Why can't we book AmBus without a train?

[Texan Eagle]

I have too attend an event in Cumberland, MD for which I need to be there by Friday night or Saturday early morning. I have prior commitments that would not let me reach WAS in time to board Capitol Limited, but I see there is a Thruway Bus operating from BWI to Cumberland, departing at 5.00pm. If I try to book that bus, the Amtrak site tells me book with a train. I know Thruway buses are essentially an extension of train where the train can't go so they prefer taking only Amtrak train connecting passengers, but if I want to travel just the part where the AmBus goes, what problem does Amtrak have with allowing me to book the Thruway segment only? Just curious.

PS: I could book WAS-BWI on a Regional and BWI-Cumberland on AmBus but that option is too expensive for the dates I want to travel.

 

[AmtrakBlue]

Could you take MARC?

 

[Texan Eagle]

Could you take MARC?

If I take MARC from WAS to BWI, it again boils down to the same thing- I will be left with only the bus segment to take on Amtrak which Amtrak won't let me book.

 

[bmorechris]

This service is operated by Bay Runner Shuttle, you can book directly through them:

http://www.bayrunners.com/

 

[AmtrakBlue]

Could you take MARC?

If I take MARC from WAS to BWI, it again boils down to the same thing- I will be left with only the bus segment to take on Amtrak which Amtrak won't let me book.

Ok. I didn't know if MARC when to Cumberland or not. I see it only goes as far as Martinsburg.

 

[Devil's Advocate]

Could you take MARC?

If I take MARC from WAS to BWI, it again boils down to the same thing- I will be left with only the bus segment to take on Amtrak which Amtrak won't let me book.

How about a plane? That should do the trick. :lol:

 

[stntylr]

The reason why is because Amtrak is not in the bus business. The AmBus is meant to complement train service. Bus companies would have a fit if a government supported business was running a bus service.

 

[bmorechris]

In this case, the "bus" is just a locally run shuttle service, so I doubt it makes sense logistically or financially for Amtrak to deal with issuing a ticket for just the shuttle segment.

 

[Cho Cho Charlie]

The reason why is because Amtrak is not in the bus business. The AmBus is meant to complement train service. Bus companies would have a fit if a government supported business was running a bus service.

+1

 

[fairviewroad]

This service is operated by Bay Runner Shuttle, you can book directly through them:

http://www.bayrunners.com/

In fact, here's the relevant schedule and fare page:

http://www.bayrunners.com/west/rates_schedules.asp

Looks like a pretty pricey service. $57 one way from BWI to Cumberland. Whereas Amtrak is $24 from WAS to Cumberland on the CL.

 

[Swadian Hardcore]

I think Amtrak is forbidden by law to sell individual bus tickets.

 

[fairviewroad]

I think Amtrak is forbidden by law to sell individual bus tickets.

That's not a blanket system wide law. In some places Amtrak is perfectly happy to sell you an individual

bus ticket. Try traveling from Seattle to Vancouver, BC for instance. Four of the six daily trips are via a bus

and it's entirely possible to buy a ticket on those buses without having a connecting train. But yeah, in

most other places you need a combo train/bus ticket.

 

[JayPea]

I think Amtrak is forbidden by law to sell individual bus tickets.

That's not a blanket system wide law. In some places Amtrak is perfectly happy to sell you an individual

bus ticket. Try traveling from Seattle to Vancouver, BC for instance. Four of the six daily trips are via a bus

and it's entirely possible to buy a ticket on those buses without having a connecting train. But yeah, in

most other places you need a combo train/bus ticket.

It's a good thing that policy of combo tickets isn't 100%. For instance, should I want to take a bus to Seattle from my hometown of Colfax, WA, I could do it by train/bus combo. There are two buses which go from here to Spokane, where I could either then take the EB to Seattle or transfer to another bus to Seattle. If I were forced to take the EB, it would be a heckuva layover: The second of the two Spokane-bound buses leaves Colfax at 2PM, arriving in Spokane an hour later. The EB leaves Spokane at 2:15 AM. I can think of better things to do than hang around Spokane for over 11 hours, luggage in tow as there is no place to store bags in Spokane until the Amtrak ticket office opens at 10PM. The Seattle bus, however, leaves at 3:15 PM from Spokane. That gets me into Seattle just after 10 PM, over four hours before the EB even leaves Spokane for Seattle.

Not that I'd ever take the bus from here to Seattle, when I can drive to Spokane and take the EB, but if I ever did, I sure wouldn't want to have to take the EB when the bus schedule is so much more convenient.

