posted
Just returned from a trip around the country and thought I would offer my opinions.
Overall, a very nice trip.
Starting in Pittsburgh, I took the Capitol to Chicago. My car attendant was just average , but no major complaints. Arrived into Chicago just about on time.
From Chicago, the Empire Builder to Portland. A good car attendant and very nice dining-car staff. Overall, a very nice experience. The only minor "glitch" was that there was a "power" problem between the Seattle sleeper and the Dining-Car. To solve the problem, the Seattle sleeper had to be removed from the middle of the train and placed at the very end (behind the mail and express cars.) Passengers from that sleeper had to be placed in the Portland sleeper---where I was, fortunately. There seemed to be "room" for everybody. However, this caused an additional delay of at least an hour. Thus we did not arrive into the scenic Glacier Park vicinity until about 8:50 PM. Thus we had a very limited time enjoying the views.
From Portland, I connected to the Starlight for a trip down to Emeryville. Very nice segment. Good service , over-all. We were only about 25 minutes late arriving into Emeryville and I had plenty of time to connect to the eastbound Zephyr.
The Zephyr segment was terrific. I had a GREAT car attendant , Pete. The dining-car staff seemed a little "grumpy" at times , but , over-all , were acceptable. We arrived into Chicago about 2 hours late , but I still had plenty of time to make my 9 PM connection to the east-bound Three Rivers.
So, over-all , a very nice trip.
I did "tire" of the same menu items, however. Of course, an option is to eat from the lounge-car menu once in a while on a longer trip.
I would have preferred taking the Capitol BACK to Pittsburgh, but since the schedule change, it arrives simply too early---so I opt for the Three Rivers which is scheduled to arrive later in the morning. I arrived back into Pittsburgh about 25 minutes late.
Again, I am ASTOUNDED at few passengers have any CLUE related to Amtrak's financial plight. Everybody I talked with LOVED the train. Yet very few knew to contact Washington about more financial support for Amtrak. I suppose people simply think passenger trains will always BE there.
Let's HOPE they are !!
It seems my "train time" always passes so quickly. Here I am back home again. I would like to start planning for another trip in about 6 months, but I am very concerned about Amtrak's future. I guess I will just have to wait and see just like everybody else.
posted
We also had Pete as our sleeping car attendant on the CZ. He was excellent, always available and eager to serve. Does the new standard menu mean all Amtrak trains serve the exact same meals for breakfast, lunch and dinner?
Posts: 218 | Registered: Mar 2001
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posted
Thanks for the report. I remember when you were planning this, when the starlight was constantly late, and you were concerned about making the CZ connection. In recent weeks Starlight timekeeping has been very good. My train last week was five minutes early into Salinas.
What day did you board the Starlight? I boarded #11 Tuesday the 4th in Salem for my trip home. Could you have been on the same train?
One more question. Although the menu is the same on all trains now, did you notice any differences in its preparation as you went from train to train, or was it pretty uniform?
------------------ Trust God, love your neighbor, and never mistake opinion for truth. -Mr. Toy
posted
On my extended trip in May, I noticed very little difference from train to train as far as the menu is concerned. I did notice that the presentation of the food did vary somewhat. The best presentation was on the City of New Orleans, followed by the Coast Starlight
I boarded the Starlight in Portland on Wednesday , June 5th for a Southbound trip to Emeryville.
The Starlight was the only train that had two extra options for dinner that all the other trains did not---prime rib was one , and I believe the other was a fish variety.
Basically, I found the preparations all the same throughout my trip. So with an extended trip, one can "tire" of the options. But as I mentioned, the lounge car menu IS an option.
I did want to mention something else: passengers are again permitted to detrain at the Sparks, Nevada platform for some "air." For quite some time this was not permitted. Wonder why the change of "attitude" with Union Pacific related to that ??
quote:Originally posted by Mr. Toy: One more question. Although the menu is the same on all trains now, did you notice any differences in its preparation as you went from train to train, or was it pretty uniform?
Here's one example, from my May trip: for the Southwest chicken salad, the Coast Starlight chef arranged the tortilla chips on the very bottom, the Empire Builder chef tossed them in with the salad, and the Southwest Chief chef arranged them on top. (Also, the Southwest Chief was the only train where that salad came with a small cup of black beans on the side.)
Other than that, though, presentation and preparation seemed pretty much uniform, with the low point being the string-beans-and-carrots, plus tomato-with-cheese-melted-on-top, meaning that every dinner plate looks pretty much the same.
It still tastes good, though, and I definitely didn't go hungry.
Posts: 112 | From: North Hollywood, California | Registered: Mar 2002
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posted
TALKrr asked: I did want to mention something else: passengers are again permitted to detrain at the Sparks, Nevada platform for some "air." For quite some time this was not permitted. Wonder why the change of "attitude" with Union Pacific related to that ?? ____________________________________________
The station at Sparks is a working UP yard. There was problems with passengers interfering with the duties of UP employees & going into UP offices & work areas. The last time I rode through on the Zephyr, the crew emphasized to the passengers to remain near the train & not interfere with UP employees in their work. Reggie
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[This message has been edited by reggierail (edited 06-12-2002).]
posted
FWIW, on three separate trips on the CZ (97, 99 spring, and 99 Christmas), all post-merger, traincrew said emphatically "Stay on the platforms. If you are not a detraining passenger, UP considers leaving the platform a trespass ..."
As a UP stockholder, I fully endorse what Reggie said (it's a working yard ... I don't want the liability of folk not under Blue Flag rules running around!) and what the Amtrak crews inferred ... "You risk UP Police arresting you for trespass."
John
John
quote:Originally posted by reggierail:
The station at Sparks is a working UP yard. There was problems with passengers interfering with the duties of UP employees & going into UP offices & work areas. The last time I rode through on the Zephyr, the crew emphasized to the passengers to remain near the train & not interfere with UP employees in their work. Reggie
------------------ The City of Saint Louis (UP, 1967) is still my standard for passenger operations
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