Nervous first-timer boarding in the middle of the night

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gwonk

gwonk

Joined
Jun 5, 2024
Messages
1
Location
Portland, OR
Hello! Sorry for the beginner questions, I'm the sort of person who prefers to know all the details about an interaction before I have to do it. Usually I can just watch someone else do it first, but I don't have that option this time.

I'm boarding the Texas Eagle a month from now at 2am at Palm Desert (coach, westbound), and I've since found out that that station is extremely isolated and unsafe for standing around in the middle of the night. It's very small, so I'm pretty sure we'll be able to see the tracks from the parking lot. My question is, is it viable for me to just wait in the car with my friend until the train arrives? Or will it not stop at the station unless someone is present? Will an attendant open a door for me or am I expected to know how to do it myself? If there's a chance that the train won't stop at the station, what do I do if it's running late?

I've done as much research as I can and I'm pretty confident about the rest of my trip, but my plan to ask an employee about these worries fell through when I found out PSN is unmanned. Do you have any other advice about boarding coach at 2am by myself that I should keep in mind?

Thank you very much!!
 
Since you have a reservation they will plan on stopping, however I suspect if they do not see someone in the platform they may think you are a no-show and just roll on through.

They will open a door for you, it might not be near where you are standing. Fortunately in this case the Texas Eagle is a relatively short train.

You can track the train using the Amtrak app or the following site:
https://asm.transitdocs.com/
That way you can remain in the car until the train is almost due.
 
The train can certainly be late. Use Amtrak.com's Train Status, train tracker or asm.transitdocs.com to monitor its progress and stay in your friend's car until 5 or 10 minutes before it is due. You should be on the platform before it arrives, though. While the train must stop, if no one is on the platform and no one is getting off and the train is late, they may just pause briefly without opening any doors. In any case, the stop will be as short as they can make it and if you are still in the car when it pulls in they might not see you heading towards the train and close up. They will not pull out if they see someone moving towards the train, though.

They will likely open up just one door, head towards it when the train stops.

Note the trackers are not fully real time so the train will be a couple minutes ahead of where it is shown.
 
I'm aware other people might disagree, but I think you should be ready for plans to change.

Based on speed & position data from asm.transitdocs.com, I believe this train has not stopped at this station most or all days since at least the start of April, even though it may have a recorded arrival or departure time. I can't even find an alert about this on their website, though last year they did publish one. This is probably due to accumulating desert sand, and it's happened before. The data indicating the speed & position of the train does not show it slowing or stopping for Palm Springs, whereas it does at all other stops. Sometimes, only an arrival time (but not a departure time) is recorded, which also doesn't happen at other stops. For example, see e.g. https://asm.transitdocs.com/train/2024/4/1/A/1. Note the Texas Eagle is combined with Sunset Limited train #1 through this area.

As additional evidence, booking Yuma - Palm Springs or Palm Springs - Los Angeles for the next week or two shows that the train is "sold out", but booking Yuma - Los Angeles is possible. This doesn't make sense if the train is truly "sold out". My guess is that they're just blocking ticket sales to/from Palm Springs. I think I've seen this in previous years, where they block ticket sales & cancel existing ones on a rolling basis. I actually booked an LAX-PSN roundtrip last summer and I got an email about a month beforehand saying I should "utilize the next available station" instead - the trip was just for fun so I ended up cancelling it.

I think it'd be better to wait for them to contact you first - I could be wrong about all of this - but I think this is a serious possibility. A good non-Amtrak alternative is probably to book the 4:50am Flixbus from the "Palm Springs North" bus stop (nearby the station, exit 120 on I-10).
 
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If you keep tabs on the train via the AMTRAK website or the App, you can see if the train is running grossly late. If they are late, they have a tendency to slow down and maybe not stop. The train legally can not leave the station until scheduled departure time. (It says here...) If you have a valid rez and are ticketed, they "SHOULD" be on the lookout for you and stop. I don't know the layout, but if you park as close to the platform as possible for security, headlights on, and have a flashlight and light clothing. If you can be on the platform, make sure you are standing in the light so the Engineer will see you, and wave the light down the side of the train to catch the eye of the Conductor.
 
FWIW, the signal to tell a train to stop. I might stand a little further off the track....

1717615029292.png
 
I have been on many a night-time train through the sparsely settled West. I get on and off at a small stop in the Columbia Gorge where I am usually the only passenger on the platform. I get a ride from a friend's house, where I have left my car for the duration. My friend always waits with me on the platform till the train arrives. I sign up with Amtrak for text alerts to my phone if the train is going to be late, and in addition I use asm.transitdocs.com to monitor my train's progress.

