Reaching status using long distance only

[NativeSon5859]

I’m ridiculously close to Select Plus and I live in an area that is only served by long distance trains (NOL). I’m wondering how common this is? I figure it’s pretty easy to attain if you live in areas with frequent corridor service and are on the go for business. Could I be the only person in the state of Louisiana with Select Plus, when I pass that mark next month? Ha.

 

[pennyk]

I live in Florida and travel almost exclusively on long distance trains. I am Select Executive and have been for several years.

 

[Palmetto]

On the passenger manifest, is a passenger's status noted?

 

[RichieRich]

deleted

 

[J-train]

This is my understanding:

1000 TQPs/$5000 charged from AGR card.

At most 4000 TQPs/year from AGR card.

 

[bratkinson]

This is my understanding:

1000 TQPs/$5000 charged from AGR card.

At most 4000 TQPs/year from AGR card.

That's what it is. Interestingly, for me, I get the 1K TQPs about 5 weeks after the billing cycle that put me past the next $5,000 multiple. One would think it would come from Bank of America when the CC is billed, but apparently it's AGR making the posting, as BofA sends them the total dollars spent one each and every bill.

 

[RichieRich]

deleted

 

[user 14106]

I do northeast corridor travel and get some points from that, but I reached select plus this year mainly from doing some LD trips (all sleeper) - one way on the Star Columbia SC to WAS, two ways on the Crescent (NYP to Atlanta , Atlanta back to WAS) and I just actually hit Select Plus last week for one way on Auto Train (my return trip on the AT hasn’t been added in yet.) I got tons of total points from the AT especially because of the double days promotion currently going on.

Because of double days I’ll probably get 6600 points from this AT round trip (half TQPs)

 

[user 14106]

The LD trains give you a lot of points especially if you travel in sleeper. If you are only travelling on corridors shorter distances you have to be a very frequent traveler to get the same amount of points. As an example I'd have to do 3 round trips from Springfield (my local station) to Washington to get the amount of points I got from one leg of my recent Florida trip using the auto train. I mostly travel for personal reasons and not for business so I would not have gotten Select Plus (or even Select probably) if I didn't do my long distance trips this year and my one Acela first class ride that I did.

 

[NativeSon5859]

This year in the sleeper I’ve done NOL-WAS, NOL-CHI round trip, PDX-CHI, EMY-CHI, LIT-CHI, and CHI-CVS. I have three more sleeper segments and one Acela coming up during the double day’s promotion. Select Plus (assuming I make it) will be nice to have also since they are building a United Club in the new New Orleans airport.

 

[scrollmaster]

This year in the sleeper I’ve done NOL-WAS, NOL-CHI round trip, PDX-CHI, EMY-CHI, LIT-CHI, and CHI-CVS. I have three more sleeper segments and one Acela coming up during the double day’s promotion. Select Plus (assuming I make it) will be nice to have also since they are building a United Club in the new New Orleans airport.

I live in Monroe, LA area and reached Select Plus. My closest train station is over 130 miles away. It is a bit more difficult on LD travel only. I would love Select Executive but still need 8043 TQP's. I made it to Select Plus by traveling a good bit, the 4000 TQP's for spending, and maximizing the use of purchases on my AGR cards. But that is a double edge sword because when redeeming points for travel it earns no TQP's. Wife and I travel so much by points we earn that doubt making SE is in our forcast. 

 

[bratkinson]

As evidenced by previous posters, making AGR status levels with LD trips is doable.  It just takes more trips and money to do so.  It would sure be nice if LD first class (when's the last time they called it 'first class'?) had a 25-50% TQP add on like business/first class do.

Living in New England, I usually travel business class to get the extra 25% 'bump' in TQPs (and regular points) to speed my progress to the next level.  With their first time ever (if memory serves) double TQP days last July & August, I tossed in a couple of LD trips as well and made it to Select Executive.  I even did a couple of Acela first class trips to get a 50% TQP bump.

 

[BCL]

Old topic, but at this point being near a corridor route doesn't necessarily make it easier any more.  It was when there was a 100 point per segment minimum.  However, I wasn't solely about the points, and I bought regular multi-ride tickets where a $108 10-ride ticket would yield me 216 points.  Or I could spend $180 dollars on 10 separate one-way tickets and get 1,000 points (or more if I split them up using multi-city).  There were some discounts I used that apparently have gone away, like the 25% Levi's Stadium discount that seemed to work on most days with or without an event.  Or one 50% discount.  But those made getting points cheaper because I'd still get the same amount of points.

Right not it's going to cost $5,000 to get those points to make Select Plus unless there are bonus TQPs.  And when I had it I never used an Amtrak lounge and only used a United Club once.

 

[jis]

Acela First Class and Business Class bonus TQPs are available only in corridor trains and on very few LD trains. So being near a corridor has still some advantages. The old 100 points per segment was very usable on LD trains, so that was not a corridor specific advantage.

 

[VTTrain]

 The old 100 points per segment was very usable on LD trains, so that was not a corridor specific advantage.

Usable, but with much less frequency.   

 

[jis]

Usable, but with much less frequency.   

So what would stop me from traveling between Orlando and Kissimmee back and forth every day for as many days as I want and have the time for? Admittedly it is hard to do it multiple times a day. But one could still do multi-segment Orlando - Kissimmee - Tampa and back every day until one has had his or her fill of points. Just an example

 

[VTTrain]

So what would stop me from traveling between Orlando and Kissimmee back and forth every day for as many days as I want and have the time for? Admittedly it is hard to do it multiple times a day. But one could still do multi-segment Orlando - Kissimmee - Tampa and back every day until one has had his or her fill of points. Just an example

The highlighted portion of your quote makes my point.

 

[Ryan]

Given that there was a limit of four 100-point segments per day, you’re not missing out on a lot when you “only” do two. 

 

[jis]

The highlighted portion of your quote makes my point.

Actually it makes my point more than yours because of the four segments per day limit [emoji57]

 

[VTTrain]

Actually it makes my point more than yours because of the four segments per day limit

Let me make it very simple.  Someone living along the Northeast Corridor is going to have an easier time getting segments than someone on a long distance route.  The corridor offers greater frequency which means that there are more potential runs at more convenient times.  That is all.

 

[jis]

Of course. All that I said was that if one is insistent one could do the max segments per day in some places on the LD network. Do you disagree with that?

 

[VTTrain]

Of course. All that I said was that if one is insistent one could do the max segments per day in some places on the LD network. Do you disagree with that?

You specifically stated that the 100 points per segment rule was “not a corridor specific advantage.”

I disagree with that assertion for the reasons set forth above.  Someone living in Baltimore had an advantage over someone living in Whitefish, for sure.  

 

[jis]

It is not corridor specific because it is usable outside a corridor. To make that assertion I have to shows you just one example which I did.

Admittedly there are more opportunities to use it in corridors. I have never contested that. Nor did I assert that it is effectively usable everywhere off corridors. But if you wish to carry on, be my guest. I am done. [emoji57]

 

[VTTrain]

It is not corridor specific because it is usable outside a corridor. 

Had you merely said that we wouldn’t be having this discussion.  But what you actually said was that the “usability” of the 100 point  per segment rule was not a “corridor specific advantage.”  

Try telling that to the guy living in Detroit Lakes, MN or Hastings, NE.  

 

[benale]

Under the old AGR I would make two round trips from Harrisburg to Elizabethtown in one day during Double Days. $11 r/t 400 points and my select bonus. I amassed quite a few points back then.