Sam1Besides, the train ride from Philadelphia through the Lancaster Valley is laced with scenery that I didn't want to miss. If I had driven, I would not have been able to enjoy it as much, unless I pulled off to the side of the road to soak it up. Interestingly, I could tell which farms were probably Amish. It was Monday. They had their clothes out on a clothesline. None of that dryer stuff for them.
-Don (Random stuff, mostly about trains - what else? http://blerfblog.blogspot.com/)
schlimm Sam1Who is Henry Posner? I think he is the principal in the Rail Development Corporation, which owns the Iowa Interstate and rails in South America and elsewhere. Nice travel wring. You paint an interesting portrait of the Lancaster area.
Sam1Who is Henry Posner?
I think he is the principal in the Rail Development Corporation, which owns the Iowa Interstate and rails in South America and elsewhere. Nice travel wring. You paint an interesting portrait of the Lancaster area.
Mr. Posner is the Chairman of Rail Development Corporation. According to the company web site, the express bus service between Harrisburg and Pittsburgh, known as the Steel City Flyer, was discontinued in July due to low patronage.
C&NW, CA&E, MILW, CGW and IC fan
oltmanndSam1Renting a car in Harrisburg to travel to Gettysburg required a transfer from the Harrisburg Amtrak Station to the Harrisburg Airport. Getting there, however, was easy. I took the Capital Area Transportation #7 bus, which stops right outside the station and goes to the airport in about 25 minutes. The paperwork for the car was ready when I arrived at the airport rental counter, and I was on my way in minutes. This is the part that caught my eye. The 25 minutes it took you to get to the H'burg airport pretty much negates any time savings you might have had from the recent 110 mph improvements to the Phila - Hburg line vs renting a car right out of the station in Phila. The sad thing is the line goes right past the Hburg airport. It's a no brainer to put a stop in there with a bus shuttle to the airport and, perhaps, kill the Middletown stop. Also, did you know that Henry Posner is running express bus service from the Harrisburg train station to Pittsburgh? He views it as a 'stop gap' until there is HSR of some sort to Pittsburgh.
Sam1Renting a car in Harrisburg to travel to Gettysburg required a transfer from the Harrisburg Amtrak Station to the Harrisburg Airport. Getting there, however, was easy. I took the Capital Area Transportation #7 bus, which stops right outside the station and goes to the airport in about 25 minutes. The paperwork for the car was ready when I arrived at the airport rental counter, and I was on my way in minutes.
I learned in retrospect that I could have gotten off the train at Middletown and caught the same #7 bus to the airport. The transfer time would have been a tad shorter, but I am more familiar with the transfer arrangements from the Amtrak station in Harrisburg. In any case, you are correct. It would be nice to have a station at the airport for an even easier transfer. Maybe that will happen.
I prefer to rent a car in Harrisburg because it is easier to get out of the airport and onto the Penn Turnpike for the first leg of the journey to Gettysburg. I considered renting a car in Philly, but I did not want to battle the big city traffic, especially in light of the fact that my knowledge of the Philadelphia Airport and 30th Street is confined to how to catch the SEPTA to 30th Street Station from the airport. And since I was flying home to Austin, I needed to return the car to the airport, as opposed to the station, although I suppose I could have returned it to the station and taken SEPTA to the airport.
Until last year I had never been to Philadelphia, other than to pass through it on the way to and from New York. Although I grew up in Altoona and spent more than five years in New York City, we viewed Philadelphia was a big village somewhere between Altoona and New York. My apologies to the folks from Philadelphia; my visit last year gave me a perspective that I did not have. It is a nice city.
My mother was addicted to Broadway, as in theaters and shows, and Philadelphia was just a stop on the way to New York. For years the trains from and to Altoona bypassed 30th Street Station. They stopped at North Philadelphia.
Besides, the train ride from Philadelphia through the Lancaster Valley is laced with scenery that I didn't want to miss. If I had driven, I would not have been able to enjoy it as much, unless I pulled off to the side of the road to soak it up. Interestingly, I could tell which farms were probably Amish. It was Monday. They had their clothes out on a clothesline. None of that dryer stuff for them.
Who is Henry Posner? And where can I find information about his express bus service? I will be in Pittsburgh next month. I plan to take the Pennsylvanian to Baltimore, but it would be nice to have an alternative if the train breaks down.
CMStPnPYou can make that trip cheaper with 1-2 nights in a hotel in Munich near the Oktoberfest grounds.....how?
True! During Oktoberfest nearby it would be hard to find a single for less than 150 Euros/ night, but normally 100 Euros could get you a nice room (Hotel Uhland).
schlimm Sleepers (run by CNL, a Swiss division of Deutsche Bahn - German Rail) are still available in Germany on a limited number of overnight routes. For example, you could take that return train from Munich (10:52 pm) to Hamburg (7:54 am) for 144 Euros in an open-section couchette or 285 Euros in a single compartment. Seven hours, 480 miles. Not bad but hardly cheap ($ 214 - 425) these days.
Sleepers (run by CNL, a Swiss division of Deutsche Bahn - German Rail) are still available in Germany on a limited number of overnight routes. For example, you could take that return train from Munich (10:52 pm) to Hamburg (7:54 am) for 144 Euros in an open-section couchette or 285 Euros in a single compartment. Seven hours, 480 miles. Not bad but hardly cheap ($ 214 - 425) these days.
Really? You can make that trip cheaper with 1-2 nights in a hotel in Munich near the Oktoberfest grounds.....how?
