# All peak Acela trains now blacked out?



## darien-l (Oct 1, 2007)

Just noticed this fine print on https://www.amtrakguestrewards.com/index.cf...=zone_chart.cfm :

"Acela Express service, weekday travel origination may not occur from any boarding point between start-of-service and 8:59am inclusive, or between 2:00pm and 5:59pm inclusive (weekend Acela Express travel is permitted at any time except on any weekend dates defined in item (i) above)."

Is this new? It seems to significantly reduce redemption options in the NE corridor.


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## Penn Central (Oct 1, 2007)

How is this suprising, with the fares they charge for the Acela? After all, isn't the system designed for the person to earn points on the NEC and spend them elsewhere? Even if its not how it was designed, that's how it seems to work most of the time.


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## darien-l (Oct 2, 2007)

Penn Central said:


> How is this suprising, with the fares they charge for the Acela? After all, isn't the system designed for the person to earn points on the NEC and spend them elsewhere? Even if its not how it was designed, that's how it seems to work most of the time.


In all fairness, though, NEC regionals are still a good redemption deal at 3,000 points per trip, and they're not time-restricted... yet.


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## Guest (Oct 2, 2007)

Am I understanding this correctly? One can still board a "peak" Acela after 8:59 AM no matter where it originated? For example, say I wanted to board an Acela in Newark at 9:30AM, would I be permitted to do so with AGR even though that train originated during peak time and was a peak train before it reached Newark?


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