Just reporting a curious incident I had, but want to say at the outset that all is well and I got the award ticket the way I wanted it.
I wanted to book a three-zone award NYP-SEA via WAS, CHI, LAX on an NE regional, 29,3, and 14. Was the 7th option down listed for NYP-SEA on Amtrak.com, so I knew it is a "published route". However, the AGR agent was not able to pull up that routing when she entered the endpoints.
She was nice about it, and regarded as its absence as a curiousity, not that it was against the rules. She went over to Amtrak.com and verified that that route was indeed available NYP-SEA on the website. Once she verified it she went ahead and built it manually so I got my award ticket the way I wanted with no argument whatsoever.
A couple of things occur to me. First is an AGR agent can construct a special route that they otherwise can't pull up and put it under a single award. Second is I wonder if they are restricting visibility for more roundabout routings for AGR agents in an attempt to lower the demand for roundabout routings such as this in these last few months. I had to specifically ask for the routing, although I got no argument at all from her. If I didn't already know it was available, I would not have been given it as an option, though, through no fault of the agent. If she can't see it, she can't tell me about it.
I wanted to book a three-zone award NYP-SEA via WAS, CHI, LAX on an NE regional, 29,3, and 14. Was the 7th option down listed for NYP-SEA on Amtrak.com, so I knew it is a "published route". However, the AGR agent was not able to pull up that routing when she entered the endpoints.
She was nice about it, and regarded as its absence as a curiousity, not that it was against the rules. She went over to Amtrak.com and verified that that route was indeed available NYP-SEA on the website. Once she verified it she went ahead and built it manually so I got my award ticket the way I wanted with no argument whatsoever.
A couple of things occur to me. First is an AGR agent can construct a special route that they otherwise can't pull up and put it under a single award. Second is I wonder if they are restricting visibility for more roundabout routings for AGR agents in an attempt to lower the demand for roundabout routings such as this in these last few months. I had to specifically ask for the routing, although I got no argument at all from her. If I didn't already know it was available, I would not have been given it as an option, though, through no fault of the agent. If she can't see it, she can't tell me about it.
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