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By “couchette” I mean a compartment with 4 or 6 seats, which can be transformed into a compartment with 3 or 6 beds at night. Even Belgian commuter trains had these compartments in the 1990s (although I don’t know if they could be transformed into beds at night). In the age of social distancing, hav...

How about the reverse question (I don't want to hijack Arborway's--who I think very highly of--thread, though): do long-distance trains need coaches? I don't think so, except maybe a "Third Class" type of service. Current Amtrak sleeping cars plus a few new classes of service: ultra-luxuri...

OK, (1) quiet plus (2) a bigger seat and (3) refreshments, preferably alcoholic. Acela First Class has (2) and (3). Long-distance trains in a sleeping car have (1) and (2). I don't care about station lounges (perhaps because I haven't been affected by a delay in boarding a train at a large station).

I usually to be positive, but I've had it with the junk breakfasts that Amtrak serves with "Flexible Dining" on Eastern long-distance trains: 1. The food is just a limited selection of stuff from the regular cafe car menu- or maybe slightly better, but still unappealing. The only hot items...

I think of it airline-style: a bigger seat and free drinks.

Pensyfan19 wrote: ↑Mon May 25, 2020 9:23 am Interestingly, I found an article from the Chicago Tribune about passenger who rode the Soo Line's mixed trains.

https://www.chicagotribune.com/news/ct- ... story.html

Maybe Amtrak ought to do like Brightline did: have a designated Lyft pick-up area at each station, with a big Lyft sign. That would at least (for stations such as Charlotte and Greenville, SC) make them seem like somehow the First World is not far away.

Thanks for the info!

If 'nicer' means 'more obstructions between the passenger and the train, like an airport' I don't really think that's going to help ridership Portland and its station are beautiful. I've taken the Coast Starlight and a Talgo train to/from that station. By "nicer" I mean "passable eno...

Since Amtrak's stations are often derelict and in bad locations, what would the effect be on Amtrak ridership if they were in more prominent locations, and aesthetically attractive? Examples: 1. Charlotte: The station is in a bad part of town and is run-down. Since Charlotte has numerous trains per ...

I don't think Amtrak should ditch their current sleepers; they need to add more sleepers they can be sold st a lower price point. Something economical for solo travelers. Open sections or couchette cars would work much better than parlor or 2:1 seating for overnight travel. Couchettes would also be...

I also noticed that, when booking a ticket for an upcoming trip on the Crescent, coach is sold out. I assume that only a fraction of seats in each coach are sold, to maintain social distancing. Yet the Crescent has been running with 2 coaches (down from its usual 4). Why wouldn't Amtrak just add ano...

SRY: if we’re being real, Amtrak does offer mid-level accommodations (the Roomette, especially the Superliner and V-II Roomette without a toilet ) but at full-service prices. A 2-3 bed single or 4-6 bed double couchette just dispenses with the pretense. CarterB: I’d like to see that experiment. Bui...

I understand (perhaps I am wrong) that the Soo Line ran mixed trains as late as the 1980s in the Midwest, with limited ridership: a passenger here and there in a caboose.

Why would it bother?

Wouldn’t the hassle and expense outweigh any ticket sales?

Curious: I read that Pullman employees had a policy manual showing in excruciating detail how all aspects of their jobs needed to be done, including a multi-step list for how open a bottle of Coke. Does Amtrak have the same thing? For example, even though my regular train arrives way early in the mo...