Quote:
Originally Posted by skyguy79
What you state is of no surprise since Amtrak's Autotrain was in it's infancy at the time and is basicly not the same Autotrain we know today.
Amtrak was authorized by Congress in October of 1970 and operations began on May 1st, 1971. The Autotrain began operating under Amtrak on December 6, 1971 and operated until April of 1981. Prior to December 6th, 1971, a similar service was provided along the Atlantic Coast, but was under private ownership using the Seaboard Coast Line Rail Road (1967-1983) until the change to Amtrak in 1971.
After the hiatus, the Amtrak Autotrain resumed operation in 1983, but this time while under government funding. Despite the government getting involved, the service has grown and improved over the years into what we know as today's Autotrain and has done so under under governmental pressure to improve their bottom line while receiving comparatively bare bones funding when compared to the subsidies received by the airline industry.
Disclosure: I'm a long time passenger rail user having logged in over 43,000 passenger rail miles, a member of the National Association of Railroad Passengers and the Amtrak Guest Rewards Program with enough credits for my wife & I to travel from Florida to the Pacific Coast and back twice, or four trips on the Autotrain at no cost... and that includes a handicapped room & all meals.
|
This is all very good to know, for our future travels.
I can tell by all the fans of Auto Train that indeed it is much better than back in 1973. Obviously, back then, hubby was a lot younger and figured it would have been less of a hassle to just drive the distance........but now, I can totally understand the benefits of auto train.
Truthfully, I do not remember any waiting room.......but it's a long time ago. That little two year old boy will turn 42 this summer and the little girl is 45. They were excellent travelers and just sat quietly. It was obvious that the dining car staff was just being difficult and truly had an attitude as it is called nowadays. I was meek and mild in those days and didn't want to rock the boat.........and yes, I had brought bottles and snacks and stuff along with us.......but it was well into the evening and they just were not going to wait on us in the dining car......not even to bring the little guy some milk. It was just a bad experience. Obviously, the staff resented us. And, I'm not paranoid. I had always planned to write a letter to Amtrack or Auto Train when we got settled back in our new home in Vermont..........but other things took precedence. I do believe it was the very first time we had ever experienced any kind of discrimination.........neither of us was demanding, loud or anything obnoxious. They were just feeling their power.
Again, we just stood around while the cars were loaded and then unloaded in Virginia. We still had quite a long ride back to Vermont...........
But, it truthfully sounds as if it has greatly improved.
A cousin of mine is on her way home from New Jersey today, aboard Amtrack.......she takes it alone to visit her daughter in North Carolina as her husband can no longer drive the long distances........so I can fully understand the benefits of train travel.
We only did auto train that once with the car..............but another time when the kids were a few years older we did take the train to Myrtle Beach via Grand Central Station......in N.Y.C............and one last time we took it to Disney World overnight............both times from Rensalaaer, New York.....I know that spelling is not right. They were about 5 & 8 years of age. But all the other times, each April, we would fly down to Florida..........the earlier times we just wanted our son to have a "train experience"........as all little boys love trains........