# chuljin's commute



## chuljin (Jun 23, 2008)

*Background*

I live about 2 miles northeast of GDL, and work about 1/2 mile west of the (LA) Metro 7th/Metro Center station. At first because it was an opportunity to take a train, any train, every day, and now that combined with the price of gas, I commute as follows:


Drive to GDL

One of the many many Metrolink trains that serve GDL (usually 206) to LAX (unfortunately, the earliest Surfliner is far too late for my commute)

Metro Red/Purple Line (either will do) to 7th/Metro

The first bus that comes along (usually DASH E or Metro 51) to my office

Work

Walk to 7th/Metro (I seldom take a bus this direction because the schedule is not ideal, and I'm also less pressed for time)

Metro Red/Purple Line (either will do) to LAX

Amtrak 785 (if the scheduling stars align, otherwise occasionally Metrolink 221 or 119) to GDL

Drive home

Other notes:

As a creature of habit, I always ride in the cafe car on 785, near the top of the stairs. In recent memory, it's been in seat 33.

In theory, 785 arrives at GDL at 7:13pm; I always hang out a few minutes to see 798 (which in theory arrives at 7:18) pass by, looking for any variations in that train's already-unique consist. Hopefully I shall someday see 10031, as I understand happens (or used to) from time to time.

_It is worth mentioning (since my first post on this topic, which I'm now writing, has variations) is that 785 arrives at 6:45pm on track 9B, and leaves at 7pm. Across the platform at 10B is a Surfliner trainset, standing unused, which I guess [i've never been at LAX that late] later goes to SAN as train 592._

*My idea*

Obviously, at 6 miles and 10-15 minutes, none of these trips merits its own thread-level isolated trip report, especially as most are mundane and I barely have time even to get a satisfying sneeze.

However, as often as twice a week, something strangely noteworthy or noteworthily strange happens, ranging from 'I bet some folks on AU would find that mildly interesting' to real zingers that I itch to share.

My idea, therefore: _when/if such things happen, would it be in order to put brief notes about them here, not as new threads, but additional posts on this present thread?_ I wonder if it might even be forbidden as a special case of Excessive posting of that which lacks substance. :|

Some examples of things that happened just in the past two weeks (not all on the same day, of course) that I'd have shared if I thought of this earlier:


The cafe attendant who gave herself the peace and quiet to restock (as they all deserve, of course) not by just closing the door between the service and seating area, or by blocking the entrance to the seating area by putting the two trash cans between the restroom and wall, but by putting the trash cans at the bottom of the stairs, blocking that car's only exit;

As the train pulls into LAX, I stand to the side of the cafe door, let the people stream out, then board. Last week, train arrived, doors opened, no stream of people. I looked in and saw the cafe attendant and an assistant conductor furiously mopping up the results of a backed-up restroom;

Waiting for 785 with me on platform 9 at LAX were a Metrolink conductor and two LA County Sheriff's Deputies, into whose custody an Amtrak passenger from the south was delivered (anecdotally, it sounds like he'd been smoking on the train).

And even on such short trips, there are opportunities for satisfying conversations with one's fellow passengers (see the penultimate paragraph of this post, which was not part of a commute, but precisely followed its short route).

Just an idea; do let me know what you think.

Thanks,

Chris


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## Joel N. Weber II (Jun 23, 2008)

chuljin said:


> Drive to GDL
> 
> One of the many many Metrolink trains that serve GDL (usually 206) to LAX (unfortunately, the earliest Surfliner is far too late for my commute)
> 
> ...


I'm curious how integrated the billing for all of these services is. Can you just buy one monthly pass for everything including Amtrak, Metrolink, Metro, and DASH? (An MBTA monthly pass never covers trips on an Amtrak Northeast Regional, AFAIK, even though that might be convenient for Providence commuters; but a Shore Line East monthly pass does cover certain segments on at least some Regional trains.)

Are there fees for parking at GDL?


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## chuljin (Jun 23, 2008)

Joel N. Weber II said:


> chuljin said:
> 
> 
> > Drive to GDL
> ...


Not quite. There are two groups of semi-interchangeable tickets at work here._*Amtrak/Metrolink*_: here in SoCal, Metrolink and Amtrak have an agreement known as Rail 2 Rail, whereby people holding Metrolink monthly passes (only...no other tickets [one-way, 10-trip]) on the Ventura and/or Orange County Lines (of the six, the two that share tracks and stations with Amtrak's Pacific Surfliner) can ride any Surfliner train within the limits of their pass, and people holding any type of Amtrak ticket may ride any Metrolink train within the limits of their ticket. I maintain a thick stack of LAX->GDL unreserved Surfliner tickets (when I get down to 3, I buy 20 more) which I always use on Amtrak 785, as well as a smaller supply of GDL->LAX tickets which I give (or sometimes just show [?!?!]) the Metrolink conductor when (rarely) asked. Why not an Amtrak 10-ride ticket? True, it's about 80% of the cost of 10 single-ride tickets, but only gets 10% as many AGR points. 

