Passenger Trains > Mega Trip Leg 4 LAX-ELP

Well we waited at LAX Union Station for the departure of train 2. We took the red cap to the train. Ernie our Red Cap was simply awesome, very friendly and customer oriented. The train had not yet backed into the station. I got some nice pictures of the train backing in. Ernie had dropped us off at the exact point where our sleeper number 230 came to a stop. We waited for about 10 minutes and the door to the sleeper opened. Our attendant was named Henry Ford. No joke. Henry Ford. When I booked I had to book two roomettes, numbers 8 and 14. That was all that was available. My youngest son and I took room 14 and my wife and older son went to 8. No offer from Mr. Ford to assist with luggage. He said to my wife to "not mess up room 8" as he would try to move her to room 13 which was beside our room. A nice touch I thought, was I wrong. We had an ontime departure from LAX. No one had boarded in room 13, a no show I thought, great. Well I waited until we departed Palm Springs and asked Mr. Ford if room 13 had no showed. He said in a very rude tone, "no, that room does not board until Tucson." Now Tucson is at 1:26am. We are not going to move at that hour. There were no paper cups in the restrooms and no tissue's in the rooms. At no point did Mr. Ford come around to see if we were OK or needed anything. Not friendly at all. I heard him tell another passenger that he was going to retire soon. Do us all a favor and retire now Mr. Ford, I am sure there is someone out there who needs your job and could do it much better than you. I expected (correctly) an early arrival into ELP. I was right. I had our luggage ready and we were ready to detrain. No offer of help from Mr. Ford. We detrained and he did not even speak to us. Our hotel shuttle arrived to pick us up and whisk us off to the Holiday Inn Express. A nice hotel if you are taking the train to ELP.

The dining car crew on train 2 was very nice. The LSA was named Kim. Kudo's to you for being so good.

So Mr. Ford made this by far the worst leg of the trip so far.

My wife told me that she was glad to get off this train. I agreed. We had not felt like that during this trip until this leg.

Saturday morning we depart El Paso for New Orleans. Then an overnight in New Orleans to Washington and then on to Pittsburgh. It has been a good trip.

Keith Hunter
FOREST CITY, IA



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 03/22/12 10:45 by houstonguy2010.

At the pay they make, AMEN, someone else deserves his job. An embarrassment to the uniform. People like that give Amtrak a bad name. And they are basically untouchable. These jobs are difficult, but pay well and, if you take care of your passengers, you can make a few HUNDRED in tips, depending on the train and how full it is.

Please send a letter to Amtrak about Mr. Ford. Be sure to also mention the many other positive aspects of your trip so they don't just think you complain about everything. It doesn't sound like he is as bad as some I have encountered but non the less he shouldn't be working in a capacity that entails working with the public. It is really a shame that like bad teachers, these employees can't be fired because of the power the unions hold over their employer. In my profession, I could be and in fact once was fired for any reason at any time. No question asked although I did get a 90 day probation period and handsome severance. Amtrak should be able to do the same.

Please send your remark as posted to Amtrak Customer Service.

There was a guy two years ago on #6 at Sacramento working the sleepers, and when the train came to a stop there were two elderly couples who were waiting to board the train for the trip east. Their rooms were upstairs, and they asked him for help with their bags. He snipped back at them, "Man, I ain't get paid enough to do that crap---it hurts my back", and he walked away. I was like WHAT??? So I took the bags upstairs for them, even though I was waiting for a Capitol Corridor train.

coaststarlight99 Wrote:
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> There was a guy two years ago on #6 at Sacramento
> working the sleepers, and when the train came to a
> stop there were two elderly couples who were
> waiting to board the train for the trip east.
> Their rooms were upstairs, and they asked him for
> help with their bags. He snipped back at them,
> "Man, I ain't get paid enough to do that crap---it
> hurts my back", and he walked away. I was like
> WHAT??? So I took the bags upstairs for them, even
> though I was waiting for a Capitol Corridor train.


I was on 2 on March 9/10 from LAX to Tucson. The crew (an older black man and a younger trainee?) in our coach seeemd very confused and one even had a light with a green beam.Well, about 1:230 AM we stopped at a depot that resembled Tucson. I looked around, went out and found a tiny sign that said Tucson. THe crew did not even tell us it was Tucson. I wonder if any other passengers rode beyond their stop.

