B757Guy
Service Attendant
- Joined
- Apr 27, 2015
- Messages
- 143
Hello all. Apologies that this won't be much of a trip report, but figured I would share my experience on Amtrak's Northeast Regional Train #94 from Washington DC to Newark International Airport (EWR) last week.
As a backgrounder, I am a pilot for a major airline and live in NJ. My typical commute is about 80 minutes on the NJ Turnpike, but last week I was in DC for a family event and traded my car for Amtrak to get to work. It's been some time since I've been to Union Station, and outside of the boarding area, the shopping areas and food court were pretty much a ghost town. When I made the booking, the train was showing about 80% sold out, so I opted for a business class seat, figuring it would be a bit more comfortable. The ticket was expensive at $252 one way!
The Good
(1) The train departed on time
(2) The seat was comfortable
(3) Th train was mostly on-time (I think we arrived about 8 minutes late, but as an airline employee, this is on time for me!)
The Bad
(1) The restroom probably hadn't seen a mop and cleanser since the 80's. Seriously, it was in pretty bad shape.
(2) The Staff - The person working the Cafe Car was definitely not a people person and was ridiculously rude to several passengers.
(3) The windows in our car were caked in dirt and grime. Do they wash these things?
(4) Time - While it was still faster than driving, 3 hours from DC to Newark is pretty slow. No high-speed rail here, our average speed was below 70MPH. Not sure the Acela would have been appreciably faster to Newark Penn Station for the extra cost.
(5) I probably could have made the drive roughly in the same amount of time, as we departed prior to rush hour.
The Funny
(1) Wearing my uniform on the train caused some confusion amongst other passengers who thought I worked for Amtrak. I got asked a bunch of train related questions and fielded a few complaints about the condition of the bathroom.
Wishing you all happy travels....
As a backgrounder, I am a pilot for a major airline and live in NJ. My typical commute is about 80 minutes on the NJ Turnpike, but last week I was in DC for a family event and traded my car for Amtrak to get to work. It's been some time since I've been to Union Station, and outside of the boarding area, the shopping areas and food court were pretty much a ghost town. When I made the booking, the train was showing about 80% sold out, so I opted for a business class seat, figuring it would be a bit more comfortable. The ticket was expensive at $252 one way!
The Good
(1) The train departed on time
(2) The seat was comfortable
(3) Th train was mostly on-time (I think we arrived about 8 minutes late, but as an airline employee, this is on time for me!)
The Bad
(1) The restroom probably hadn't seen a mop and cleanser since the 80's. Seriously, it was in pretty bad shape.
(2) The Staff - The person working the Cafe Car was definitely not a people person and was ridiculously rude to several passengers.
(3) The windows in our car were caked in dirt and grime. Do they wash these things?
(4) Time - While it was still faster than driving, 3 hours from DC to Newark is pretty slow. No high-speed rail here, our average speed was below 70MPH. Not sure the Acela would have been appreciably faster to Newark Penn Station for the extra cost.
(5) I probably could have made the drive roughly in the same amount of time, as we departed prior to rush hour.
The Funny
(1) Wearing my uniform on the train caused some confusion amongst other passengers who thought I worked for Amtrak. I got asked a bunch of train related questions and fielded a few complaints about the condition of the bathroom.
Wishing you all happy travels....
