Passenger Trains > 5,6

I have to be in Denver in June for some meeting’s. How reliable is 5-6 between Chicago and Denver. I don’t really wanna drive and don’t like to fly, but if I have to I will.

It’s been years since I rode Amjoke so any help is appreciated.

Regards.

Posted from iPhone

Drknow Wrote:
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> It’s been years since I rode Amjoke so any help
> is appreciated.
>
> Regards.
>
> Posted from iPhone

If you refer to Amtrak as "Amjoke," I suggest you drive. Or take the bus. Or hitchhike.

Art House

Even though 5 arrives in the morning and 6 leaves in the evening, I would not suggest planning to arrive in Denver, go to a meeting, and then get on 6 for your return trip all on the same day.  5 usually runs on time, but there are enough times where it has taken a 3 to 6-hour delay getting into Denver.  And there goes the meeting.  If you are comfortable spending one night in Denver and going to your meeting the day you board 6 to return east, then you would be safe in your plans.  

Denver has an excellent transit system.  Do your research and find a hotel a little farther out from downtown Denver that is close to the transit system.  Make sure your meeting location is near transit.  If the meeting place is not near transit you can take transit to the Denver airport and rent a car.  

The same logic would apply to flying.  I would suggest flying in the night before and then flying out after the meeting.  

I understand that Amtrak's unreliability is frustrating.  I had a trip on 6 canceled because Donner Pass was closed by a snowstorm.  The way Amtrak handled this was pathetic.  It was okay that the train was canceled.  What frustrated me is that they decided they did not have to assist me in any way to get back to Chicago.  

Referring to Amtrak as Amjoke on a railfan website is not likely to encourage people to help you.  

go the day before with no stress?

Also, unless you are prepared for a "wonderful" overnight in the Greyhound bus environment in Coach, check out the cost of a sleeper room first. You say you prefer not to fly but American, Frontier, Southwest or United may look more and more tempting. The difference in cost will buy some nice dinners in Denver restaurants.

And as for "Amjoke," I would say that's how Coscia and Gardner regard those trains, with the tacit consent of some hip-pocket advocates.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 05/18/22 08:55 by GenePoon.

Thank you to those that gave me decent tips. I’m a locomotive engineer and I want to support my industry, but I stand by my statement. I don’t fault the rank and file (mostly) but the way Amjoke has ripped defeats out of the jaws of victory for the last 50 years is laughable to the point of absurdity. I’m going to be working the details out tomorrow and figure out my path by the weekend.

Regards

Posted from iPhone

GenePoon Wrote:
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> Also, unless you are prepared for a "wonderful"
> overnight in the Greyhound bus environment in
> Coach, check out the cost of a sleeper room first.

Amtrak does their best to discourage that. I'm going to Chicago next month. Buying tickets a couple of months ago, I had a choice of $150 coach or $1500 sleeper. Discourage ridership by price or quality, your choice. However, pay a little or pay a lot, you will be on time if the train gets there on the right day...and you are still on a train when you get there.

TAW

Drknow Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Thank you to those that gave me decent tips. I’m
> a locomotive engineer and I want to support my
> industry, but I stand by my statement. I don’t
> fault the rank and file (mostly) but the way
> Amjoke has ripped defeats out of the jaws of
> victory for the last 50 years is laughable to the
> point of absurdity. I’m going to be working the
> details out tomorrow and figure out my path by the
> weekend.
>

The situation is so pathetic on so many levels.The government insists that the railroads accommodate passenger trains as they were in 1971 (minus the 250ish trains that Amtrak "saved" by eliminating on day one). The raiload industry, dancing to the tune of Wall Street, insists on reducing the infrastructure to accommodate only the traffic they want: a PSR train every once in a while.

In the process, the industry has jettisoned all the competence they could round up and has made sure that it will not return by way of their Instant Expert "training" (a duration and quality of learning that is considered wholly inadequate for a job counting money instead of making it).