When there is a ticketed passenger at the stop, the train WILL slow way down for the station. If no person is visible, and the train is late, it's possible they may cruise past the platform at a very low speed. But they will be READY to stop, and if they see a person on the platform, they WILL stop. If you are the only ticketed passenger waiting, only one door will open, and it will be your car. As the train slows, you will see a conductor or attendant standing at an open window. As soon as the train comes to a halt, the door will open and they will get out the step stool so you can board. They will assist you if you need it. If you just make your way towards that open door, don't worry, they will wait for you.

I know you will have a great trip. Please report back to us after your journey and let us know how it went.
 
ParanoidAndroid said:
I'm aware other people might disagree, but I think you should be ready for plans to change.

Based on speed & position data from asm.transitdocs.com, I believe this train has not stopped at this station most or all days since at least the start of April, even though it may have a recorded arrival or departure time. I can't even find an alert about this on their website, though last year they did publish one. This is probably due to blowing desert sand, and it's happened before. The data indicating the speed & position of the train does not show it slowing or stopping for Palm Springs, whereas it does at all other stops. Sometimes, only an arrival time (but not a departure time) is recorded, which also doesn't happen at other stops. For example, see e.g. https://asm.transitdocs.com/train/2024/4/1/A/1. Note the Texas Eagle is combined with Sunset Limited train #1 through this area.

As additional evidence, booking Yuma - Palm Springs or Palm Springs - Los Angeles for the next week or two shows that the train is "sold out", but booking Yuma - Los Angeles is possible. This doesn't make sense if the train is truly "sold out". My guess is that they're just blocking ticket sales to/from Palm Springs. I think I've seen this in previous years, where they block ticket sales & cancel existing ones on a rolling basis. I actually booked an LAX-PSN roundtrip last summer and I got an email about a month beforehand saying I should "utilize the next available station" instead - the trip was just for fun so I ended up cancelling it.

I think it'd be better to wait for them to contact you first - I could be wrong about all of this - but I think this is a serious possibility. A good non-Amtrak alternative is probably to book the 4:50am Flixbus from the "Palm Springs North" bus stop (nearby the station, exit 120 on I-10).
Click to expand...
I did not want initially to mention the sand accumulation and skipping the station at PSN issue, because the OP already appeared a bit nervous about a zero dark thirty stop at an unstaffed station. And there is no current advisory about it.

However, I looked at asm.transitdocs.com location history and recent editions of 2/422 appear to be blowing through the immediate vicinity of the PSN station at 40-50 mph, the same as what @ParanoidAndroid saw.

Further, the next two trains, Friday and Sunday, are showing as "Sold Out" LAX-PSN, but bookable LAX-YUM. "Sold Out" often is the message when sales are blocked, as well as actually being sold out. And actually being sold out LAX-PSN with LAX-YUM available is pretty unlikely. Next Wednesday's train is bookable LAX-PSN, as is next Friday's and the one about a month from now, Friday, July 5th is bookable as well.

Unfortunately, a lot of this information is consistent with the scenario of a rolling cancellation of the stop at PSN as described by @ParanoidAndroid, perhaps on a week to week basis.

If this is the case, my guess is they'll make the decision on serving PSN and notify you if the stop is cancelled within about a week of travel. The alternate stations are Ontario, about 70 miles west, and Yuma, about 170 miles southeast.

If they determine the station is to be skipped, you can stand on the platform and wave until your arm falls off. The train will still blow by at track speed on the mainline. They won't stop on the main and would not be allowed to enter the station siding, where the sand accumulation problem is.

To further complicate matters, you likely will not get any more information by calling Amtrak right now. All they'll know is what the computer tells them, and right now the computer will tell them is the train will stop, same as the website.

I don't want to panic you, but you should probably work out some sort of Plan B that you can execute if you need to. Perhaps figuring out a way to get to Ontario or Yuma, perhaps something else. That is probably better to do while you still have some lead time, rather than at the last minute if Amtrak notifies you that your stop is being skipped just a few days before your departure.

General note, I don't know what logic Amtrak used when they decided to replace the Indio stop with this godforsaken outpost off Interstate 10. Indio didn't have a problem with sand accumulation derailing cars to the best of my recollection.
 
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zephyr17 said:
The train can certainly be late. Use Amtrak.com's Train Status, train tracker or asm.transitdocs.com to monitor its progress and stay in your friend's car until 5 or 10 minutes before it is due. You should be on the platform before it arrives, though. While the train must stop, if no one is on the platform and no one is getting off and the train is late, they may just pause briefly without opening any doors. In any case, the stop will be as short as they can make it and if you are still in the car when it pulls in they might not see you heading towards the train and close up. They will not pull out if they see someone moving towards the train, though.

They will likely open up just one door, head towards it when the train stops.

Note the trackers are not fully real time so the train will be a couple minutes ahead of where it is shown.
Click to expand...
That's what my family has routinely done with other trains, whether it was the Lincoln Service/Missouri River Runner boarding at our hometown (also an unmanned station), or waiting with our son in Kankakee for him to board the Illini or Saluki to return to law school in Carbondale, IL.
 
zephyr17 said:
I did not want initially to mention the sand accumulation and skipping the station at PSN issue, because the OP already appeared a bit nervous about a zero dark thirty stop at an unstaffed station. And there is no current advisory about it.

