Bikes on Amtrak

Yes the Cumberland Queen City Station was also a hotel. Matter of fact many stations were hotels

From a post in the derailment thread:

I would much rather be having a discussion about the new baggage cars and bicycles, and having my hand slapped

So what are the chances the bike racks in the new baggage cars will see use within my lifetime (73)? I sure would like to do the Great Allegheny Passage with something other than a folding bike.

jobtraklite wrote:From a post in the derailment thread:

I would much rather be having a discussion about the new baggage cars and bicycles, and having my hand slapped

So what are the chances the bike racks in the new baggage cars will see use within my lifetime (73)? I sure would like to do the Great Allegheny Passage with something other than a folding bike.

Good question. I can hardly wait to use them myself!

jobtraklite wrote:From a post in the derailment thread:

I would much rather be having a discussion about the new baggage cars and bicycles, and having my hand slapped

So what are the chances the bike racks in the new baggage cars will see use within my lifetime (73)? I sure would like to do the Great Allegheny Passage with something other than a folding bike.

So the hand slapped comment was mine, and it was because I did get my hand slapped in the viewliner II thread.

I too have the GAP ride on my plan list, and using Amtrak would be the way to do it, on both ends. Right now my plan looks like this, rent a car, drive to Pittsburgh, ride to DC and then buy a box, ship my bike to Albany, Ride home to Poughkeepsie and drive to Albany to get my bike. As you can guess, it doesn't work all that well. Chances are if I do this, it will be rentals at both ends. I would much rather ride on the train.

I ride about 4000 miles a year, and will do short overnights with my bike. I would love to do more, but Amtrak has no space for bikes, and the commuter roads are pretty much off peak only. In Minneapolis, on the light rail you can roll a bike on, stand it up and clip in a rack. It's safe, and secured. I use to bungee cords to strap my bike in the best i can, having a 35 pound bike loose with 30 pounds of stuff on it is not a good thing.

I have had very good luck with NJ Transit in accommodating my bike, but getting a bike around Penn Station is not easy, and the Platforms are VERY tight. For the most part, Metro North is okay, but I have my horns broken a couple of times on the train, but i also had one conductor comment on my strapping the bike in and my patience on waiting for other passengers. Hey... I don't want to loose the privilege of bringing my bike.

Bike racks should be available all the time, not just on the baggage cars, but it's a start!!

let's see... in 1979 I had lived in NJ and wanted to go to Washington DC via train with my bike - from DC I would ride to Harisonburg VA for a bike rally (GEAR 79)
I would have to take an Amtrak train - I could not take the relatively high speed Metroliner train so I had to take a (very) slow moving diesel LD train with baggage from Trenton NJ which has/had baggage svc. - I would ride to there from my home on the east side of the state at the pinched 'waist' about 30 mi. I had to BOX my bike like going on a plane - the train took a tad longer than forever to get to DC

fast fwd to 2015 and.. our 1970's national RR with their 1970's mentality STILL require here in the NE US to BOX the bicycle and depart from a station with BAGGAGE svc.
this latter is important - EVEN IF there are bike racks on a LD train with a new CAF baggage car would STILL have to depart from a station with baggage svc. - that excludes Poughkeepsie where I live - the issue of bike acces on Amtrak on the Empire corridor trains is being addresed by the NY Bicycle Coalition - HOWEVER what is needed is bike racks on ALL trains on the Emppire Corridor - as it is now I could take mass transit,with my bike,all the way to Phila PA but NOT on Amtrak



Tri MET WES line (DMU) bike rack on train


SPRO

...Ride home to Poughkeepsie

SPRO send me a PM - your bike looks familiar I may know you

bigK wrote: the issue of bike acces on Amtrak on the Empire corridor trains is being addresed by the NY Bicycle Coalition - HOWEVER what is needed is bike racks on ALL trains on the Emppire Corridor - as it is now I could take mass transit,with my bike,all the way to Phila PA but NOT on Amtrak

I never understood why NY and other Northeastern states could get away without providing some bicycle service when Illinois can do it in run of the mill horizon coaches without bike racks.

It can't be cultural differences. Out here, if you want to blow your nose, you are expected to get into a car.

Hoo boy. You'd think bikes on trains would be a no-brainer but apparently it isn't obvious enough for commuter and amtrak to invest in the proper policy and bike racks. Who in their right mind puts a fully working bike into a BOX just to go on a baggage car just to toss the box when you're done? Wasteful and stupid...

The fact that neither Amtrak nor many commuter railroads make accommodations should be a pretty good sign that it's not a no-brainer. They don't fit well. I'm a cyclist myself, but I do understand the obvious issues.

And I can't believe the people taking some of these photos didn't even bother to remove the front wheel to make a more compact fit. If I ran a railroad, I'd charge extra for taking up that much space.