TAW

Drknow Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Thank you to those that gave me decent tips. I’m
> a locomotive engineer and I want to support my
> industry, but I stand by my statement. I don’t
> fault the rank and file (mostly) but the way
> Amjoke has ripped defeats out of the jaws of
> victory for the last 50 years is laughable to the
> point of absurdity. I’m going to be working the
> details out tomorrow and figure out my path by the
> weekend.
>
> Regards
>
> Posted from iPhone

You don't sound like Amtrak passenger material..you have already set yourself up to be miserable...why not take a vacation from your profession in your automobile or at an airport?   You may be happier......or you may have different complaints.  Your mileage may vary.  BSB 

I haven’t had a chance to price tickets by train yet. 20 years ago it was around 100 bucks one way coach from where I would get on. I’m sure it’s more now, but with fuel prices at current levels Amjoke COULD market themselves as a cheaper way to travel, if you could depend on getting to your destination within a 2 hr window. But 6-8-12-24 hrs? I don’t know.

Sadly it didn’t have to be this way, but Modern North American Railroading is on such a fool’s errand chasing short term profit into bankruptcy; anyone ever heard of the Rock Island? They had a strong stock price too in the 60’s but chased deferred spending to keep operating ratios high (hmmmm) and keep that stock price up.

Posted from iPhone

Don't Travel in Coach ever on any LD Trains, take a sleeping car to Denver, CO and stay 1 night in denver.

For those that didn’t understand my original post. I have ridden Amjoke MANY TIMES, I want them to succeed, my retirement is tied into them. But I’m a realist and actually have to be somewhere, don’t wanna drive and don’t care to fly.

Obviously many of you didn’t understand I basically wondered if I could just depend on the train to get me there withn a 2-4 hr window of on time. It’s been 11 years since I rode Amjoke and I guess I should just give up on it and fly or drive according to many of the comments here. Thank you for the info.

Regards

Posted from iPhone

Drknow Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Modern
> North American Railroading

There is almost no railroading in Modern North America.

TAW



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 05/18/22 11:08 by TAW.

If the original poster is a railroad engineer, he should be well aware of the old saying that it takes a thousand things to go right to make a train be on time, but only one thing to go wrong to make it late.  A two hour window of being on time with a long distance train is a crap shoot, even under perfect conditiions.

in this day and age, a 2 hr window would be risky flying...........

66

Amtrak has been marketing by radio in the Denver Metro area their low ticket prices on the 8-car California Zephyr.

Enjoy your passenger train ride-!

Drknow Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> I haven’t had a chance to price tickets by train
> yet.  ...with fuel prices at current levels
> Amjoke COULD market themselves as a cheaper way to
> travel, if you could depend on getting to your
> destination within a 2 hr window. 

TAW Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Drknow Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > Modern
> > North American Railroading
>
> There is almost no railroading in Modern North
> America.

How do you define railroading?

Drknow Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Thank you to those that gave me decent tips. I’m
> a locomotive engineer and I want to support my
> industry, but I stand by my statement. I don’t
> fault the rank and file (mostly) but the way
> Amjoke has ripped defeats out of the jaws of
> victory for the last 50 years is laughable to the
> point of absurdity. I’m going to be working the
> details out tomorrow and figure out my path by the
> weekend.
>
> Regards
>
> Posted from iPhone

Please forgive my comments.   I did not realize you were an engineer.  

Go for it.
If you are lucky something will force one or both trains to detour over the UP
between Omaha and Chicago !!!

WrongMain Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> If the original poster is a railroad engineer, he
> should be well aware of the old saying that it
> takes a thousand things to go right to make a
> train be on time, but only one thing to go wrong
> to make it late.  A two hour window of being on
> time with a long distance train is a crap shoot,
> even under perfect conditiions.

They used to be on time within a half hour or so day after day after day at the end of a 1000-2000 mile run, under average daily conditions.

TAW