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Hello everyone. Could anyone tell me how easy it is to board a train around 2-4 am if you have a sleeping car arrangement. I would assume someone would be up to show you to your room but I have never boarded at a small station before. How does your luggage get stored? Also, is it a real pain to board that early in the morning in coach. I would hate to disturbe anyones sleep. Thanks for your replies.
Posts: 13 | From: Ohio | Registered: Jan 2006
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It is tough to board at that hour of the morning in coach. In all likelihood the car attendant will assign you a seat as you board, you will make your way to that seat, and you will find it occupied by your sleeping seatmate who boarded two hours earlier. It's up to you to either wake the sleeping passenger who no doubt would have preferred the seat to himself or to track down the car attendant to wake the other passenger for you.
As for being disturbed from your sleep by other passengers at nocturnal stations, that's part of the sacrifice you make when you elect to travel in the much cheaper coach seating.
In sleeper you should have a car attendant with manifest in hand expecting you and looking for you as the train pulls in. The attendant will get you in the door and to the right room regardless of the early hour. I've heard stories of some rather poor sleeper attendants who had to be tracked down to board new passenegers at wee hour stations but have only one (in 125,000 miles) witnessed such.....and that actually took place at about 7pm.....not 3am.
-------------------- David Pressley
Advocating for passenger trains since 1973!
Climbing toward 5,000 posts like the Southwest Chief ascending Raton Pass. Cautiously, not nearly as fast as in the old days, and hoping to avoid premature reroutes. Posts: 4203 | From: Western North Carolina | Registered: Feb 2004
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Amtrak Rookie -- In coach they will usually board you into a car that has departing riders. Your luggage is stored in the luggage racks overhead. I often board a sleeper at a well before sunrise location. -- The room attendant or Conductor has always been waiting at the open door to help me board and take my ticket. Large luggage can (and should) be stored on the luggage racks that are right around the corner from the door. A small suitcase you can store in room. At that hour they will usually already have the bed down and made up (if not they will ask when you want it made up for you.) As usual common sense and good manners prevail when boarding in the middle of the night. If you do that then disturbing others sleep should be minimal. Dee
Posts: 460 | From: North Central CT | Registered: May 2004
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Good responses above. It occurs to me that Amtrak Rookie may not know how to find his or her assigned car. Seeing an attendant open the door is a good clue, and if they are even half way competent they will be there for you. But to the point, immediately to the left of each door is the car number which indicates the position of the car in the train. It is illuminated so you can read it in the dark. Your car number is also on your ticket, but it can be hard to find if you don't know what you're looking for.
Look on your ticket for a three or four digit number followed by a slash then a two digit number or a letter. The first one or two digits are the train number. The two digits immediately before the slash are the car number. The number or letter after the slash is your room number.
For example, if you are taking the northbound Coast Starlight (train 14) it will look something like this: 1431/03
Translation: Car 1431 (train 14, car 31) room #3.
By the way, you will need to know your car and room numbers when getting your meals in the diner.
Now for too much information: Sleepers are always in the "30" series of numbers on any train. Coaches are always in the "10" series.
Oh, and I almost forgot, luggage is stored inside the door on a rack for that purpose.
Posts: 2649 | From: California's Monterey Peninsula | Registered: Dec 2000
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Mr. Toy - not to confuse the newbie too much but the tickets are room/train and car number. Looking at my stubs the SWC was 02/0431. Don't worry rookie - there is always someone there to guide you. Tell us about your trip and leave a report when you are done.
-------------------- Vicki in usually sunny Southern California Posts: 951 | From: Redondo Beach, CA | Registered: Aug 2006
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Amtrak Rookie, I see that you are from Ohio. That means you could be boarding on the Capitol Ltd, a typical 2-level long-distance train with luggage racks near the downstairs doors at which you board before (usually) going upstairs for your seat or sleeper. You can usually leave your suitcase down there on those racks, whether you board a sleeper or a coach. You then take only your smaller overnight bag/s to your seat or sleeper.