_*Metro/DASH*_: My employer thoughtfully pays a $75 transit 'supplement', which I use for a Metro monthly pass, of which there are two kinds: a Metro-only pass for $62, which can be used for every Metro train and bus (except the odd freeway express), but no others, and an 'EZ Pass', which can be used for Metro Rail and Bus, but also a long list of smaller transit systems (including DASH) in LA County. It is this latter one that I get.



Joel N. Weber II said:


> Are there fees for parking at GDL?


No, it's free but restricted. The restrictions are not onerous, however: There are three distinct hardly-or-not-connected lots at GDL: one between the station and the street, signed '3 hours', one next to the station and platforms on the 'Amtrak' side (Amtrak and Metrolink stop at different places along GDL's very long platforms), signed '72 hours', and one next to the station and platforms on the 'Metrolink' side, signed '72 hours, Metrolink only'.


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## jackal (Jun 23, 2008)

I'd be all for you posting your tidbits as replies here. Of course, I'm not an admin or moderator and can't speak to whether it's in the rules, but it certainly beats starting a new thread for each minor occurrence of something almost-notable!


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## Cascadia (Jun 24, 2008)

I'll be checking this thread to see if you posted any stories. Thanks for thinking of it. That's a lot of trains and busses to get off every day. There's bound to be some incidents both good and bad. I've never been to California so it's a window on another world for me.


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## p&sr (Jun 24, 2008)

Cascadia said:


> I've never been to California so it's a window on another world for me.


And to think it's just a single overnight away by Amtrak. You ought to come on down! It's a beautiful trip.

Here's your Itinerary... four days by Rail, and possible overnight in Seattle before and after the Trip.

Day 1: Depart Seattle 9:45 AM on the Coast Starlight. See Puget Sound, the Columbia River, the Willamette Valley, and climb the Cascades (by daylight if it's Summer and the Train is not too late).

Day 2: Northern California, Sacramento, the Bay Area, the Salinas Valley. San Luis Obispo (with Horseshoe Curve and Stenner Creek Trestle). Magnificent ocean vistas from Vandenberg AFB through Ventura (if the Train is not too late... or if it's Full Moon!). Arrive in Los Angeles 9:00 PM (theoretically), transfer to San Diego on the 10:10 PM Train (or a Bus if later). Arrive San Diego about 1:00 AM. Catch a few hours of sleep at a nearby Hotel.

Day 3: Catch the 6:10 AM Surfliner northbound to Los Angeles, with beautiful morning views of the Pacific Ocean and Beaches. Transfer to the 10:15 AM Coast Starlight. Enjoy the Coastal Views through San Luis Obispo by daylight, and the Bay Area late evening.

Day 4: Be awake early to see Mount Shasta at Daybreak. Continue through the Cascades, then familiar territory back to Seattle at 8:45 PM (theoretically).

By spending two nights in San Diego, you would have an entire day free to enjoy that pleasant City, and ride the Trolleys and have a nice Mexican Dinner at Old Town.

Unfortunately, Amtrak provides no same-day connections for the Starlight to points in Washington State north of Seattle, in either direction. So this leg would have to be either on your own, or on the Cascades Trains with overnight in Seattle.

Coach Fares begin at $101 each way... $90.9 for AAA and $85.85 for Seniors (62+).

Just a thought...


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## p&sr (Jun 24, 2008)

p&sr said:


> Here's your Itinerary... four days by Rail, and possible overnight in Seattle before and after the Trip.


A nice variation on the Itinerary would be to get off the southbound CS at Emeryville (8:10 AM) or Oakland (8:35 AM) or San Jose (9:55 AM), and get to San Francisco (by Amtrak Bus from Emeryville, by BART or Ferryboat from Oakland, or by CalTrain from San Jose). Spend the day in town, ride the Cable Cars, have a snack at Fisherman's Wharf (Shrimp Cocktail... or Clam Chowder in a Sourdough Bowl), and eventually get back to Oakland (Jack London Square), by BART or by Ferryboat, in time to catch the 5:50 PM SJ Train to Bakersfield, with midnight Bus connection to San Diego, arriving 5:35 AM.