However, I looked at asm.transitdocs.com location history and recent editions of 2/422 appear to be blowing through the immediate vicinity of the PSN station at 40-50 mph, the same as what @ParanoidAndroid saw.

Further, the next two trains, Friday and Sunday, are showing as "Sold Out" LAX-PSN, but bookable LAX-YUM. "Sold Out" often is the message when sales are blocked, as well as actually being sold out. And actually being sold out LAX-PSN with LAX-YUM available is pretty unlikely. Next Wednesday's train is bookable LAX-PSN, as is next Friday's and the one about a month from now, Friday, July 5th is bookable as well.

Unfortunately, a lot of this information is consistent with the scenario of a rolling cancellation of the stop at PSN as described by @ParanoidAndroid, perhaps on a week to week basis.

If this is the case, my guess is they'll make the decision on serving PSN and notify you if the stop is cancelled within about a week of travel. The alternate stations are Ontario, about 70 miles west, and Yuma, about 170 miles southeast.

If they determine the station is to be skipped, you can stand on the platform and wave until your arm falls off. The train will still blow by at track speed on the mainline. They won't stop on the main and would not be allowed to enter the station siding, where the sand accumulation problem is.

To further complicate matters, you likely will not get any more information by calling Amtrak right now. All they'll know is what the computer tells them, and right now the computer will tell them is the train will stop, same as the website.

I don't want to panic you, but you should probably work out some sort of Plan B that you can execute if you need to. Perhaps figuring out a way to get to Ontario or Yuma, perhaps something else. That is probably better to do while you still have some lead time, rather than at the last minute if Amtrak notifies you that your stop is being skipped just a few days before your departure.

General note, I don't know what logic Amtrak used when they decided to replace the Indio stop with this godforsaken outpost off Interstate 10. Indio didn't have a problem with sand accumulation derailing cars to the best of my recollection.
Click to expand...
Another option would be to book the 3-hour bus ride from Palm Desert, but that won't work if you've planned a same-day connection to the Coast Starlight.
 
joelkfla said:
Another option would be to book the 3-hour bus ride from Palm Desert, but that won't work if you've planned a same-day connection to the Coast Starlight.
Click to expand...
Yeah, I didn't check the time quoted by OP, 2 am, against the schedule and somewhat stupidly assumed they were heading east. I knew both directions at PSN were zero dark thirty and just went from there.
 
BlackDiamond said:
Since you have a reservation they will plan on stopping, however I suspect if they do not see someone in the platform they may think you are a no-show and just roll on through.

They will open a door for you, it might not be near where you are standing. Fortunately in this case the Texas Eagle is a relatively short train.

You can track the train using the Amtrak app or the following site:
https://asm.transitdocs.com/
That way you can remain in the car until the train is almost due.
Click to expand...
The poster will be boarding the Sunset Limited (with Texas Eagle through cars), so it will not be a short train. But if this is a scheduled stop with the rider's name on the manifest, the train will stop. A conductor or attendant will open a door.
 
Thank you so much for all your help! I think I can figure out a Plan B with my friend but you've helped me feel better about my plans for that night if my ticket isn't canceled.

I'll keep an eye on this thread until my trip, and update it afterward!! Thank you for the details and the helpful vibe! 😊
 
gwonk (the op) said:
Thank you so much for all your help! I think I can figure out a Plan B with my friend but you've helped me feel better about my plans for that night if my ticket isn't canceled.

I'll keep an eye on this thread until my trip, and update it afterward!! Thank you for the details and the helpful vibe! 😊
Click to expand...
It is an awesome thing to stand alone on a dark platform in the middle of the night and watch a two-story train coming in. "Can this dragon-like apparition be stopping for me?" I did it at Sandpoint, Idaho, getting on the eastbound [edit for accuracy: actually westbound, but it changes nothing] Empire Builder, and the door opened right where I was standing, and the attendant greeted me and told me my roomette was ready for me.
 
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Palm Springs - right??

For the Palm Springs Amtrak station, there is a security camera on both sides of the building, one facing the tracks, and one facing the parking area. Parking in front of a camera would be a good idea regardless of security questions but I don’t see any good view from the parking space to the train because of many trees playing alongside the tracks per street views on Google map.

You could call Palm Springs Police Department to see if they could possibly send a cruiser to cover the arrival of the train and that you would be happy to call the PSPD to update when they arrive will be.

One thing that Amtrak can do for you, I think, is to let you know how many people are ordering at Palm Springs, and how many are getting off at Palm Springs which would allow you an idea of the people hanging around, waiting for a train or waiting for picking up passengers.
 
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