Sunset Limited trip to San Francisco

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Amtrak George

Lead Service Attendant
Joined
May 10, 2011
Messages
273
Location
Jackson, Tennessee
I just returned from a trip to Frisco where I went Memphis-Chicago-Los Angeles-San Francisco, then San Francisco-Chicago-Memphis. Some of you may remember the trouble I had with getting a two zone guest rewards on the segment involving the Chief: it wanted to book me no further than Oakland, but not to Frisco, and I had to get the agent to ask for a supervisor to book the thruway bus.

I'm now running into a similar (and nonsensical) problem with plans for a future trip, Sunset Limited New Orleans to Los Angeles, Coast Starlight LA to Oakland, thruway bus to Fisherman's Wharf.

Every time I try a reservation on the Sunset (whether it is from New Orleans or not--I even tried Tucson just to see what I could get) the computer shows a route to Oakland but not San Francosco!

I know I may be able to get a supervisor to change this for my trip, but this seems like something serious enough that it needs changing permanently. I am afraid the Sunset (which is always under threat of extinction) is losing business because the reservation system says there is no connection to San Francisco.

Any insiders who can facilitate this correction? I think it would help more people than just me. Thanks, Amtrak George
 
Amtrak George said:
I just returned from a trip to Frisco where I went Memphis-Chicago-Los Angeles-San Francisco, then San Francisco-Chicago-Memphis. Some of you may remember the trouble I had with getting a two zone guest rewards on the segment involving the Chief: it wanted to book me no further than Oakland, but not to Frisco, and I had to get the agent to ask for a supervisor to book the thruway bus.

I'm now running into a similar (and nonsensical) problem with plans for a future trip, Sunset Limited New Orleans to Los Angeles, Coast Starlight LA to Oakland, thruway bus to Fisherman's Wharf.

Every time I try a reservation on the Sunset (whether it is from New Orleans or not--I even tried Tucson just to see what I could get) the computer shows a route to Oakland but not San Francosco!

I know I may be able to get a supervisor to change this for my trip, but this seems like something serious enough that it needs changing permanently. I am afraid the Sunset (which is always under threat of extinction) is losing business because the reservation system says there is no connection to San Francisco.

Any insiders who can facilitate this correction? I think it would help more people than just me. Thanks, Amtrak George
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Go to FlyerTalk and post this in the Amtrak Guest Rewards forum. AGRInsider will see it and may be able to get the computers updated. I had a problem where there wasn't a train on a weekend to connect to the LSL even though there was on the weekdays (different train #s). He got the weekend train connection added to the system.
 
Don't know if this helps but I just noticed the Amtrak site for reservations using points states that connections to another train or bus are excluded.
 
I have this same problem for many routes returning to Norman-I can book to Ft. Worth but not to Norman even though that is a legal connection. The last booking I made I wasn't able to win the argument with AGR and simply terminated the res in FTW and dished out $22.50 for the Heartland Flyer (and 245 Points) on in.
 
I posted this on flyertalk. So far, nothing helpful. It may take someone with more clout checking on this.

I did discover that you can book a trip from New Orleans to Seattle via the Sunset route but NOT NOLA to San Francisco.
 
This seems to be a problem with the reservation system not liking the extra bus segment from Oakland to San Francisco. I ran into the same thing a few years ago with an even simpler trip - Anaheim to San Francisco via Bakersfield. I could book ANA to EMY, or BFD to SFC, but not ANA to SFC. I worked around with the multi-city option.

You can book your plan (paid) by using the multi-city option also - NOL-LAX, then LAX-SFC, but that may not help trying to book AGR award travel when the agents don't see the entire itin show up as a "published route." You could try to appeal to common sense with the AGR agent. That might work, and is probably worth a try.

Note that AGR Insider at Flyertalk has limited ability to affect change with the Amtrak reservation system people. He can ask, and they often comply, but not always.
 
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PRR 60 said:
Note that AGR Insider at Flyertalk has limited ability to affect change with the Amtrak reservation system people. He can ask, and they often comply, but not always.
Click to expand...
I don't understand what the reservation system people have to do with this problem. It's AGR, not the reservation people who are saying SL to San Francisco can't be booked for points. Common sense seemed to have prevailed with the "sleeper" exception to the it must be published rule. If AGR can't trust its agents to make common sense exceptions, they should at least have one employee who has a reasonable idea of Amtrak's network and isn't directionally disabled who could be designated to make these decisions.
 
PaulM said:
PRR 60 said:
Note that AGR Insider at Flyertalk has limited ability to affect change with the Amtrak reservation system people. He can ask, and they often comply, but not always.
Click to expand...
I don't understand what the reservation system people have to do with this problem. It's AGR, not the reservation people who are saying SL to San Francisco can't be booked for points. Common sense seemed to have prevailed with the "sleeper" exception to the it must be published rule. If AGR can't trust its agents to make common sense exceptions, they should at least have one employee who has a reasonable idea of Amtrak's network and isn't directionally disabled who could be designated to make these decisions.
Click to expand...
What the reservation people have to do with this problem is that they run the show. They construct the routes and connections that are permitted for ticketing, either paid or award. AGR is obligated to only book published routes, with only the sleeper exception. AGR prevailed and was granted that limited exception for sleeper award travel, but that's it. Otherwise, it has to show in the system, or AGR cannot book it.

From a customer standpoint, it does not hurt to ask for an unpublished route (not all published routes show on Amtrak.com), but don't expect AGR to violate policy regardless of whether the requested route is "common sense" or not. Freelancing when it comes to corporate policy issues is a shortcut to the unemployment line.

The only way to book an unpublished route is to have it made it a published route. AGR has to ask Amtrak's reservation people to add a route and connection to the system. AGR may or may not be willing to ask. Amtrak reservations may or may not agree to make the change.
 

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