One bad guy ruins your whole ride?

What about Kim whom you stated was nice? What about the food in the dining car? What about the scenery? At least the train didn't arrive at your destination late.

RuleG Wrote:
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> One bad guy ruins your whole ride?
>
> What about Kim whom you stated was nice? What
> about the food in the dining car? What about the
> scenery? At least the train didn't arrive at your
> destination late.

Yes RuleG, one bad guy ruined the entire leg. He was the one with whom we had to interact the most. Dinner was nice, expecting just maybe to have rooms side by side. The let down. Why could Mr. Ford have not done his job better? Yes he and he alone ruined that leg. When I pay top dollar to travel in a sleeper I expect each and every Amtrak employee to do the job they are paid to do. I do not expect to talk to the engineer but I do expect that he/she will operate the train in a safe manner and in accordance to the rules. I do not expect to talk to the conductor but I expect him/her to keep order on the train. I do not expect to meet the chef but I expect my food to be prepared properly. I expect to meet our sleeping car attendant several times during our trip and I expect him to follow the rules Amtrak has given him/her in regards to the discharge of the duties of an attendant. He/she gets paid to do a job and I expect them to do it. Is that too much to ask in return for my fare? If you paid $800.00 for a hotel room for one night would you expect good service? A clean room perhaps? Courteous service perhaps? Yes one employee can ruin a trip. No doubt about it. Just as one employee can make a trip the memory of a lifetime as many Amtrak employees have done. Perhaps you may not care if your attendant does his/her job but I do. This Mega Trip as I call it was not cheap and when I see sadness in the face of my 9 year old son as a result of an Amtrak employee (Mr. Ford in this case) it does tick me off. My oldest son is 9 years old with over fifty thousand Amtrak miles under his belt. He already knows good service when he sees it. Mr. Ford had a choice, to make this a memorable trip for the people in his car or a lousy one. He choose the latter. I make no apology for my complaint about Mr. Ford. I simply tell it like it is. I tell about the good. Read my posts for the first 3 legs of this trip. No negativity there. So yes once again one employee can ruin a trip.

Keith Hunter
FOREST CITY, IA

Houstonguy, I read your posts about your trip and would never say you're a negative person. Nor do I fault you for your critical comments about Mr. Ford and would encourage you contact Amtrak about your experience.

I'm sorry to read that your ride on the Sunset Limited was so unpleasant.

Having said that, if I was in your situation, I think I'd be very disappointed, but I would not have let an attendant's lack of service ruin an entire trip.

For me, dinner in the diner is one of the highlights of any train ride. A number of years ago, I rode the California Zephyr from Denver to Salt Lake City and was very displeased with the dining car staff. I will always remember that, but I was also always remember the amazing scenery along that route as well.

Yes, I was a riding coach alone and spending much less money than you and maybe if I was spending all that money to ride first class, my reactions would be different. However, I am a firm believer that the extent to one enjoys travel is very much depends on one's attitude.

Hopefully, Leg 5 and all subsequent portions of your Mega Trip go well.

Happy Rails.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 03/23/12 08:35 by RuleG.

I get--totally. A poor sleeper attendant can definitely ruin a trip. Been there/done that.

coaststarlight99 Wrote:
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> I get--totally. A poor sleeper attendant can
> definitely ruin a trip. Been there/done that.

Same, there was one on the Starlight I had a few years back that treated me like 9 year old hyperactive child instead of a 16 year old.... A little respect goes a long way, but don't expect it if you don't provide it.

When I started my career at Westin Hotels my first General Manager gave me the following advice. He said, "Daniel, always remember one thing, we work for the guest, not the other way around." I always remembered that statement. The guest IS your paycheck, so treat your paycheck well.

Personally if I were a sleeping car attendant I would be there for mainly one reason and that would be to earn money. I would know that if I provided outstanding service that most likely I would be compensated well at the end of the journey by my guests. I would know that not everybody tips and would expect that. And I would also know that if I provided poor service I probably could expect to not make very much in tips.

It all boils down to a good work ethic. Do a good job no matter what your job is.

Keith Hunter
FOREST CITY, IA