CMStPnPI was stationed over there in Northern Germany a while back. No way could I afford airfare from the North to Munich for Octoberfest. The Hotels in Munich were likewise prohobitive for a Privates pay. Solution? Take and overnight train with compartment from the North arriving in Munich around 7:00 a.m. Spend the day at Oktoberfest, board an evening overnight train headed North for the return.
I was stationed over there in Northern Germany a while back. No way could I afford airfare from the North to Munich for Octoberfest. The Hotels in Munich were likewise prohobitive for a Privates pay. Solution?
Take and overnight train with compartment from the North arriving in Munich around 7:00 a.m. Spend the day at Oktoberfest, board an evening overnight train headed North for the return.
CMStPnPI think when Amtrak was running the overnight train to Duluth from Chicago with sleepers it had fairly good patronage (The North Star).
The North Star was a victim of cost cutting in 1981 and was cut back to to local between Duluth and MSP, completely eliminated in 1986 when the state of Minnesota withdrew its subsidy. As sam1 points out, sleeper services are biggest money losers in the overall money losing operation known as Amtrak.
I did use the Slumbercoach on CB&Q's Blackhawk a couple of times in 1969 and it was excellent and cheaper than flying and staying in a loop hotel. That was when you used to think that 35 bucks was expensive for a hotel room. It was a fun way to travel, clean sheets, a good night's sleep and a good Burlington breakfast. The Blackhawk in its later days also carried a vista-dome. I think it is important to also discuss the demise of Southern Pacific's Lark, the overnight train between LA and San Francisco. In 1964 when United Airlines put 727's on the route and slashed their fares down to $13.00 one way. PSA who was flying slower Lockheed Electras slashed their's to 10.99. That was cheaper than driving. SP's fare was $ 23 for coach. You see why the Lark only lasted until 1966. Compare what it costs today; driving flying or Amtrak.
Sam1These experiences further reinforce my view that trains make sense in relatively short, high density corridors, where the cost of expanding highway and airway capacity is prohibitive. They are not a serious option for long distance travel for most people.
H-h-h-m-m-m-m, they used to be in Europe, I don't know about these days. I was stationed over there in Northern Germany a while back. No way could I afford airfare from the North to Munich for Octoberfest. The Hotels in Munich were likewise prohobitive for a Privates pay. Solution?
I think when Amtrak was running the overnight train to Duluth from Chicago with sleepers it had fairly good patronage (The North Star). I don't remember though as I was a kid back then. Maybe some of the old timers could chime in on that. You'll find that overnight trains do attract some business travelers willing to pay a premium for the benefit of convienence of using their non-productive time to travel.
Recently I traveled from Austin to New York and Gettysburg. I flew to Philadelphia, where I caught a SEPTA train from the airport to 30th Street Station. After having lunch with a friend, I took Amtrak to New York's Pennsylvania Station. After a weekend in New York, I took the train from New York to Harrisburg, where I rented a car and drove to Gettysburg. After spending several days tramping over the Gettysburg Battlefield, I drove back to Harrisburg, where I caught a flight home.
The flights were quick, economical and relatively comfortable. I cleared security in Austin and Harrisburg without any fuss in less than five minutes at each location. The TSA personnel were courteous, efficient, and effective.
The train legs of the trip were equally quick for the distance covered, economical, and comfortable. The train is more comfortable than the coach section of an airplane. Security personnel at 30th Street Station and Pennsylvania Station were performing random bag checks and using dogs to sniff trouble. However, the security checks for train travel are less intrusive than the security checks for air travel.
Renting a car in Harrisburg to travel to Gettysburg required a transfer from the Harrisburg Amtrak Station to the Harrisburg Airport. Getting there, however, was easy. I took the Capital Area Transportation #7 bus, which stops right outside the station and goes to the airport in about 25 minutes. The paperwork for the car was ready when I arrived at the airport rental counter, and I was on my way in minutes.
The round trip airfare was $288. The train from Philly to New York was $54.60, whilst the trip to Harrisburg cost $34.50. The SEPTA train was $7.00. Excluding the rental car, transport cost me $377.10.
Had I taken the train from Austin to New York, with a stop in Philadelphia, and returned via a stopover in Harrisburg, the fare would have been $391 (rounded) in coach or $1,044 for first class.
The time to fly from Austin to Philadelphia, plus Harrisburg to Austin, including security clearance, but excluding dwell time, was approximately 11 hours. The train time to New York was approximately 90 minutes; the train time to Harrisburg was a tad over three hours. The combined times were approximately 15.5 hours. The time to get there and back by train, excluding dwell time in Chicago, Washington, Philadelphia, and Harrisburg would have been approximately 106 hours.
Having laid out the money for an Acela ride last year, I opted for a regional train from Philadelphia to New York. The train ride was comfortable. It was a Friday afternoon, with a lot of people going home, but everyone found a seat. The train ride to Harrisburg, which was mid Monday morning, was equally comfortable. The load factor from New York to Philadelphia was high, but from Philadelphia to Harrisburg the load factor was low.
Because I finished my meeting in Philadelphia sooner than anticipated, I changed my reservation. The Amtrak clerk at 30th Street was knowledgeable, courteous, and helpful. He made the change in a jiffy, with a smile and a pleasant sendoff to boot.
These experiences further reinforce my view that trains make sense in relatively short, high density corridors, where the cost of expanding highway and airway capacity is prohibitive. They are not a serious option for long distance travel for most people.
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