However, in Ohio, you could also be boarding the Lakeshore Ltd, in which there is not a luggage rack near the downstairs doors because there is only one level, no "downstairs"! In such a case, in the coach cars, there is generally space at either end to leave a larger suitcase, so that you need not put it on the overhead rack. In the sleepers, I usually take my larger suitcase into my sleeper, since I travel alone (there wouldn't be room with 2).
Of course, in some stations you can also check your luggage, but I am presuming your small station is not one of them. I generally don't check luggage even when tht service is available, since you then have to wait for it at the other end.
Re getting your seat or sleeper in the middle of the night: as noted by others, there's no need to worry about that, the attendants should assist you; just try not to make too much noise. A lot of times in coach, the attendant, expecting a certain number of people to board, has cleared seats for them in a particular area so that they don't disturb the sleeping ones.
Posts: 2642 | From: upstate New York | Registered: Mar 2004
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quote:Originally posted by HopefulRailUser: Mr. Toy - not to confuse the newbie too much but the tickets are room/train and car number. Looking at my stubs the SWC was 02/0431. Don't worry rookie - there is always someone there to guide you.
That's what I get for going on memory instead of looking at an actual ticket stub. My bad. Thanks for fixing it.
Posts: 2649 | From: California's Monterey Peninsula | Registered: Dec 2000
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Great responses. Thanks everyone. Have taken a roundtrip before from Chicago to Flagstaff on the Chief. I had a roomette at the time and everthing was easy. The family, three small children in tow, may be taking a trip towards the end of summer and I wanted to know if it would be easier for all involved to board at the small station or go to Cleveland or Toledo where they have checked luggage for sleeper arrangements. My trip to Flagstaff the attendants were OK, but I didnt know what type of help you would get in the middle of the night. Thanks again.
Posts: 13 | From: Ohio | Registered: Jan 2006
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quote:Originally posted by Mr. Toy: Now for too much information: Sleepers are always in the "30" series of numbers on any train. Coaches are always in the "10" series.
Not always. LakeShore Limited sleepers are in the "10" series. (4810, 4911, etc) Don't know what the coaches are - never noticed when I rode it.
Posts: 46 | Registered: Dec 2000
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I don't want to add confusion to this, but I'm not sure why everyone is telling Amtrak Rookie that there will be a sleeper attendant to open up the door and let him on in the middle of the night. This is not true. In the middle of the night, the sleeper attendants are asleep and will not be there to greet you. They will know (by looking at their manifest) to have the room turned down and ready for sleeping, but it is entirely possible that the door to his sleeper won't even be opened. The Conductor or Assistant Conductor will be the person to let on a passenger in the middle of the night. Depending on the load and how many on/off's they have, they may ask the person to board at a coach car and then walk down to their sleeper. This doesn't happen too often, as the Conductor will usually say "Follow Me"---and take you to your car and open the door so you can walk directly into your car. But depending on the mood-o-meter of the Conductor, he may be too tired or too lazy to open up a car for just one passenger.
So the easiest thing to do when the train arrives is to wait and see what door opens up, then walk over to the uniformed employee and show them the ticket. That employee will tell you how to proceed.
Posts: 2355 | From: Pleasanton, CA | Registered: Apr 2007
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If the station you are departing from is manned, you may want to ask the agent on duty what the situation will be and how to get in to your room.
But don't worry -- there will be SOMEBODY SOMEWHERE who will get you to your room.
Posts: 2428 | From: Grayling, MI | Registered: Mar 2002
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I have always had a door opened when boarding to a sleeper. No matter what time of day or night. (At one middle of nowhere platform "station" in the wee hours of the morning I have several times been the only passenger getting on.) Yes it is sometimes been the conductor and not the car attendant. But indeed whoever it is, they have always been most accomodating and helpful.
Amtrak rookie should not be overly concerned. With all the "horror" stories (real or embellished) I have heard through the years - I never heard one of a passenger left standing on the platform unable to board because no door was opened.
If concerned - a call to Amtrak Customer relations expressing those concerns/questions is in order. They will be happy to explain the procedures.
