New Policy for Amtrak Border Crossings

In the 80's i rode the train from Vancouver to Halifax . as a foriegn national , my visa was checked at the border across Maine , but it was a very friendly and casual affair . as were all my border crossing USA / Mexico / Canada . In those days we got a multiple entry , valid for life , USA Visa . ( i would say my "visa life" ended 911 or shortly theeafter ) .
Travellers always expect hassles at borders , so i dont think this would put many off . fingerprinting is pretty extrme though .

I ride the Maple Leaf to and from Toronto once a month. I was just wondering how they used to do customs on the trains actually. Find it funny they did it enroute.

Though the last few times I took the Maple Leaf, the train wasn't delayed at the border at all. We arrived in Toronto actually 10 mintues early one day.

I forget who told me this (I want to say a Amtrak employee did, but not 100% sure) but apparently what both Canada Customs & US CBP want Amtrak and VIA to do is have trains run just up to Niagara Falls, ON where there will be a real customs station for Canada Customs as well as US Preclearence.

Skelly and all: I understand this subject as I have traveled to Canada via the CR/TH&B/CP Budd car operation,Amtrak's Maple Leaf,Adirondack and Montrealer in my travels. It seems to me that customs and immigration has become a big hassle nowadays to anyone traveling on trains. Was this the downfall of the Chicago-Toronto International? I recall that the Buffalo-Toronto Budd car operation went thru customs at either side of the International Bridge with US Customs inspecting at Black Rock/Buffalo,NY and Canadian Customs at the Fort Erie station. I recall I traveled on this train 4 times-twice each in 1979 and 1980. I recall an incident on one of those trips: Just before we left BFX two twentysomething men got aboard after inbibing in Buffalo-they were visibly intoxicated. During the customs inspection at Fort Erie they gave the customs inspector-a soft spoken but firm older man-a hard time. I was standing nearby after being checked myself and he turned around and said to me or others near "I am not going to put up with this" and he had them escorted off the train. I recall the inspectors came up from the Peace Bridge to work this train. In 1981,1984 and 1990 I traveled to Toronto on the Maple Leaf. Canada Customs checked the train at the Niagara Falls,ON station. On the 81 trip I was able to secure employee pass tickets-my dad worked for Amtrak then-with the breakpoint NFS. The requirement was for full revenue fares on the VIA portion. I pointed this out to the Customs inspector and was allowed after clearance to purchase my ticket to complete my trip. In 1984 I got thru tickets to TWO reading NYP-NFS and NFS-TWO. I rode in 1990 on a All Aboard America fare with the same breakpoints. US Customs would check the train at the E end of the Suspension Bridge. I noticed on my 1990 trip they were using K9 units during the inspection also. I rode twice each on the Adirondack and Montrealer in 1984 and 85-Adirondack north and Montrealer south. The Canadian inspection for the Adirondack was performed at Lacolle,PQ and the US at Rouses Point,NY I believe. The Montrealer SB was boarded by US Customs inspectors at the border who rode to St.Albans,VT. How was the Canadian inspection performed NB-does anyone know? I realize from my experiences thet they have a job to do and if you co-operate with them things should go smoothly. One problem I had was during the Canadian inspection on my 1984 TO trip. The inspector asked me how much money I had on me-right in front of a carload of people. I wanted to take him aside and say "I realize that you are doing your job. I don't mind telling you privately how much I have but I do not want someone sitting back there to pull a weapon on me later and say GIVE IT UP" - it must be the NY street smarts in me. I bit my tongue and learned from the experience. I personally think that Customs can make or break a US-Canada train. Memories and observations from MACTRAXX