They should get those bike racks that are on the front of some commuter buses and put them on teh front of cab cars or rear of trains

Unfortunately, taking off the wheel makes for a very unstable bike and really doesn't save that much room (about 14 inches in length). Ideally one or two stand up racks that lock the bike in place in a rail car is the best solution both space wise and keeping the bike from becoming a moving object. In the case of my pictures, that rig is over 60 pounds of bike and my stuff. It is not my road bike that I can throw over my shoulder and run up the stairs with. I don't want to hurt anyone with my bike, or be in the way with it.

Without the handicap space on MN you have three options. take a Quad and hold the bike, put the bike in a triple and try to not make a mess or stand with it. That is what the bike permit on MN is all about, that i understand that the handicap space may be needed for someone else, or if the train is too crowded I may be asked to take another one or moved to another car. Safety is key...

Having bike racks on trains would compliment and enable green travel. I can ride a bike 30 miles in a little over 2 hours and carry a couple sets of clothes, which greatly expands my travel options for casual travel. So instead of driving a car to the Trenton area to visit my son, I can use my bike and train.

Like i said about the racks, it's a start and it shows some effort and thought... and if people use them it is revenue, and as a group, many cyclists are Pro Amtrak or Pro Transit. This like any other "infrastructure" has cost, but it brings benefits. The problem is when those decisions are made, bikes are at the very bottom of the list. Some transit planners understand true "multi-mode", others believe how you get to or from transit is not their problem so bring your car.

And I can't believe the people taking some of these photos didn't even bother to remove the front wheel to make a more compact fit. If I ran a railroad, I'd charge extra for taking up that much space.

I took the picture, but didn't remove the front wheel because its owner might not have appreciated it, among other reasons. As Spro mentioned, it makes it less stable and doesn't save much space. Now I agree that removing the pedals and turning the handle bars would make it easier to mount the steps from the low level platform and and make stowing it a little easier. The railroad does charge a fee, at least in Illinois, one I'm glad to pay.

The fact that neither Amtrak nor many commuter railroads make accommodations should be a pretty good sign that it's not a no-brainer. They don't fit well. I'm a cyclist myself, but I do understand the obvious issues.

I disagree with both your premise that many commuter railroads do not accommodate bicycles and the conclusion that they don't fit. Most if not all commuter lines, at least outside the NEC do. It's easy enough to check their websites. It's been proven around the world that they do fit.

Then again there is Amtrak. I maintain it's more a mentality than anything else. With bike racks already purchased and installed in the new baggage cars, it can't be money. As I see it, there are only two downsides: 1) bicycle demand overwhelms the system or 2) bicyclists are all talk and no do, and the racks will sit there unused.

You might be a bicyclist; but with friends like that, who need enemies?

I'll agree most commuter rail operators allow bikes during non peak hours, that some that do don't during peak hours. Never-the-less, just about all commuter rail operators allow more passengers than there are seats on their cars, so some during peak hours are standing. That's not true with Amtrak - and that's a significant different in the way they operate. While commuter rail operators can remove seats or install flip up seats to allow bikes on their cars without taking a financial hit, Amtrak isn't as lucky. Every seat Amtrak removes is one less available for sell. Additionally, few Amtrak passengers riding much further than commuter passengers are willing to sit in flip up seats, none of them will accept standing and holding on to hand straps tightly for hundreds of miles.
What I'm suggesting is that Amtrak and commuter rail operators operate under different environments and on what their passengers expectations are. What's good for the goose isn't necessarily good for the gander. I like the idea of placing bikes on Amtrak trains in baggage cars on long distance trains. I'm not so sure their existing Amfleet cars can accommodate bikes easily on the corridor, short distance trains without causing a loss in revenue.

ryanch wrote:The fact that neither Amtrak nor many commuter railroads make accommodations should be a pretty good sign that it's not a no-brainer. They don't fit well. I'm a cyclist myself, but I do understand the obvious issues.

And I can't believe the people taking some of these photos didn't even bother to remove the front wheel to make a more compact fit. If I ran a railroad, I'd charge extra for taking up that much space.

I live car free, so it's a bit more than "I ride a bike". My bike is my personal vehicle. If bikes were more acommodated on trains, I'd be far more likely to go on any distance trip for fun OR business. Saves the pita of bus/taxi/whatever...

Now that I've learned of the baggage cars having bike mounts, I may start utilising that with a work transit tax credit to offset the cost. A win-win!

Most of the western commuter fleets using the BBD"sauage" design cars have both a bike storage area and
Handicapped seating in each car on the lower level,with 1 exception,UTA Front runner uses some ex-NJT comets
for certain rush hour train service(north of Odgen )
Amtrak-Ca service trains have bike racks,but it requires a reservation on some routes,1st come,1st serve on other routes.

You also have a tradeoff between passengers and bikes in the same space. The western lines with BBD sausage cars can afford to carry bikes as they don't have nearly the crush loads that lines like Metra, MN, Long Island, and MBTA carry. A bike takes up the space of 3 people if not more.