Nickel and Dining and Dollaring on the Texas Eagle!!

[SarahZ]

I agree with Tony 100%.

(I agree with him too, by the way. I just really love that reaction.)

 

[tonys96]

Here's something nobody will expect.

I agree with Tony 100%.

The notion that points runs game the system is ridiculous. It's not a loophole, Amtrak has specifically crafted the program to provide extra rewards to frequent riders who take short, inexpensive trips.

As Fred Sanford used to say "Elizabeth, honey, I'm coming to see ya, this is the big one" :giggle:

 

[tonys96]

A small point but the BBQ in Taylor is worth a day trip.

That is what I have been told. Our last trip through (by car) we went to the "good" BBQ place and were saddened to see they had a pit fire the day before we got there and were closed for a while . So we went to the place by the overpass that is like a bar and it was not too bad.......gotta make another effort to get to the "good" place, we have heard it is fantastic!

 

[JayPea]

I can't for the life of me figure out what possible difference it makes why people travel Amtrak. I mean, when I board the train, I don't immediately take a survey of everyone on board about why they are traveling, whether they are getting AGR points, etc. It's nobody's business but the person traveling. I'm jealous that I can't do something similar, at least not without it being far more hassle than it's worth. I could, technically, book a Thruway bus trip from my hometown to Spokane (about an hour one way), spend a few hours there and come back, but it is not worth it at all for the trouble I'd have to go through: I'd have to drive to Spokane to pick up the tickets, and, because the ticket office is only open overnight there, I'd have to go during the day, and hope against hope the blippety-blipping Quik-Trak kiosk is working, which in my experience is less than a 50-50 proposition. And then I'd have to hassle with calling in to AGR to get credit for the points. None of that is worth it. And the train schedule now is pretty much unworkable for such runs.

 

[Oreius]

We should all be thankful that we have nationwide passenger railroad, even if fares seem out of reach for some people. I have taken a few day trips to New York City to visit my cousin in Brooklyn. While the fares are a bit high;(it costs about $100 round-trip to travel between Elizabethtown, PA and Penn Station), it provides a fun and convenient way to travel. Even though New York is about a 3 hour drive from my home, I do not really like driving, especially on Interstate 78 and the NJ Turnpike. Too many trucks and reckless drivers. You will NEVER get me on a Megabus or a Greyhound bus. I've heard horror stories about them, and they are usually packed. Taking a train saves wear and tear on your car, gas prices, and allows you to relax and enjoy the ride. I will continue to use Amtrak for travel regardless of the higher fares. It can actually be cost-effective in the long run....

 

[jis]

It all depends on your luck. I just got a $49 ticket from Newark to Boston by Regional.

Incidentally, in the process I also discovered that travel by Acela is not allowed according to our company policy. Only Regionals or anything else that has "Coach" class. No "Business" class!

 

[Devil's Advocate]

We seem to be entering an era where our choices are slowly dwindling down to...

1. National passenger rail that is priced beyond the reach of many Americans.

2. National passenger rail where most of the network is cut to save the tiny fraction that is profitable enough to be self sufficient.

If this is how it turns out it's especially unfortunate when you consider what a tiny fraction of the total budget Amtrak represents compared to funding the world's most expensive healthcare market and the world's most expensive military. I doubt I will ever fully understand how basic services like public transit became so controversial while obscenely expensive basic healthcare and casual warfare became so accepted.

 

[Ryan]

I doubt I will ever fully understand how basic services like public transit became so controversial while obscenely expensive basic healthcare and casual warfare became so accepted.

That's pretty simple. Anything the other "team" supports must be 100% evil and fought against at every opportunity.

How we fix it is the hard part.

 

[neroden]

I doubt I will ever fully understand how basic services like public transit became so controversial while obscenely expensive basic healthcare and casual warfare became so accepted.

Because if you oppose wasting money on the military you must be a commie, or nowadays a terrorist! You have to "support the troops", even when that means supporting vast cash transfers to corrupt military contractors! If you cut a penny from the budget the generals will make the troops go without shoes (but Lockheed Martin still gets paid)!

Yeah, there's been a lot of irrational scaremongering used to keep the bloated military budget bloated. I don't entirely know why the irrational scaremongering has been successful; this is a question of marketing and psychology.

Perhaps we should start reminding people that if we don't have passenger trains running hourly to every city with more than 100,000 people,the terrorists win!