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Glad to be home from a trip that both wonderful moments and sights and also horrible moments and some of the worst that Amtrak has to offer.
Two freight train derailments caused problems both at the beginning and at the end of the trip. A snowstorm in California caused the canceling of the CZ for two days. None of those incidents were Amtraks fault and were out of their control. How they handled the results of those events was.
All the incidents resulted in having to deal with Passenger Services in Chicago. It would appear that a requisite of holding that job is to pass a course in Rudeness 101. Lack of planning, poor communication, insufficient number of employees to handle the situation and what appeared to be a 'to heck with the passenger' attitude made what should have been a bump in the road (albeit a large one) a very unpleasant experience.
While I will quite possibly travel by train again, these past 2+ weeks have made me seriously rethink the idea of doing so. (Several first time travelers that experienced the same thing will not be rethinking. They have decided -never again !!)
Dee
Posts: 460 | From: North Central CT | Registered: May 2004
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sorry you had such problems but did you hear what the people who were stuck in the airports had to say. Some of the them were stuck at national in DC for several days. USAir has 100,000 people to reschedule. Everyone was complaining that no one would tell them anything,all their luggage was somewhee else, they had been standing in line for 5 hours and one woman said they sat on the plane for 9 hours with the food runnng out, the bathrooms unusable etc. Off hand I think I'd druther have Amtrak
Posts: 1577 | From: virginia | Registered: Jun 2005
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Dee, I'm so sorry you had such a miserable trip, made more miserable by the staff in Chicago. I'm curious, what exactly did Amtrak do to accommodate you, if anything? Also, when you phone Amtrak customer service, let us know what they say--I like to know what the procedures are, or should have been.
I came home Friday from Pennsylvania but luckily had little trouble. The ticket agent who redid my ticket in Pennsylvania and a Customer Service person I spoke with in NY Penn Station were both quite nice, as was the conductor who helped me on some very snowy train steps. But Penn Station was a bit of a zoo--lots of canceled airline passengers trying to catch ACELAs, all of which were booked.
Posts: 2642 | From: upstate New York | Registered: Mar 2004
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Sojourner, when I have called customer service they have always been very nice. I explained the problem and was told to speak slowly as she or he was writing all this down. It was followed up with a travel voucher and a letter of apology. I always try to find something or someone to copliment as well as complain.
Posts: 1577 | From: virginia | Registered: Jun 2005
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Dee, sorry to hear about your unfortunate experience. When I hear/read about these travel problems I just want to see stay home. Last Friday morning we started our auto journey from New Hope to Victor,NY (near Rochester) to attend my niece's annual St.Patrick's Party. I drove as far as Flemington,NJ (20 minutes from home). The weather was so bad we returned home. So much for the 3 day weekend I was looking forward to. Then I thought to myself... duh, why you didn't we train it from Trenton to Rochester. Alas, Amtrak service was suspended due to the train derailment/fire west of Utica, NY. I'm sure that must be one of the Amtrak snafus you encountered.
Posts: 498 | From: New Hope, PA, USA | Registered: Jan 2003
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Sure, no problem -- people sitting at airports for days and days and days and days and not being able to get home, but you can bet your bottom dollar they'll be back on the airplanes next week.
However, if AMTRAK has a bad day due to weather or something else which is not their fault, oh no -- "I'll never ever ever take AMTRAK again"........
Posts: 2428 | From: Grayling, MI | Registered: Mar 2002
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Rich, you are right.A few minutes ago on the news they not only showed people at the airport complaining that the computers are down so they can't get any info and they have been there 3 days but they also showed Charlotte N C where they say it looks like a camping ground. People were lying all over the floors.They have been there for 3 days and it loks like it will be a couple more. I am sitting here saying "If you can , take the train"" Why do people not think of this?
Posts: 1577 | From: virginia | Registered: Jun 2005
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RRRich, the problem is the way the travel industry in general handles the situation. Rudeness does turn people off. Also, sometimes I think people want the "travel machines" to work no matter what the weather, or situation is. People also say "I'll never fly U.S.Airways/American/Jet Blue/ etc. again." Jet Blue did the right thing this last weekend and cancelled most of its flights before passengers got to the terminal because ol' man winter is gonna do what he has to do. Back to rail travel, in a nutshell, our passenger rail system has been neglected for so long that these problems occur. It can do a better job than the airlines. Sometimes does in these situations. If Amtrak were adequately financed over the years for more track, and more equipment it could better handle the crowds in need of travel in winter conditions and maybe it could handle bypassing freight derailments. As stated Acela express was in high demand this last wintry weekend.
Posts: 498 | From: New Hope, PA, USA | Registered: Jan 2003
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Just a quick update -- I did place a phone call to Customer Service to relate my experience on this trip. A very nice and polite man took down all the information both the good and the bad. He promised follow up. He also promised that Amtrak would be sending a Travel voucher to reimburse me for expenses caused by the late arrival of train in Emeryville. Travel voucher arrived today and fully covers the cost of the hotel I was unable to cancel and was charged for. Also a sum above that for my trouble. Dee
Posts: 460 | From: North Central CT | Registered: May 2004
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quote:Originally posted by DeeCT: Just a quick update -- I did place a phone call to Customer Service to relate my experience on this trip. A very nice and polite man took down all the information both the good and the bad. He promised follow up. He also promised that Amtrak would be sending a Travel voucher to reimburse me for expenses caused by the late arrival of train in Emeryville. Travel voucher arrived today and fully covers the cost of the hotel I was unable to cancel and was charged for. Also a sum above that for my trouble. Dee
I hope that your next trip.....the one you take using the voucher....will be a much better one.
Of the several Amtrak misconnects I have experienced, there was only one where I was unhappy with the resolution......but in hindsight they did get me to my destination (eventually....standing the entire way on an overcrowded midnight Greyhound from Chicago to Milwaukee) and at no extra cost. I have not always been so fortunate with airlines.
In one other Amtrak 'service disruption' I encountered, I opted to take matters into my own hands. Instead of spending the night on a cramped, leaky bus from El Paso to San Antonio I cabbed to the airport and flew Southwest to Dallas.
It was a gamble that paid off two days later when the fellow I spoke to at Customer Service agreed that I was due a voucher for the night I missed getting to spend in their sleeping car. That reimbursement more than covered the cab ride, cheap airfare, and cheaper hotel in Dallas.
-------------------- David Pressley
Advocating for passenger trains since 1973!
Climbing toward 5,000 posts like the Southwest Chief ascending Raton Pass. Cautiously, not nearly as fast as in the old days, and hoping to avoid premature reroutes. Posts: 4203 | From: Western North Carolina | Registered: Feb 2004
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