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No Business Class on the Coast Starlight
- Thread starter trimetbusfan
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Those BC cars themselves didn't wind up on the Winter Park Express as far as I can tell. At least some of them remained on the Starlight in service as coaches, but it freed up standard coaches to be transferred for service on the Winter Park Express.
jis
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And there is one freight railroad with very marginal track circuits that needs heavy Superliners to be detected by their broken track circuits too 
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west point
Engineer
This tack circuit problem is ridiculous. This week our siding has a full work crew working both north and south. All the equipment activated all three crossings although CSX does protect the crossings mainly from cars trying to run around the gates trying to beat the slow track working units. One 2 axel spike puller did not activate one crossing. That was with both a clear day yesterday and rainy day today.And there is one freight railroad with bery marginal track circuits that needs heavy Superliners to be dte ted by their broken track circuits too
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The service was successful so it had to be terminated.
It is right there in the "Big Book of Amtrak Excuses." Page 59-F.
trimetbusfan
OBS Chief
To be honest, though, I wouldn't say it's been successful.
Especially as the years went on, the business class option stopped offering that many amenities. For example, when they first started it you were able to buy your way into the wine tastings in the PPC. Then, shortly thereafter they pulled the PPC from the consist. When it first started you got a voucher to use in the Cafe or dining car. That went away.
During it's final days last year there were short on a business class car, and for a solid month or so they were running a standard coach in place of it. That's a 'Free downgrade' in a sense.
The only thing that made it better than coach were the nicer seats, free bottles of water (when available), extra AGR points, and if you were lucky, a better chance at getting an empty seat next to you. The cars themselves have the exact same seating layout as the coaches, except for slightly nicer seat cushions. I would argue that the new refurbished seats that many superliners have are just as nice though.
With all that being said, I did wish it stayed around. The coast startlight is a very popular train and it has the demand to justify running more than just two coaches during the busy seasons. (Currently only running with 2 coaches, but before COVID it had 3 coaches + a business class car).
This is not a reply to above but a question about the Martinez Station that is a CS stop. I will be catching the CS at Martinez in July for San Luis Obispo. Can I leave my car at the station parking lot for several days and is there a charge? Thanks.
I was on 14 out of LAX yesterday. The train was absolutely packed in coach even upon departing LA and it never let up before I got off in Oakland. A business class car was serving as one of the two coaches, with the second being a coach-baggage. For a random Monday in May, it was pretty chaotic.
Everything you need to know at:
https://www.capitolcorridor.org/stations/martinez/
There is a lot, it is free with a valid ticket, but tends to fill up and you may have to walk to an overflow lot.
If you are going to be gone a few days, you might want to think about just Ubering to the station or getting a ride from a friend.
jis
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BC has been withdrawn from the CS at least for the time being. The erstwhile BC accommodation will be sold as Coach.
Siegmund
Lead Service Attendant
One of the two coaches? Yikes. I thought it still had three.
No wonder it was packed. My first Amtrak trip was in May of 1986... when the Starlight had 3 sleepers and 5 coaches (one of them a coach-snackbar to take some pressure off the lower level lounge)... and some people were sitting in the lounge until after Sacramento because they couldn't find coach seats.
How we have fallen.
trimetbusfan
OBS Chief
Amtrak crew members have been posting on Facebook suggesting that the current starlight consist will remain as is through the summer (no extra sleeper, no business class, no extra coach, no baggage car, etc). guess we'll see..
Why? Is there a shortage of cars? I rode the CS last month from Seattle to Davis.Both Coaches packed. I miss BC. That was a nice bridge between Coach and high priced sleepers. Even trying to just do an overnight from Klamath Falls to Davis was over $400 for a roomette
Even with the additional Cascades train leading Train 14, PDX>SEA, the coaches on that segment are going into the top fare bucket or selling out on many days.