Dee
Posts: 460 | From: North Central CT | Registered: May 2004
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I agree with you that a person should not be concerned about getting on a train in the middle of the night. Someone will be there to help them get on. And as I said in my post, just wait for the train to come in, see what door(s) opens, and go up to the uniformed crew member and they will direct the person from there.
However, please keep in mind that sleeper attendants are indeed asleep---and will NOT open their door in the middle of the night. If there is a station stop at 3AM where the Conductor is handling a coach car for, say, 15 people getting on/off, and the A/C is handling baggage up front in the baggage car, then there will be NOBODY there to open up the door of the sleeper. Since you are a frequent "AmTraveler" (as am I, since 1980), you know this to be the case. I just want to make sure Amtrak Rookie is aware of this, since it is common and happens every day (night) on Amtrak trains across the country. Again, I totally agree that getting on the train in the middle of the night is no problem at all. My concern was with an Amtrak "newbie" being told that his sleeper door will be opened by the attendant, and this is not the case in many instances. On every trip I take, there are lots of first-timers on the train, and at the platform most of them are confused and don't know where to go, how to board, where to put luggage, where to sit, what direction to go for the diner/lounge (once on-board), and so forth. And this is during the day with full staffing levels. Amtrak Rookie asked some very good questions, so I would hate to see him stand at the door of a particular car expecting it to open---and it never does.
Posts: 2355 | From: Pleasanton, CA | Registered: Apr 2007
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I have boarded trains in the middle of the night, e.g. Barstow at midnight or 4:00 am and the conductor or some other person did open my sleeper door. However on one occasion in San Bernardino at about 8:30 pm I went to the head of the train only to be told that for some strange reason my sleeper was not spotted with the others and was at the end of the train. After dragging my luggage for the entire distance of the train, I was not in a good mood to begin with, and when the door to my sleeper was closed and locked I was rather feverish to say the least. After banging on the door for about five minutes, some kindly passenger rescued me by opening the door. I made my way upstairs to my bedroom, and after a few minutes the conductor lifted my ticket and received an earful from me as to why the door was not opened and the whereabouts of the sleeping car attendant. All I received in response was a shrug.
When the sleeping car attendant finally did make an appearance, he just mumbled something and shrugged as well. It is interesting to note that when the SW Chief arrived in Gallup NM the next morning, this useless attendant was nowhere to be seen when passengers wanted to get off his sleeper. I heard on my scanner the conductor wanting to know where the Gallup passengers were. Finally the passengers figured out how to open the door and found their own way out. They were not pleased. The conductor then closed the sleeper door and went looking for the errant attendant. Since his roomette was very close to my bedroom, I heard the conductor saying "did you realize you had passengers for Gallup?" I didn't hear the response, but I would suspect he just shrugged. Moral or the story: never depend on Amtrak for anything.
Posts: 524 | From: Toronto Ont. Canada | Registered: Mar 2001
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Royal Train I must disagree with you. I think you are being unfair in saying "never depend on Amtrak for anything". While we have had a few bad attendants we have had many more really good ones. In any profession/job there are a few rotten "apples" but that is no reason to blame the entire group. We have had many conductors,attendants,and various crew that went out of their way to help us. In my opinion you are throwing out the whole barrel of apples because of one rotton one. My analogy may be a bit mixed up but I feel sure you get my point.
Posts: 1577 | From: virginia | Registered: Jun 2005
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The topic of bad and lazy attendants is a very mixed bag. In my AmTravels, I've encountered both good and bad, and everything in-between. It's just my own personal opinion that Amtrak, as a transportation company, seems to have more bad apples than others. I really don't know what the true reason is behind this, but I have a few thoughts.