MACTRAXX wrote:Skelly and all: I understand this subject as I have traveled to Canada via the CR/TH&B/CP Budd car operation,Amtrak's Maple Leaf,Adirondack and Montrealer in my travels. It seems to me that customs and immigration has become a big hassle nowadays to anyone traveling on trains. Was this the downfall of the Chicago-Toronto International? I recall that the Buffalo-Toronto Budd car operation went thru customs at either side of the International Bridge with US Customs inspecting at Black Rock/Buffalo,NY and Canadian Customs at the Fort Erie station. I recall I traveled on this train 4 times-twice each in 1979 and 1980. I recall an incident on one of those trips: Just before we left BFX two twentysomething men got aboard after inbibing in Buffalo-they were visibly intoxicated. During the customs inspection at Fort Erie they gave the customs inspector-a soft spoken but firm older man-a hard time. I was standing nearby after being checked myself and he turned around and said to me or others near "I am not going to put up with this" and he had them escorted off the train. I recall the inspectors came up from the Peace Bridge to work this train. In 1981,1984 and 1990 I traveled to Toronto on the Maple Leaf. Canada Customs checked the train at the Niagara Falls,ON station. On the 81 trip I was able to secure employee pass tickets-my dad worked for Amtrak then-with the breakpoint NFS. The requirement was for full revenue fares on the VIA portion. I pointed this out to the Customs inspector and was allowed after clearance to purchase my ticket to complete my trip. In 1984 I got thru tickets to TWO reading NYP-NFS and NFS-TWO. I rode in 1990 on a All Aboard America fare with the same breakpoints. US Customs would check the train at the E end of the Suspension Bridge. I noticed on my 1990 trip they were using K9 units during the inspection also. I rode twice each on the Adirondack and Montrealer in 1984 and 85-Adirondack north and Montrealer south. The Canadian inspection for the Adirondack was performed at Lacolle,PQ and the US at Rouses Point,NY I believe. The Montrealer SB was boarded by US Customs inspectors at the border who rode to St.Albans,VT. How was the Canadian inspection performed NB-does anyone know? I realize from my experiences thet they have a job to do and if you co-operate with them things should go smoothly. One problem I had was during the Canadian inspection on my 1984 TO trip. The inspector asked me how much money I had on me-right in front of a carload of people. I wanted to take him aside and say "I realize that you are doing your job. I don't mind telling you privately how much I have but I do not want someone sitting back there to pull a weapon on me later and say GIVE IT UP" - it must be the NY street smarts in me. I bit my tongue and learned from the experience. I personally think that Customs can make or break a US-Canada train. Memories and observations from MACTRAXX

Yeah, I think in the case of the Maple Leaf, the problem with delays is the fact they do customs on the train while its stopped. Not that I have expereinced any yet, but that seems to be the problem.

The idea I heard being thrown around, would be having the the Maple Leaf and All Empire Service trains stop at Niagara Falls, ON where they discharge passengers and they go through Canada Customs like how they do it at airports and to continue on to Toronto, they would transfer over to a VIA train. Opposite would happen the way back, except there would US Preclearence at Niagara Falls.

MACTRAXX wrote:The Montrealer SB was boarded by US Customs inspectors at the border who rode to St.Albans,VT. How was the Canadian inspection performed NB-does anyone know?

About 1985, the train stopped at a tiny shack in the snow for Canadian inspection. One or 2 passengers were removed.
On all my Northbound trips 1985-2000 on Montrealer, Adirondak, Maple Leaf, there was no American exit inspection. Adirondak was stopped at Cantic, P.Q.; Maple Leaf at Niagara Falls, Ont. before we could get off, for Canadian inspection.
Westbound in the mid '90s, the International got American inspection at Pt. Huron before we could get off. There was no Canadien exit inspection.
Soutbound, the Vermonter bus tried to make everyone get off at the border. My cousin was an invalid, so American customs let him stay on and let me declare as "head of household". Transit Windsor's bus through the Detroit-Windsor Tunnel stopped at the tunnel exit for entrance inspections, no exit inspection.
On one trip, I had to explain to Windsor, Ont. immigration that the purpose of my visit to Canada was to catch a train to Philadelphia, Penna. The Amtrak train from Detroit to Washington (bus connection to the Capitol Ltd.) didn't stop there, but both trains from Montreal did! (For a short time after the West Side Connection into Penn Station openned, the Adirondak changed ends in Penn Station and continued to Washington.)

In 1990, when I rode the Southbound Adirondack back from MTR, all we had was the US Customs scrutinize everyone onboard for Passport and that was it.

Same went for my Maple leaf Rides from TWO in April 2001 & April 2004 as well. However, all three trains re-entering the US, I've seen several passengers being evicted from the trains since they either lied about their names or had phony documentation.

The way North towards Canada, however, was not a problem with us, the Canadian Customs were nice with me and my Dad.

USA entry preclearance is available at the airports in Vancouver, Calgary, Edmonton, Winnipeg, Toronto, Ottawa, and Montreal.

These are actual US Customs and Immigration stations - it is full clearance into the US not pre-clearance. The flights arrive in the US as "domestic". This practice was started long ago as an easy way to allow air travel between Canada and the US. Most of the US airports did not have customs facilities at the time.