Passenger Trains > vary vary bad news for Amtrak pass holders

went to see my  daughter in Texas by plain, spent the week with her.  .then toke the TeXes  eagle to Chicago, when i went to cut tickets i always call a agent as  being a pass rider that's the best way to do it . when i asked for the bt room as this train has super liners i was told as of Sept 24Th no more bt room s for pass riders . i was vary upset, Anderson stick again . in super liners in the crew sleeper  there has always been 4 rooms for Amtrak pass riders but you can,t book it before 24 hours before train leaves  no 21 22 23 and 24  so i head to go in coach but was lucky that the load was lite and head both seats to sleep on . its just not fair that what little benefits we head are being taking away from us . now we have to pay to ride in a sleeper  and the 4 rooms that we always head will just sit empty . vary sad .

While I'm sorry to hear about your luck.  I must point out that it is difficult to read something riddled with so many grammatical errors. 

Vary is a verb, or an action word.  As in "laws vary from state to state."

Very is an adverb and this is the word that should be used.  "I am VERY disappointed with the service that I received."

Also, what is a bt room?

Sorry, I know that english is inconsistant, but please learn the difference between these words.



steamboat Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> went to see my  daughter in Texas by
> plain, spent the week with her.  .then toke the
> TeXes  eagle to Chicago, when i went to cut
> tickets i always call a agent as  being a pass
> rider that's the best way to do it . when i asked
> for the bt room as this train has super liners i
> was told as of Sept 24Th no more bt room s for
> pass riders . i was vary upset, Anderson stick
> again . in super liners in the crew sleeper 
> there has always been 4 rooms for Amtrak pass
> riders but you can,t book it before 24 hours
> before train leaves  no 21 22 23 and 24  so i
> head to go in coach but was lucky that the load
> was lite and head both seats to sleep on . its
> just not fair that what little benefits we head
> are being taking away from us . now we have to pay
> to ride in a sleeper  and the 4 rooms that we
> always head will just sit empty . vary sad .

steamboat Wrote:
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> are being taking away from us . now we have to pay
> to ride in a sleeper  and the 4 rooms that we
> always head will just sit empty . vary sad .

You mean the 4 rooms are available to paying customers who want to ride or to Amtrak Guest Rewards members who have spent untold tens of thousands of dollars on Amtrak travel and are getting a little pat on the back from Amtrak for being good customers?

HogheadMike Wrote:
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> Also, what is a bt room?
 Hello Mike. I can clear that question up.

BT Rooms were for some Amtk Retirees, and some active employes = Business Travel.

Steamboat is right about the longstanding "24 hour Rule." Seemed fair to me, as an Amtk retiree.
I used the BT rooms many times, and always followed the 24 hour Rule.

IF- there was space in the Dorm Car on the Western Long Hauls, in the numbered
Rooms he mentions, they sometimes, but not always, could be released to Pass Riders in good standing (24 hours
or less from the scheduled departure of that particular Train.)

It was never a sure thing to get one of those Rooms.The rules are changing fast now, at Amtrak in many areas.
Hope that helps explain those benefits somewhat. Thanks, Mike!


 



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 11/27/19 17:21 by OldPorter.

abyler Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> steamboat Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > are being taking away from us . now we have to
> pay
> > to ride in a sleeper  and the 4 rooms that we
> > always head will just sit empty . vary sad .
>
> You mean the 4 rooms are available to paying
> customers who want to ride or to Amtrak Guest
> Rewards members who have spent untold tens of
> thousands of dollars on Amtrak travel and are
> getting a little pat on the back from Amtrak for
> being good customers?

Airline employees are subject to similar restrictions if they are not commuting / traveling to work.

They are prioritized below the lowest fare paying passengers, and hold stand by status. So, they may get bumped up until flight time. There's a whole pecking order of active employees, retirees, friends traveling on buddy pass, etc.  And they pay the taxes, facility fees, etc for the flight.

Each airline has its own variations, but this seems to be the general policy.

