Superliner Diner
Conductor
Finally, after the Downeaster has been in business for 14 months, comes the news that you can now book a reservation to or from Downeaster points from the rest of the Amtrak system. The problem was that the computers could not figure out the gap between the two Boston stations served by the Northeast Corridor & Lake Shore Limited (Back Bay and South Stations) and North Station.
The solution is the issuance of a worthless "Self-Transfer" ticket, which has its own run number much like a Thruway bus. This ticket bridges the gap between Back Bay (not South!) Station and North Station. It probably tells the user to take the MBTA Orange Line, which runs between those two points. Amtrak passengers still have to pay the $1 fare to ride the subway. Amtrak and NARP are negotiating with the "T" to allow this ticket to be accepted as fare on the subway.
For example, if I put into the reservations system a trip from New York Penn Station (NYP) to Portland, ME (POR), it now lets me do it. The first such trip it shows has me on Acela Regional 190 from New York to Back Bay Station, then 2683 from Back Bay to North Station, and then Downeaster 683 from North Station to Portland. The 2683 represents the worthless transfer. At least the public is now able to book a trip that until now had to be split up into separate reservations. Hopefully that transfer ticket has ample instructions on how to get from one station to the other, so that people are not looking for a bus or a connecting Amtrak train.
The solution is the issuance of a worthless "Self-Transfer" ticket, which has its own run number much like a Thruway bus. This ticket bridges the gap between Back Bay (not South!) Station and North Station. It probably tells the user to take the MBTA Orange Line, which runs between those two points. Amtrak passengers still have to pay the $1 fare to ride the subway. Amtrak and NARP are negotiating with the "T" to allow this ticket to be accepted as fare on the subway.
For example, if I put into the reservations system a trip from New York Penn Station (NYP) to Portland, ME (POR), it now lets me do it. The first such trip it shows has me on Acela Regional 190 from New York to Back Bay Station, then 2683 from Back Bay to North Station, and then Downeaster 683 from North Station to Portland. The 2683 represents the worthless transfer. At least the public is now able to book a trip that until now had to be split up into separate reservations. Hopefully that transfer ticket has ample instructions on how to get from one station to the other, so that people are not looking for a bus or a connecting Amtrak train.