This gives a day of local enjoyment, and saves the Hotel in San Diego (if you like sleeping on the Bus). Or stay over in San Diego and have a day in town there as well!


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## WhoozOn1st (Jun 24, 2008)

chuljin said:


> Hopefully I shall someday see 10031, as I understand happens (or used to) from time to time.


My last sighting of of 10031 in the 798/799 consist occured at LAUS on 6-1-08, the morning I was there for the steam excursion. It was also the first time I had seen the new paint on the cabbage. The engineer climbed down, and as he was walking by I said "New paint job, huh?" He replied, "Yeah, but it doesn't ride any better."

As for your idea, obviously I'm not Admin or Mod, but I do know those guys. I don't think they'd have any objections. Sounds like you're proposing a variant of what I do with the 'L.A. Rail News Updates" in the Members Gathering area. Because I'm on the Gathering planning committee I consulted with AlanB before launching that thread, and he had no objection. I say Go For It! AlanB is the de facto arbiter, and if he has any objections he'll let you know in a nice way. As for excessive posting, what you might do is build a list of occurrences over a period of time, then post them collectively now and then.

EDIT: On further consideration, one issue could be that the topic might be more appropriate for the Commuter/Subway/Light Rail area, even though there's an Amtrak component (it's still your commute). Also, I don't recommend calling it "Chuljin's Commute." Try a more generalized, non-personal title, while still specific to L.A.


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## WhoozOn1st (Jun 26, 2008)

Silence on this front for two days. Did AlanB put the kibosh on the concept? I kinda liked the idea.


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## Joel N. Weber II (Jun 26, 2008)

Maybe Chris is just short of time as much as that guy who hasn't yet posted the Tehachapi trip report.


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## WhoozOn1st (Jun 26, 2008)

Joel N. Weber II said:


> Maybe Chris is just short of time as much as that guy who hasn't yet posted the Tehachapi trip report.


Hey, I need some time to collect my thoughts. Both of them. I hope to have it up by the weekend. And I did put up the pics and account of the return trip.


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## Green Maned Lion (Jun 26, 2008)

I wish I could commute on an Amtrak train reasonably priced. *sighs*


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## GG-1 (Jun 27, 2008)

WhoozOn1st999 said:


> Joel N. Weber II said:
> 
> 
> > Maybe Chris is just short of time as much as that guy who hasn't yet posted the Tehachapi trip report.
> ...


TWO Thoughts WOW Left rail, Right Rail?

Anyway, Mahalo, for my evening laugh :lol: , Cant wait to meet you in LA for the fest.


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## chuljin (Jul 1, 2008)

Joel N. Weber II said:


> Maybe Chris is just short of time as much as that guy who hasn't yet posted the Tehachapi trip report.


Indeed. I've been a bit busy with the second-most-important reason (besides riding trains) of my commute: work. 

The first [five] reports will be at the end of the thread in a few moments.

I'd say 'enjoy', but I doubt it.


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## chuljin (Jul 1, 2008)

_Edit: this post originally had the first such report, actually a week's summary._

_ _

_Per Whooz's __excellent suggestion__, I have moved it __here__._


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## MrFSS (Jul 1, 2008)

I enjoy reading the reports as I don't have any type of passenger trains anywhere near me to enjoy!


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## WhoozOn1st (Jul 1, 2008)

chuljin said:


> anyone on the fence about my idea will now have fallen onto one side or the other


I don't like falling, much less off fences.

Good report. Just as a personal point I do think a new topic with a different title is in order, at the very least to eliminate the extraneous stuff above.


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## jackal (Jul 1, 2008)

I enjoy it! But then again, I am originally a Southern Californian, and reading these makes me feel like I'm commuting on Amtrak and Metrolink and keeps me connected to the SoCal world. Keep going!


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## the_traveler (Jul 1, 2008)

chuljin said:


> I've been a bit busy with the second-most-important reason (besides riding trains) of my commute: *work*.


How dare you call that important! It's a 4 letter word!


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## GG-1 (Jul 1, 2008)

the_traveler said:


> chuljin said:
> 
> 
> > I've been a bit busy with the second-most-important reason (besides riding trains) of my commute: *work*.
> ...


Where"s Maynord G. Crebbs? Or How to type Work!


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## WhoozOn1st (Jul 1, 2008)

GG-1 said:


> Where"s Maynord G. Crebbs?


That's Maynard G. Krebs. Bob Denver, whooz more likely recalled as Gilligan, of island infamy.

Maybe if chuljin began anew he could be rid of Hawaiian riff-raff.


