I don't get Amtrak?

[luvmyfam444]

Why would I want to take a train that's gonna take around 26 hours to get to the destination when I can drive it in 15???

I can rent a car for the same price....I thought trains were supposed to get you their faster - I thought wrong!

 

[FireDancer]

They do...in Europe and parts of Asia. I wish we had efficient rail travel here but for the most part we do not.

If cost is important don't forget to factor in the cost fuel that it will take to make a 30 hour round trip.

 

[MickeyMomOfThree]

I took Amtrack for the first time last month. My grandma ws having surgery and I wanted to be there with her but did not want to trave overnight alone. The train took exactly as long as it takes us to drive it, it was only $100 round trip (a fraction of what gas would have been) and I got to sleep, surf the web, whatever and not worry about falling asleep at the wheel.

It was actually very nice. I am now planning my second trip at the end of this month. My kids are on Spring Break. My oldest has plans and my DH was to work so my younger 2 and I want to go visit grandma and grandpa. Kids go for half price so it is going to be $200 for us, about what we'd ay in gas and tolls and I won't have to drive again.

I don't know that it is so much about saving time as much as a more relazing alternative way of travel.

 

[LisaNJ25]

Because we can relax. Dont have to worry about traffic, potty breaks, etc.

We were going to do the auto train again this summer but prices went way up before I booked so we are back to driving.

 

[Sgt Mickey]

Is it becasue of all the stops they make?
I have never taken a train we usually drive but I can see if you don't have to hurry to be there and back and want to relax.

 

[MIGrandma]

Even if the train takes longer, I would much prefer taking the train as opposed to driving it myself. I hate driving in unfamiliar areas. The train would be so much more relaxing.

 

[Gina]

When DS was younger, I looked into taking the train from Houston to WDW(ish) just for a change of pace. It was going to take like 2 1/2 days with all the stops, so I priced the smallest sleeper-compartment thingy. Holy moley!!! I figured I'd get to keep part of the train afterwards for the price they wanted. It was astounding. I was sad, because I grew up in a train-crazy family, and thought it would be so neat for DS and I to travel that way like I got to growing up. Not to be.

 

[java]

Because we can relax. Dont have to worry about traffic, potty breaks, etc.

We were going to do the auto train again this summer but prices went way up before I booked so we are back to driving.

The auto train takes longer from Virginia than it does to drive from NJ- and the cost is ridiculous. I was going to try it after my mom raved about it- but at $1500 each way for our family it's just not happening. I do enjoy the Acela train though if I am heading up to Boston or down to MD. It's faster.

 

[Planogirl]

Amtrak is hilarious in this area. I have checked using it from Dallas to Orlando and had a good laugh. I just checked it again. This is what we would have to do in a scenario where we would leave on July 31:

Departs: 3:40 PM Sat Jul 31 2010
Dallas, TX
Arrives: 1:52 PM Sun Aug 01 2010
Chicago, IL - Union Station

Departs: 6:40 PM Sun Aug 01 2010
Chicago, IL - Union Station
Arrives: 1:10 PM Mon Aug 02 2010
Washington, DC - Union Station

Departs: 7:30 PM Mon Aug 02 2010
Washington, DC - Union Station
Station News Arrives: 12:55 PM Tue Aug 03 2010
Orlando, FL

All for just $596 for two!

 

[sbell111]

Amtrak is hilarious in this area. I have checked using it from Dallas to Orlando and had a good laugh. I just checked it again. This is what we would have to do in a scenario where we would leave on July 31:

Departs: 3:40 PM Sat Jul 31 2010
Dallas, TX
Arrives: 1:52 PM Sun Aug 01 2010
Chicago, IL - Union Station

Departs: 6:40 PM Sun Aug 01 2010
Chicago, IL - Union Station
Arrives: 1:10 PM Mon Aug 02 2010
Washington, DC - Union Station

Departs: 7:30 PM Mon Aug 02 2010
Washington, DC - Union Station
Station News Arrives: 12:55 PM Tue Aug 03 2010
Orlando, FL

All for just $596 for two!

From your post, I can see that the real problem is limited rail service. If the train went from Dallas to Orlando, rather than having to transfer in Chicago and DC, and there was a market for it, the prices would drop greatly.

Two things keep this from happening. First, we love our cars. Second, air travel in teh US is pretty inexpensive.

 

[shrubber]

I prefer The Taggart Transcontinental Railroad.