 >>>>I must point out that it is difficult to read something riddled with so many grammatical errors. >>>>

Give the guy a break. 

I wonder if there are any changes for former railroad employees that have an Amtrak pass. Current rules: only get a reservation 24 hrs before travel; free coach on home road, 1/2 sleeper rate. 1/2 for coach and sleeper on foreign road.

Lackawanna484 Wrote:
> Airline employees are subject to similar
> restrictions if they are not commuting / traveling
> to work.
>
> They are prioritized below the lowest fare paying
> passengers, and hold stand by status. So, they may
> get bumped up until flight time. There's a whole
> pecking order of active employees, retirees,
> friends traveling on buddy pass, etc.  And they
> pay the taxes, facility fees, etc for the flight.
>
> Each airline has its own variations, but this
> seems to be the general policy.

And within each group, there's a status pecking order. On American, we could fly D-1 a few times a year, and that D-1 pass allowed us to be ahead of all of the D-2 pass holders, regardless of when the D-2 passholders check in. When I worked for AA, my parents got to fly D-2, just like me. I'd save my D-1 for trips to Hawaii, or Europe. But the Hawaii flights were all mostly full, most of the time, so I never got into 1st class coming or going.

i flew on airline passes from the mid 80's to the early 90's.  all of my "non-rev" flights on passes were in 1st class and mostly domestic to hawaii (lots) with 1 r.t. to london and was NEVER was bumped.

a few months ago on a flight i was talking to a flight attendant.  i asked her what the chances were of a "non-rev" flying first class on a domestic flight in this day and age.  she said not good........

66

steamboat Wrote:
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><snip>  and the 4 rooms that we
> always head will just sit empty . vary sad .

I think this is what makes this the most ridiculous. Four rooms that will sit empty that could be used by a former or current employee. 

At Amtrak, the beatings will continue until moral improves...

Jim

tq-07fan Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> steamboat Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> >  and the 4 rooms that we
> > always head will just sit empty . vary sad .
>
> I think this is what makes this the most
> ridiculous. Four rooms that will sit empty that
> could be used by a former or current employee. 
>
> At Amtrak, the beatings will continue until moral morale
> improves...
>
> Jim

FTFY,  it's a personal peeve.

thanks so much speederdriver for standing up for me

steamboat Wrote:
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> thanks so much speederdriver for standing up for
> me

I think hogheadmike is a bit overboard in giving english lessons on TO.  Especially with the 3rd grade tone.   Not everyone has had english as a 1st language,
Give it a rest.  Talk about trains.

IDK what's with the Atmk employee and retiree stuff.  
I can say that as a Delta retiree (under Andersen), our perks couldnt be better. Travel is totally free out of pocket.  The US govt insisted that our travel be counted as income, and delta did as much as they could to reduce or eliminate that cost.  Many employees commute to work by plane, so that's not counted as income.  
As far as priority is concerned....I can access the Detla mainframe computer from my phone, and see seats booked, standby's, and all sorts of info on any flight, and put myself on the non-rev list on any flight and any time.   And if theres an empty seat after the revenue is boarded, im on.   Its simple. 
Even the non-rev boarding is simplified...theres a screen at every flight, showing all the non-rev's, and when ur cleared, your seat # shows up on the screen, and u just get in line and get on. 

And this was implemented by richard andersen. Go figure...

        I am with HogHeadMike on the hacked up spelling and word usage. Thank goodness some people are NOT in jobs where they write instructions on how to accomplish dangerous tasks.

