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Amtrak and LA Union Station let me down
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[QUOTE]Originally posted by MightyAlweg: [QB] After wanting to take a train trip for several years but never having the time, I tried taking Amtrak today. WARNING: a ranting and admittedly whiny trip report of a short day trip to LA follows... I wanted to go to the LA Auto Show this year, but didn't want to fight the horrible condition of the I-5 freeway once you leave Orange County, so I decided to take the train. It was a lovely autumn day for travel. I got to the Anaheim station early and had time to watch them constructing the impressive new ARTIC train station near the existing station. I then purchased my Business Class ticket from a glum agent behind the glass and enjoyed the November sun for a bit. The Surfliner arrived on time, and I went up the stairs of the Business Class car after helping two elderly ladies with their luggage (no attendant helped them). The car was very full, obviously due to the holiday week. I walked the entire car and not a single empty seat was open. I walked back to the stairs where a four-seat table was wide open but had a plastic sign that said "Reserved for families", and I began to take my jacket off when a train attendant standing nearby said abruptly "You can't sit there!". Oh, gosh, okay, although I was silently put off by her snotty tone she took with me right off the bat. I went down the stairs and felt the same attendant walking a few steps behind me as we both went down to the lower level. There were two open seats, although there was a sign on the bulkhead that said "Reserved for disabled riders" or some such statement. I sat in an open single seat near the door that was against a blank wall with no window, and just as I sat down the same attendant appeared at my side and said "You can't sit here either, this level is for elderly and disabled". I am a 43 year old able bodied man, so I don't qualify for this segregated section of the car. I smiled at her frown and said "Okay, but there's no other seats and you told me not to sit at the open table upstairs. Where do I sit?" She began a lecture on how this was a holiday week and very busy and that I can find any seat in any other car on the train with my Business Class ticket, but I can't sit here. I was feeling hounded by this rather unpleasant woman but wasn't going to let her ruin my fun day, so I got up and went back upstairs and walked two cars forward as the train sped towards Fullerton (the only stop between Anaheim and LA). I found an empty seat next to a pleasant college girl who got off at Fullerton, and then watched the scenery to LA. The conductor mentioned my Business Class fare when she took my ticket, and I told her there were no seats available that I was eligible for as a single 43 year old. I never got my snack or paper or anything from the Business Class fare I paid for. No one offered, and I wasn't about to try to go back to the Business Class car and meet my mortal enemy who had just shooed me away. We arrived at Union Station on time. What a busy station this has become, even mid-afternoon hours before the evening rush! I was quickly hit up for change by a transient in the tunnel on my way to the waiting room, and then had to weave around two other transients with lots of plastic bags and caught a whiff of bodily odors that were just horrendous. But that station is still gorgeous! On my way to the taxi stand in front of the station I caught a strong whiff of urine, but was able to jump in a cab and head to the convention center. The Auto Show and dinner was great, and five hours later I'm back at Union Station. I waited in a short line and purchased another Business Class ticket on Amtrak from another very glum woman behind the bullet proof glass. She barely spoke three words to me, and then shoved my boarding pass through the slot without making eye contact. I now had 30 minutes to kill before the 7:30 departure. I went to the big waiting room and had to pause to find a seat, not because there weren't empty seats. It seemed as though every other row had a homeless person camped out with sleeping bags and blankets and all their worldly possessions piled on adjacent seats. To be honest, they all smelled horrible and none of them looked like good conversationalists. I finally found a seat in a row without a homeless person and sat enjoying the view and the ceiling of this marvelous station. That was ruined a few minutes later when another homeless man collapsed into the chair directly behind me while he talked to himself about a very serious topic laced with a few profanities, and his odor was instantly overwhelming. I had to get up and move before I gagged. I thought, well it's a cool autumn evening, I'll go enjoy the outdoor courtyards. Wrong decision. Every 15 feet as I strolled the north courtyard I was hit by the strong stench of human urine. A bag lady had taken up residence on some of the benches there. So I walked back through the waiting room to the south courtyard. Another wrong decision. This courtyard had a slightly softer smell of urine, but featured two homeless men literally staggering around the fountain each talking to no one. I can take care of myself, but it just didn't feel safe, so I went back inside. I walked toward the front doors to look at the old Information Booth, which was featured recently on a Jack Benny TV rerun. As I approached the booth I cleared my throat and was met with a "SHHH!" and stern look from a man standing nearby. They were filming a movie or something in the old ticket lobby, and had traffic cones on the ground nearby that said "QUIET! Filming Taking Place". Okay, sorry if I ruined your shot. A minute later a homeless man burst through the entry doors yelling about being "disrespected" by someone outside, and the silence monitor rushed over to him to tell him to be quiet. I chuckled, quietly. I went back to the concourse entry and found a column to lean against, and at least there was no urine smell. Just then a rough looking gent with neck tattoos walks up to me and explains that he's "just been released" (I inferred he was talking about prison) and needed some money to start his life anew. I declined. That's when the announcement was made that my train was delayed by 30 minutes and now wouldn't depart until 8:00. My God, I have to defend myself in this smelly homeless shelter for another 30 minutes?!? After a brief moment where I considered using my Uber App on my phone to call a car to drive me back to Anaheim, I remembered the Traxx Lounge. I walked over there, observing a desperate man yelling through the hole of the security glass protecting the unstaffed Amtrak Information Booth "HELLO!? CAN ANYONE HELP ME?!?", and then dodging a homeless woman who unrolled her sleeping bag suddenly into the walkway. I bought a cocktail, tipped the bartender well because I was so grateful to find someplace without a urine smell, and sat in the bar for a half hour. The track announcement was made, I walked to the train and a very busy platform, and boarded the old Amfleet equipment in use tonight on the southbound Surfliner. At least on this one there was a seat for me to sit in, but the whole train was very busy. The crew on this train wasn't the most polished or gracious, but at least I wasn't lectured and shooed to another car. I also was handed a bag of snacks by a mute car attendant. A few minutes later he engaged in chatty gossip with his fellow Amtrak employees in the vestibule nearby, so he apparently can talk and only goes mute when it's time to pass out snacks to passengers. I drove home from Anaheim, reflected on my travel experience, and thought... Why the heck did I just do that? I should have driven and taken the 91 freeway to the 110 to avoid I-5! Next time, I will. Seriously, Amtrak. The SoCal corridor is one of your busiest routes, serving some of your most affluent markets. And you've got one of the most beautiful hub train stations in your system to work with. And it's run like this?!? I understand that many of the social problems on display in Union Station tonight (and there were dozens!) are really the fault of the city of Los Angeles and the degrading urban environment there, but it does not appear as though Amtrak is doing anything to prevent the waiting room and concourses of Union Station from turning into a homeless flophouse. And my God, that urine smell was everywhere in all the outdoor areas! It also doesn't help that the Amtrak employees in Anaheim and LA and on board both Surfliners ranged from silent indifference to grouchy hostility. And I am a very polite, well dressed, middle aged man on a Business Class fare having a fun leisure trip. I was not expecting first class service, fabulous perks, or ultra-posh deluxe environments. I simply expected professional and basic service in a clean environment using modern equipment. And maybe a smile or two. I also expected things to not smell like urine. Too much to ask? [/QB][/QUOTE]
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