From my own observations, it seems as if most of the attendants are good because they WANT to do a good job---not because they have to. And this is where I think the guts of the problems begin. For the lazy no-good attendants who disappear and never volunteer to help or do ANYTHING, they are allowed to get away with this because there's nobody there to enforce the rules or kick them in the behind. Sure, the Conductor "could" do something----but how often does that happen? They come from two very different perspectives, two different jobs, two VERY different areas of training and experience, and so forth. The only way I have ever seen a lazy, disappearing attendant get called to answer for his/her actions/inactions, is when the passenger takes the time to write a letter to customer service and details what transpired. These letters are not ignored----as long as it has the train number, date of travel, and car number, they will know who it was even if you don't have the attendant's name. The attendant's superiors will then be aware of their employee's actions, and it can be handled. Usually, the bosses already know that they have a lazy, good-for-nothing employee, but there's little they can do about it unless it is witnessed and documented by another employee or superior, or if a passenger does the documenting for them. Otherwise, it's just hearsay and they have union rules and other contracts in place to guarantee them their job.
For those of us who have traveled Amtrak a lot over the years, we have seen the good, the bad, and the ugly. And they definitely have lots of "good", but when they're bad, wow, they are bad! Has anyone ever had the sleeper attendant on the California Zephyr (older black man, I won't say his name) who gets on the PA at the beginning of the trip and tells people, "Here is where everything is located, if you want it, get it yourself. I'm not your mommy. You know how to make your own bed, so unless you're in a wheelchair, I won't do it". He's a real joy to be around.
Posts: 2355 | From: Pleasanton, CA | Registered: Apr 2007
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Smitty, the reason people like the attendant on the CZ get way with it is because everyone complains and no one goes to the right person. We had a no longer there attendant on the CZ who was a similar pain. I went to the Cheif and told her the problem. She took care of it. Then when we got home I called customer relations and told them my tale. We got a travel voucher in reply and I have never seen said person again. Yes it takes time but it depends on whether you want to complain or get something done. As to your attendant I would have been down to the conductor immediately and kept after him until he did something. I guess when something angers me I can't keep my mouth shut. I can't agree with you about Amtrak beng worse than others. Have you flown lately? Or taken the bus on a long trip? I think things always seem worse when one is in the middle of it.I too have ridden Amtrak since its beginning and many railroads before that. I do think you are right about the good bad and the ugly.
Posts: 1577 | From: virginia | Registered: Jun 2005
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One other matter in the way of getting bad apples off the property is asking a passenger to testify at the employee's trial (whoops, fair and impartial investigation) and being x-examineed by the employee's representative.
The average passenger would simply say "that's Amtrak's problem and since I'm never going to use them again why should I bother?".
Possibly things have changed since I left the industry twenty five years ago, but testimony such as a passenger's letter could not be "read into the record' - they had to come and testify at the trial if the letter was to be a specification within the charges being brought against the employee.
Posts: 9976 | From: Clarendon Hills, IL USA (BNSF Chicago Sub MP 18.71) | Registered: Apr 2002
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You can thank our country's WAY outdated Labor Union system for allowing such lazy and slovenly train attendants to be retained for years and years and years, no matter how bad a job they do.
As reported in another recent thread, many of the "leftovers" from the 70's when AMTRAK was new have now retired, and most of the newer AMTRAK onboard employees are pretty good.
Posts: 2428 | From: Grayling, MI | Registered: Mar 2002
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Train Lady: when I said "don't depend on Amtrak for anything", I did not mean to imply that all Amtrak employees are as bad as the one I described. As others on this board have said, there are many good crew members, and I have had many excellent ones. I was responding in the context of Amtrak Rookie's enquiries on boarding in the middle of the night. I meant to say that nothing is consistent with Amtrak, and you may or may not have a good crew and someone may or may not be there to open the door to your sleeping car. Perhaps I should have been more careful in the use of language that implied everything Amtrak does is unreliable. I just meant to say that in many instances you may have to look after yourself without assistance from an Amtrak crew member.
Posts: 524 | From: Toronto Ont. Canada | Registered: Mar 2001
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I would think that the attendants are similar to any other service employee e.g. server who's income can be influenced by "tips". Most do try to do well for their customer.
Over all, my experience has been pretty good. Only had one bad experience on the Empire Builder traveling in the family compartment. At the same time our best experience was on the way out on the same trip...
Posts: 5 | From: Pleasant Prairie, WI | Registered: Apr 2007
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