Special offers and accessible seats

[mjaynes288]

Well that was fun. I saw the 30% off Cascades in Oregon offer and decided to take a day trip. Of course it was not that simple. I need an accessible transfer seat. Booking through the website passengers with disabilities link automatically applies the 15% disability discount. I called Customer Service who said the promo was only for online reservations and they could not help. I asked to be transfered to Customer Relations as charging more for an accessible seat is illegal. The nice young man who answered "Service desk," could not help me. Does Customer Relations often answer their phone as the "service desk"? I confirmed there were transfer seats availible and hung up. I booked regular coach online, called back and change my reservation to an accessible seat which took a really long time on hold after talking to the agent. It took me almost 2 hours on the phone to save $5.10. There has to be a better way.

 

[Alice]

I have also run into that. I once asked what would happen if I showed up with a regular reservation and a wheelchair, and was told I could be denied boarding. So I pay the extra, but one day, I'm going to have time to risk denied seating.

 

[the_traveler]

A similar thing happens on the NEC. A "Saver" fare is 25% off, but if you chose a discount (or if it's in your profile) - like AAA or senior - it reverts to a 10% or 15% discount! You must chose an "adult" fare.

 

[mjaynes288]

There is no option to select an adult fare when booking accessible seating/space. That is the entire problem.

 

[SubwayNut]

I guess the issue is Amtrak's Disabled booking portion of the website hasn't caught up with the "Saver" fares and automatically just applies a 15% discount.

On another note, can you book a disabled child (50% off) ticket on line?

The whole issue is illegal under the ADA. I guess the only solution is to pay for a Savor regular ticket on-line and have the hassles of calling immediately.

 

[Alice]

No, children with disabilities cannot be booked online.

The way it was explained to me is reserving a spot for the wheelchair automatically applies the disabled discount, so you can either use a wheelchair or take other discounts, not both. This isn't just online, it is programmed into whatever customer service uses. I think mjaynes got someone who realized the stupidity and did the extra work to find a workaround. The reason wheelchairs have to be booked separately from the passenger is there are a limited number of spots per car and per train.

Unfortunately, most ADA enforcement has to be done through personal lawsuits.