Gotta Love How Amtrak takes care of Active Duty Military

John_Perkowski wrote:
Amtak, your customer service is not quite as good as...

MEGABUS

By the way, still think Megabus service is better than Amtrak? http://www.nyctransitforums.com/forums/ ... ance-ramp/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

The entitlement some people feel they deserve these days...

John_Perkowski wrote:
Thanks to you folks, she'll take SEPTA from Terminal A (US Airways International Arrivals) to 30th Street, where she'll await ... wait for this...

A REGIONAL

Tragic. "Forced" to travel in steerage with lesser soldiers and the ungrateful civilians who pay her salary.

And speaking as a veteran myself. . . .

It's no longer accurate to refer to members of the military as "volunteers." The term made limited sense only when a military draft was still in place, to differentiate between people who were conscripted and those who enlisted on their own.

In the 21st century sense, a volunteer is someone who donates their time, skills, and services without monetary compensation. Serving in the military is a salaried job. And in the case of a colonel, it's a full-blown career that comes with excellent benefits for life.

If the colonel absolutely needed to travel on the Acela, I suspect that doing so -- even without that 10% discount -- wouldn't have broken the bank.

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lol at the entitled officer in this thread, but I'm just a humble NCO, and from the point of view of travel, its like asking for first class (since Acela is at least first class, correct?) but yeah seriously Amtrak has been good to me both in Charleston (Even if the station is horrid and falling apart) and Saratoga/Albany NY (Lake Shore Limited was great to Boston, and the Empire Service got me close enough to take PATH+public transit it to home in NJ), and the Newport News station service is perfect for trips up to Washington and Baltimore. (I'll be taking the Regional to Baltimore in a few weeks if all goes as planned!

(Also for the record, I'm a second class. I am in Hampton (Well I work in Newport News), so this is an ideal service as long as I'm in Hampton Roads.

Is the good Colonel on government travel? That could be why she is not authorized to travel on a premium service like Acela. Travel on the taxpayer's dollar is never plush.

I understand why Amtrak would not feel obligated to offer a discount for a premium service-especially when there is a similar replacement. They have obligations too.

I travel to Asia on business. My company allows us to travel business class on flights over 12 hours (nobody is pleased that that was increased from six hours- especially the people who go to Europe). Our USG counterparts travel only on coach, which makes for a long day.

/Retired USNR.
//Father of two on active duty. Glad their travel experiences haven't (yet) been as annoying as some of mine.

Two questions for Col. Perkowski:
1) Does the active duty fare extend to Business class on the Regional?
2) Was your friend able to purchase a single-use ClubAcela pass?

If so on either count, I don't see the issue - as has been pointed out, Amtrak has a responsibility to its bottom line and has made a good-faith effort to work with active-duty military and veterans. Being a civilian, I won't comment further.