I think everyone should be reminded that pass riders enjoy a privilege not a guaranteed benefit.  There might be a reason the revenues at Amtrak are on the rise and this may be one of those reasons.  I hate it when I'm on a train and I hear someone bad mouthing Amtrak and later find out they are a pass rider.  It's a culture issue with Amtrak when employees or former employees feel like the company owes them something.  Put up with the change of policy and count your blessings that you can still travel using this privilege.
 

pdt Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> steamboat Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > thanks so much speederdriver for standing up
> for
> > me
>
> I think hogheadmike is a bit overboard in giving
> english lessons on TO.  Especially with the 3rd
> grade tone.   Not everyone has had english as a
> 1st language,
> Give it a rest.  Talk about trains.
>
> IDK what's with the Atmk employee and retiree
> stuff.  
> I can say that as a Delta retiree (under
> Andersen), our perks couldnt be better. Travel is
> totally free out of pocket.  The US govt insisted
> that our travel be counted as income, and delta
> did as much as they could to reduce or eliminate
> that cost.  Many employees commute to work by
> plane, so that's not counted as income.  
> As far as priority is concerned....I can access
> the Detla mainframe computer from my phone, and
> see seats booked, standby's, and all sorts of info
> on any flight, and put myself on the non-rev list
> on any flight and any time.   And if theres an
> empty seat after the revenue is boarded, im
> on.   Its simple. 
> Even the non-rev boarding is simplified...theres a
> screen at every flight, showing all the non-rev's,
> and when ur cleared, your seat # shows up on the
> screen, and u just get in line and get on. 
>
> And this was implemented by richard andersen. Go
> figure...

in this day and age, what are your chances in 1st class on a domestic flight as a non-rev?

66

amtrakbill Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> I think everyone should be reminded that pass riders enjoy a privilege not a guaranteed benefit.  There might be a reason the revenues at Amtrak are on the rise and this may be one of those reasons.  I hate it when I'm on a train and I hear someone bad mouthing Amtrak and later find out they are a pass rider.  It's a culture issue with Amtrak when employees or former employees feel like the company owes them something.  Put up with the change of policy and count your blessings that you can still travel using this privilege.
>  

I didn't read anyone was objecting to the 24 hour rule.

Isn't the real stupidity the fact that those accommodations will be empty and unused by anyone, let alone a paying customer?

Brian

I guess it was deemed too much of a giveaway!  If the roooms go unsold though, Amtrak hasn't really gained a thing!
Plus, the odds of selling rooms less than 24 hours before departure is almost nill, because Amtrak is so stingy with their pricing!
Sure, employees can make advanced coach reservations, and ride for free, but for a lot of employees trying to escape from
the stress of working with the public, that's a non-starter.  Sleeping accomodations can also be purchased in advance, and
with a discount, although not as good as the legacy freight railroad pass holder's 50%(24 hour rule).  The problem with buying
this revenue space is, it's a roullette wheel if you are going to be eventually reimbursed(if the train doesn't sell out).
So you have at least several hundred dollars, or more, tied up for @ a month, waiting for a possible refund.  That's simply
too much of a gamble, especially for retirees living on fixed income.  If airline employees can grab a stand by seat, which
probably has a last minute significant sale value, I don't know why Amtrak employees can't do the same with a BT roomette!

goneon66 Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> i flew on airline passes from the mid 80's to the
> early 90's.  all of my "non-rev" flights on
> passes were in 1st class and mostly domestic to
> hawaii (lots) with 1 r.t. to london and was NEVER
> was bumped.
>
> a few months ago on a flight i was talking to a
> flight attendant.  i asked her what the chances
> were of a "non-rev" flying first class on a
> domestic flight in this day and age.  she said
> not good........
>
> 66

Lucky you !!
I was flying out of DFW, AA's big hub, so flights from DFW to HNL were usually full. One time, coming back from HNL, I had to opt to fly to LAX, then transfer to a waiting flight to DFW, which they held, not for me, but for paying customers. Most of my non-rev flying was '88-'98. Did a lot of non-rev flying around the US and the Caribbean, work related to the AA hotel reservations account I worked with. Lots of early morning flights coming and going. Once I got on the plane, I was never bumped, although a co-worker on pleasure travel was sitting in 1st Class enjoying a glass of champange, on a full plane in Miami, waiting for the doors to close, when, at the last minute, and the co-worker was bumped. The gate allowed a music star to get on the plane last second. Fame has it's benefits.

And on correcting spelling and grammar it's best, I think, to be correct oneself. English is indeed inconsistent but it is not inconsistant.

Yours in jest.

Rob