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Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 06/26/21 18:31 by F40PHR231.

Metra will, at long last, begin accepting credit cards by February 2010.

See Metra's July 2009 "On the Bi-level" newsletter. (Since there does not seem to be an archive of newsletters on the Metra web site, this link will no longer be to the July newsletter once a new newsletter is published.)

F40PHR231 Wrote:
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> The boarding process at [Metra] was very smooth and
> friendly. I had absolutely no problems obtaining my
> ticket, but it would have been nice if they took VISA.

Chicago has always been the worst for personnel in the entire system. The staff are rude, 21st Street Coach Yard is incompetent, and the trains go out late/dirty/with malfunctioning equipment. Been that way ever since I've been riding Amtrak, and nothing gets done about it. Its a reflection of Amtrak's overall attitude towards anything non-NEC or West Coast.

Chris, I had the exact same experience in Chicago, although I didn't have to deal with the ticket agent because I picked mine up before I left home.

#3 one day had an ATSF PV on the rear, and when I asked someone from Amtrak if I might photograph it real quick, you'd have thought I was asking if I could ride on it for free. When I went over to the Metra side, I asked a couple conductors if if anyone would mind if I grabbed a few photos, and they didn't even tell me I needed to be quick about it. I even used a tripod - on the platform - on that side, and nobody seemed to mind.

In fairness, after I boarded #30 for the trip home, I stowed my gear aboard and then went to get a few shots of the head end, and walked the platform with the camera still on the tripod, writing down the car numbers. Several Amtrak personnel saw me, but none of them seemed to have any objection.

Still, I wish they'd come up with one, nation-wide, photo policy that makes sense.

sevenmilesiding Wrote:
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> Chicago has always been the worst for personnel in
> the entire system. The staff are rude, 21st
> Street Coach Yard is incompetent, and the trains
> go out late/dirty/with malfunctioning equipment.
> Been that way ever since I've been riding Amtrak,
> and nothing gets done about it. Its a reflection
> of Amtrak's overall attitude towards anything
> non-NEC or West Coast.

Have you forgotten about New York Penn Station - the glorified subterranean subway station - and its Sunnyside Yard? And this is Amtrak's busies station! Oh and the A/C is broken in the main Amtrak section. Hasn't worked all summer if memory serves me correctly. So now there's some nice big dirty fans to contend with. At least the Metro/First Class lounge and seating area in Chicago is bigger than what one can find at NY Penn Station. Most people stand around the various train display boards and then dash for their track number once it is posted.

Chris,
You should send a copy of your experience to Don Phillips or Jim Wrinn of Trains Magazine. Jim had an article on Amtrak's photo policy last month and Don has one this month. Since you are the official photographer/chronicler for the 4449, your experience might do some good.

Edited to remove disparaging comment about government run programs.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 08/06/09 06:45 by Cumbresfan.

Chris,
Sadly, the best part of Union Station, the Great Concourse was torn down in the mid 1970s because the owner railroads, most notably the Penn Central decided they nedded the money from the air rights to maintain the station. The result was access to the tracks that was a mess and still is.
During the 1980s, Amtrak spent several million dollars to upgrade the station and "fix the problem". It did wonders for the main hall, but never addressed the issue of how to get to the trains.
Amtrak and Metra have been feuding for years over Union Station. Amtrak "stole" ownership of the station from the owning railroads to keep Metra (the Regional Transit Autority at the time) from getting ownership of the station. Amtrak feared that if the RTA took over as owners, their trains would be relegated to second class status. Unfortunately, what happened was that Amtrak made its area of the station something similar to a Soviet Gulag. Metra, on the other hand, has made its part of the station very open and accomadating. I much prefer the Metra areas of CUS to the Amtrak area.
BTW, Amtrak employees at CUS have been rude and incompetent since they took over the station in the mid seveties. I could tell you stories about them, but there isn't enough room in this psot.
Bob in Washington
I used to live in Chicago.

Cumbresfan Wrote:
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> With Amtrak as an example, I shudder to think of
> how well run government health care will be.

You mean Medicare, the Veterans Administration, the military or the Federal Employees Health Benefits Program?



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 08/05/09 15:12 by warren49.

BUT......Union Station has a great coffee/sandwich shop. Above average Italian roast beef sandwiches. And the great hall is well restored. Amtrak employees must be taking lessons from airline employees. When companies don't give a *#!*! about employees, then employees don't give a *#!*! about customers. Workers keep getting blamed here, but it is the corporate leadership of many companies that has abandoned customer service. I know they still TALK service, but they seldom give the employees the time, pay, and tools to satisfy the customer. At least at my company, United Airlines, that is the case.

Ed

Cumbresfan Wrote:
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> With Amtrak as an example, I shudder to think of
> how well run government health care will be.

Is it really that hard to keep your politics off the Board?

I don't think the same folks running Amtk will be in charge of health care.
Personally, I don't think you'd mind getting the same government health
care that Congressman get.

Buy your ticket online and pick it up at the ticket machines. Takes only seconds and skip the unpleasantries and long lines.

dzeph Wrote:
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> Buy your ticket online and pick it up at the
> ticket machines. Takes only seconds and skip the
> unpleasantries and long lines.

I just rode over to the Bay Area on The San Joaquin over the weekend and purchased my tickets online. I printed my itinerary, which had a bar code. I let the machine scan the bar code, at which time the itinerary appeared on the screen to be confirmed. I accepted it and the tickets were printed. I timed it and it took me about 37 seconds to get all 5 tickets (3 for the trip to and 2 for the trip from). The line in Fresno had about 6 people in it and I got my tickets in the same amount of time as it took for the guy at the window to find his credit card.

The health care would be great. The taxes will be slavery.

Back in 2005, I set up an LA to Boston and return trip for my wife and myself on the Amtrak website. A few days before departure I went down to LA Union Station, inserted my credit card in the ticket machine, and it was as if the "little gnomes inside the computer" said, "Oh, we know who you are!" and started printing out tickets for each segment of the journey. Aaaa-mazing!

pdt Wrote:
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>
> Personally, I don't think you'd mind getting the
> same government health
> care that Congressman get.


good luck getting that.

Edwardjb Wrote:
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> BUT......Union Station has a great coffee/sandwich
> shop. Above average Italian roast beef
> sandwiches.
> Ed


When I was at Union station in December 2003 I got something to eat at the busy jammed packed McDonalds, lol.

I can remember on my road trip to Chi-Ville in 2003 (was dispatching for CP at the time),I rode head-end on #8 to Milwaukee,overnighted there,then head-end on #336 with cabbage 90200 into CUT.
The Amtrak people I worked with and rode with during my 2 year stint were some of the best out there (and remember,at the time,that the CHI-MILW corridor had the highest on-time performance)....but go east of Chicago,yuck.
My wife rode #8/#48 back to upstate NY to visit our families (and #49/#7 home),and she was disgusted by the attitudes displayed onboard east of Chicago, but her experience between CUT and St Paul both ways was superb.
Now I'm out here in Albuquerque and deal with the crews on #3 and 4 and they seem to be OK (anyone on these boards????).

Chris,BTW,I rode some Metra Scoots on the Milwaukee North and West lines...managed to get F40C's aplenty (of course back then the first MP36's had just hit the property and were all tied up at Western Ave due to many problems).Thanks for the "tour",never got into any of the other stations besides CUT.

Mike

I beg to defer that Chicago is the worst on the system personnel wise...
I suggest you travel out of Boston or Philly sometime - especially Boston!