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## chuljin (Jul 1, 2008)

the_traveler said:


> chuljin said:
> 
> 
> > I've been a bit busy with the second-most-important reason (besides riding trains) of my commute: *work*.
> ...


It funds my coin, gadget, and (most importantly) train habits.

When, at the beginning of February, the company I worked for vaporized, as part of my job search, for S&Gs I looked at Amtrak's job listings, and found just the perfect job...precisely the kind of work I do and needing skills and experience extremely similar to mine, but unfortunately in DC. I was heartbroken. I now work for the City of LA instead. Perhaps I can eventually work for LADOT or Metro.


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## GG-1 (Jul 1, 2008)

WhoozOn1st999 said:


> GG-1 said:
> 
> 
> > Where"s Maynord G. Crebbs?
> ...


Mahalo for the correction, my memory of Gilligan and his three hour cruise was clouded by all the "Ginger and Mary Ann" types in modern swim wear, that vision  helps make up for the limited trains here.

Aloha


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## the_traveler (Jul 1, 2008)

chuljin said:


> When, at the beginning of February, the company I worked for vaporized, as part of my job search, for S&Gs I looked at Amtrak's job listings, and found just the perfect job...precisely the kind of work I do and needing skills and experience extremely similar to mine, but unfortunately in DC. I was heartbroken.


But think of your daily commute on Amtrak from GDL! 

Now *THERE'S* a commute to write a TR about! :lol:


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## Cascadia (Jul 3, 2008)

p&sr said:


> Cascadia said:
> 
> 
> > I've never been to California so it's a window on another world for me.
> ...


Hey, I am sorry I missed this earlier! That was really nice of you to spell out an itinerary for me and the variation in the following post! Of course I want to do this sometime, and maybe make it into a trip to Arizona to see my Dad and my aunt that live there. Or, connect to the California Zephyr and take that to Chicago and make a loop back on the Empire Builder to home.

It helps to have someone point out the connection problems and give options for turning around and coming back without spending money on a hotel room. Boy, a few years ago when I first moved out here I remember the Coast Starlight was on the Weekly Specials page, it was so cheap, it was like 42.00 to go from Seattle to Los Angeles. Don't know if we will ever see that again. I should have a zip-down-and-back itinerary planned though in case it turns up like that this winter.

Thanks for your post and I'm sorry I missed it earlier.


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## MrFSS (Jul 3, 2008)

Cascadia said:


> p&sr said:
> 
> 
> > Cascadia said:
> ...


As close as you are, you should consider coming to the _*Get Together*_ in October in LA. We will ride trains for several days and eat a few meals together. See the *Get Together sub-forum* for details!


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## HP_Lovecraft (Jul 3, 2008)

Green Maned Lion said:


> I wish I could commute on an Amtrak train reasonably priced. *sighs*


I never even considered a commute until gas hit $3.50, and I started looking for options.

I spend about $10 a day driving to work, and back. The Amtrak Commuter pass for SAO-WEM was only $75

So, I only need to use it for 8 days a month to break even. If I use it for 30 days, I'd save myself $200. This fact is not missed by my wife, who uses that information to justify spending $200 on clothes....

The ride is absolutely wonderful. Some patterns:

1- When its rains, there tends to be "signal delays"

2- When its hot, there tends to be "heat delays"

3- Some days, the conductor reminds me that commuter passes do not guarenntee a seat.

4- Northbound trains often have "Switch delays"

Otherwise, nothing noteworthy happens.

The exception would be last week- As the train was pulling out of SAO station, the conductor pulled the bridge in. Suddenly, a PAX came running through the station, and jumped on the moving train!

She took her seat, and the conductor spent about 5 minutes complaining that "she could have died, and we would have all been late" (sarcastically)


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## chuljin (Jul 3, 2008)

WhoozOn1st999 said:


> GG-1 said:
> 
> 
> > Where"s Maynord G. Crebbs?
> ...


Nothing wrong with Hawaii, except, of course, the continued refusal or inability to scrape together the money for bridges or tunnels between SoCal and Hawaii.


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## Cascadia (Jul 10, 2008)

MrFSS said:


> As close as you are, you should consider coming to the _*Get Together*_ in October in LA. We will ride trains for several days and eat a few meals together. See the *Get Together sub-forum* for details!


Hi Mr FSS, I don't know why I keep losing track of this thread. Here I am a week later. It would be super fun to go to LA for the get together, but it coincides with an annual work event which makes a lot of obligations right around that time. Maybe next year! thanks for the encouragement though.


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