 

[user 1215]

I think that your question has been fully answered, but here is what I get out of all that was said.

First, if you only need a bus portion of the transportation, you should be able to book that directly with the bus company. You don't get AGR points, but hey... That's just they way it works. Amtrack is in the rail business, not the bus industry. Small shuttles, ie: Lamy to Santa Fe or Maricopa to Phoenix are necessary to connect the big cities to the tiny rail station. The only benefit to greater runs - like Longview to Houston and Galveston is that the busses depart based on Amtrak's actual arrival time. But even then, I think Greyhound is better equipped to provide that service than a charter company. Of course, for the consumer, the passenger pays an additional $11 for the thruway bus from Longview to Houston, whereas Greyhound charges as little as $52.

If Amtrak were to charge $11 - or even DOUBLE that at $22 for folks just wanting to hop an express from Longview to Houston, Greyhound would, as has been mentioned, have a hissy fit.

 

[Texan Eagle]

If Amtrak were to charge $11 - or even DOUBLE that at $22 for folks just wanting to hop an express from Longview to Houston, Greyhound would, as has been mentioned, have a hissy fit.

This raises a question- why does Amtrak charge $11 for Longview to Houston, or why does Greyhound charge $52? If it indeed costs $52 to transport one person, then Amtrak is running the service at tremendous loss- which it should stop; or if it only costs $11 to transport a person, Greyhound making a windfall profit! But as we know, neither is the case, so why can't Amtrak rationalize fares on the Thruway sections and offer those trips on a "one car road train" for passengers who are willing to pay for it?

 

[john h]

If Amtrak were to charge $11 - or even DOUBLE that at $22 for folks just wanting to hop an express from Longview to Houston, Greyhound would, as has been mentioned, have a hissy fit.

This raises a question- why does Amtrak charge $11 for Longview to Houston, or why does Greyhound charge $52? If it indeed costs $52 to transport one person, then Amtrak is running the service at tremendous loss- which it should stop; or if it only costs $11 to transport a person, Greyhound making a windfall profit! But as we know, neither is the case, so why can't Amtrak rationalize fares on the Thruway sections and offer those trips on a "one car road train" for passengers who are willing to pay for it?

There maybe government subsides involved as well. I know bus and train services sometimes get a subsides, also maybe Greyhound is wholesaleing to Amtrak

 

[AlanB]

If Amtrak were to charge $11 - or even DOUBLE that at $22 for folks just wanting to hop an express from Longview to Houston, Greyhound would, as has been mentioned, have a hissy fit.

This raises a question- why does Amtrak charge $11 for Longview to Houston, or why does Greyhound charge $52? If it indeed costs $52 to transport one person, then Amtrak is running the service at tremendous loss- which it should stop; or if it only costs $11 to transport a person, Greyhound making a windfall profit! But as we know, neither is the case, so why can't Amtrak rationalize fares on the Thruway sections and offer those trips on a "one car road train" for passengers who are willing to pay for it?

Maybe Amtrak is over charging for the train?

For example, book a ticket from NY to DC on a Regional and you might pay $50 for the run down the corridor. Book a trip from NY to Chicago, connecting in DC to the Capitol Limited and your ticket for the run on the corridor might be worth $25.

So it is possible that what Amtrak is adding for the bus is similar to what happens on the NEC when connecting; then throw in Amtrak's getting a wholesale rate, Greyhound marking up its regular tickets, and you have the difference.

 

[gregoryla]

I think Amtrak is forbidden by law to sell individual bus tickets.

That's not a blanket system wide law. In some places Amtrak is perfectly happy to sell you an individual

bus ticket. Try traveling from Seattle to Vancouver, BC for instance. Four of the six daily trips are via a bus

and it's entirely possible to buy a ticket on those buses without having a connecting train. But yeah, in

most other places you need a combo train/bus ticket.

Another example of being able to travel by bus without any rail component is Sacramento to South Lake Tahoe. This is (I believe) the only bus-only service that Amtrak offers in California, where it is otherwise forbidden.

 

[companyofheroes]

What I have done is to buy a ticket for a train-bus combo and get off partway. I did this once from Palm Springs. I bought a ticket to Wasco, and got off the bus in San Bernardino. The driver looked suprised, but he was fine with it. Palm Springs has nominal Greyhound service to a station 4 miles outside of town. Even though I rode for less than 1/4 of the trip I paid for it was still the best way make the trip.