 10:30 p.m. What better way to fall asleep then the gentle rocking of the train with the sound of the horn softly sounding in the distance? I awoke just as we made our stop in Malvern, AR, so we were now closer to two hours off the schedule. In getting prepared for the day, I happened to notice the shower room was available, so I took my first shower on a train. Have to say that it does make a difference…plenty of hot water and the water stayed on the entire time (not the 30 second bursts that the instructions prepare you for). We then had a breakfast…I had the French toast while my son had pancakes and both were excellent. Then back to our compartment to pass the time until lunch.
We made good time once we got to Marshall, TX, passing several smaller stations without stopping, and when we got to Fort Worth, we were just one hour off the schedule. We backed into the station just as the train from San Antonio pulled in, and were joined by the Heartland Special, which was waiting for us before leaving for Oklahoma City. So, three Amtrak trains at the station together...looked pretty nice.
All in all, a great trip, my son really enjoyed it (all he wants to do now is talk trains and I have to roll down the window in the car anytime a freight goes by, regardless of how cold it is outside!). I guess I'll have to find an open weekend sometime soon to catch either the Cardinal or Hoosier Service for a weekend trip to Chicago!