 

[hopemax]

Amtrak shares the rails with freight, and the freight companies own a lot of the track so the freight trains get the priority. Leaving times the Amtrak train just sits. I really wish this country had better rail infrastructure. It is a beautiful and relaxing way to see the country, but the time and cost don't really make it a viable alternative.

When we lived in Phoenix, I had dreams of a high speed line to So Cal. I would have found the money someway to get out to DL once a month.

 

[rwdavis2]

As someone who used to work in the rail industry I learned that rail travel is most efficient in relatively short-haul, densly populated corridors. Such as from DC-Philly-NYC-Boston. Longer routes require more stops to keep the costs down and so they can take longer.
BD

 

[georgina]

We took a train from Seattle to Vancouver when we were cruising out of Vancouver. It was cheaper to fly into Seattle, spend a couple of days there, and take the train. It was a fun journey, slower than driving, but we liked it. I have taken trains in Europe and if there was better rail service in the US, I would take trains to other cities.

 

[NotUrsula]

As someone who used to work in the rail industry I learned that rail travel is most efficient in relatively short-haul, densly populated corridors. Such as from DC-Philly-NYC-Boston. Longer routes require more stops to keep the costs down and so they can take longer.
BD

Exactly! I really wish that this could be the adopted standard for the US passenger carrier market: less than 300 miles you take a train, longer than that, you fly. It would cut way down on the number of flights fighting for space at busy airports.

 

[Took]

Amtrak shares the rails with freight, and the freight companies own a lot of the track so the freight trains get the priority. Leaving times the Amtrak train just sits. I really wish this country had better rail infrastructure. It is a beautiful and relaxing way to see the country, but the time and cost don't really make it a viable alternative.

When we lived in Phoenix, I had dreams of a high speed line to So Cal. I would have found the money someway to get out to DL once a month.

I'm with you 100%. Personally, I'd be happy to let the highways "go" a bit and build light rail, but that's just me (and a few others). I love taking the train, and I hate driving.

 

[MaryAnnDVC]

Any long distance, we prefer to fly. But we took the train with the kids one year from Providence to NYC and back, since we didn't want to have a car in NYC anyway. And it was nice to sit back and not worry about traffic, as well as see a different view than what we usually travel on 95.

 

[Magix]

I always enjoy taking the Amtrak on the short 2-hour trip from OC to San Diego. But, next week I'll be taking the train from OC to Chicago! It'll be 42 hours and cost me a boatload of money, but I've wanted to take that trip ever since I was 8 and first saw the movie "Silver Streak". So, I'm thrilled I finally have a reason to do it (friends recently moved to Chicago).

But, if I didn't have that particular odd desire, there's no way I would have paid the fare for the private room (had to have just what Gene Wilder had in the movie). It's outrageous, even when you consider it includes meals. I could have flown, had 2 nights hotel and paid for my meals and gotten out cheaper!

I still hold out hope for an LA to Vegas high-speed train, but doubt we'll ever see it, no matter how often the subject comes up in the news. Had the chance to ride the Eurostar from London to Paris on an ABD trip and it was great! Wish we could have that kind of thing here in the U.S..

 

[Toad_Passenger]

The auto train takes longer from Virginia than it does to drive from NJ- and the cost is ridiculous. I was going to try it after my mom raved about it- but at $1500 each way for our family it's just not happening. I do enjoy the Acela train though if I am heading up to Boston or down to MD. It's faster.

We love the AutoTrain. My family has been taking it since I wasn't even close to driving age, and now at 33, it's the only way we go to Disney. We get a "sleeper" car that has its own bathroom. The few times we've driven to WDW it's taken 2 days, plus the added stress of driving.

With the AutoTrain we still get to have our car with us, and we lose all that stress, and still get there the next day. The cost is up there, but by the time you add in gas, hotels, snacks, meals, it's not too terrible.

 

[LisaNJ25]

The auto train takes longer from Virginia than it does to drive from NJ- and the cost is ridiculous. I was going to try it after my mom raved about it- but at $1500 each way for our family it's just not happening. I do enjoy the Acela train though if I am heading up to Boston or down to MD. It's faster.

was that with a sleeper car? We have no problem with coach. Last trip kids were 2,3,8 and 15. This summer trip was going to cost us around $800 RT but prices just jumped to about $1100 RT. For that we will drive. I also did it straight from Newark, NJ to florida.