

Amtrak to add WiFi, upgrade Fleet - anderzole
http://www.wired.com/autopia/2010/01/amtrak-to-add-wifi-upgrade-fleet/

======
leelin
These are the public transit options for NYC-BOS commuting nowadays:

    
    
      (all buses about 4.5 hours all-in)
      Bolt / MegaBus: $10-25 with free WiFi from Penn Station
      Fung Wah / Lucky Star: $15 every half hour from Chinatown
      Limo Liner: $70-100 WiFi, comfy seats, bus attendant, free snacks
      Airplane: $60-100, 1 hour flight, 2.5h all-in time
      Amtrak regional train: $60-70, 4.25 hours
      Amtrak Acela: $90-110, 3.75 hours
    

Acela to me is the least attractive option, and free WiFi + a fleet upgrade
won't change that. Of course some people hate buses and planes, have special
travel circumstances, want to be able to stroll the aisles, etc, but Acela's
target market seems quite niche, especially when compared to the standard
Amtrak regional service.

There are also cheaper options for the shorter legs. There are much cheaper
trains or buses for NYC to New Haven, Boston to Providence, NYC to DC, for
example.

~~~
cdr
I agree, WiFi is not going to save Amtrak. It's almost always the worst
possible transportation option available in terms of cost, quality, comfort,
time, etc - for any and all start and end points, not just NYC/BOS.

~~~
bryanwoods
I'm surprised to hear so much negativity about Amtrak. I live in NYC and head
upstate (to Rochester) for business regularly and Amtrak is by far my favorite
way to make the trip.

A bus might make more sense on a shorter trip (like the aforementioned NYC to
Boston example), but I think there's a real sweet spot for taking the Amtrak
on trips longer than, say, 4-5 hours on the bus but shorter than a 2 hour
flight (excluding baggage/security/travel to and from airport time).

Especially Amtrak's business class, which is extremely comfortable, with
plenty of space for a computer and stretching out, quiet and spacious enough
to get work done, and usually only an extra $20 or so.

I admit my fear of flying sways me toward Amtrak when a flight might make the
most sense, but to me a bus is almost always the worst possible transportation
option available.

~~~
ericd
If you compare Amtrak to Greyhound, the price difference might not be so bad,
but if you compare it to the more competitive bus lines routes (NYC-BOS, NYC-
DC) like leelin does, you can see it's pretty awful value.

Agreed that Amtrak is a much more pleasant experience, though - much less stop
and go, generally higher reliability of arrival time, more legroom, smoother
ride.

I wonder what it would take for Amtrak to be able to compete on price with the
competitive bus lines in the northeast corridor. Subsidies on rails comparable
to those on the interstates, perhaps (or getting rid of the interstates'
subsidies and making them self-funded)...

------
gphil
As a semi-frequent traveler on the Northeast Corridor, I want to be excited
about this, but the upcharge for the Acela on top of already expensive Amtrak
tickets adds up to quite a bit more than the upgrade is worth IMO. The regular
Amtrak trains are convenient and comfortable, but I still always feel like I'm
overpaying whenever I take one. Busses aren't glamorous but they're definitely
the best option for the budget-conscious traveler in this neck of the woods.

------
jdminhbg
Amazing to me that airlines were able to beat Amtrak to the punch on Wifi,
considering what must be a very wide gap in technical difficulty.

~~~
Imprecate
It's not that amazing. Amtrak is a quasai-governmental entity; airlines face a
lot of competition. Planes fly longer distances and have no alternate way to
get online. People on a 3-4h train ride might be satisfied with a Blackberry
or iPhone.

~~~
Empact
And the most important of these? Accountability. It happens that the Amtrak
Downeaster line (<http://amtrakdowneaster.com/>) is unique in having WIFI, but
it wasn't Amtrak that set up the service, rather it was the Northern New
England Passenger Rail Authority. That is, a local authority, which is more
directly accountable to the riders of that line, a far cry from Amtrak's
"accountability" to Congress.

Likewise, the other decent line I've ridden, the Cascades line
(www.amtrakcascades.com/) is largely supported by & accountable to the
Washington and Oregon state governments.

Amtrak is a decades-old failed experiment. Here's to hoping private & state-
run high-speed passenger rail authorities show the way forward. My money is on
Texas: <http://www.thsrtc.com/>

------
jacquesm
How about buying some Alsthom gear and laying high speed rail across the USA ?
the country is pretty much made for it, and it would save a bundle of fuel and
money.

Also none of that check in business.

If it would just be used to connect the clusters of major cities within the
cluster itself that would already be a pretty good thing to have.

~~~
ericd
Acela was originally supposed to travel at TGV-class speeds on the Northeast
corridor, but I believe it was neutered by noise complaints/regulations which
resulted in it being not much faster than regional service from NYC to Boston
(or a bus, for that matter).

It doesn't seem to be a serious priority for the national govt.

~~~
jacquesm
Interesting, I never knew that.

The noise complaints would have to come from people that have experienced the
noise though, if they never made it that far that's really strange to see it
listed as a reason.

The TGV is an amazing bit of engineering, I've made the trip along the
elevated sections by car a couple of times and to be overtaken by a train with
such a speed difference is really impressive (I live too far away from a
connection point so I prefer to take the car).

They average about 280 km/h, and even though there definitely is noise I'd
rather hear a TGV swooshing by than an aircraft overhead for minutes or a
regular passenger train.

~~~
ericd
I can't seem to find a good source for the noise complaint part, so it may be
hearsay (sorry for the potential misinfo). Wiki seems to attribute it mostly
to issues with track electrification and some other issues:
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Acela_Express#High_speed_issues>

Most of the track is definitely not equal to the special stuff laid down for
the TGV's very high speed sections, so I'm sure that's a contributing factor.

------
kingkawn
The old benefit of Amtrak is that you could count on your arrival time into
any major large city, as opposed to buses, which were often late due to
traffic. Lately Amtrak has been failing this with repeated track delays,
washouts due to rain, and other track problems. For me this has removed a
great deal of its benefit, at least in the northeast corridor where I usually
travel.

~~~
ashishk
What's crazy is that not once, but twice in the past month, I've been on a
train from BOS-NYC that has broken down at some point in CT or RI. The first
time they sent a new train (we boarded it using planks laid across the tracks)
and the second time they sent a new engine car.

Otherwise, yes Amtrak has been more reliable than Megabus/Boltbus =)

