Coupon Station

[rjemery]

In railroad parlance, what is a coupon station?  How does it differ from a ticket office?

[rcdrye]

A coupon station could sell interline tickets.  These were usually in the form of a coupon for each segment of the trip, along with any necessary space or Pullman coupons, handwritten by the ticket agent with a carbon copy.  The coupons were stamped on the back by the agent's dater stamp and assembled into either a folded strip or a booklet, depending on the issuing railroad's policies.  Coupon tickets remained in use on many lines into the first years of Amtrak.  Non-coupon stations were issued online tickets only in cardstock format, with a tear-off agent stub.

Amtrak later adopted ATC (airline) ticket stock. I think railroad codes (A-UP, A-SP) were used for segments over each carrier until 1975 or so.  Non-Amtrak services (SR, PC commuter services) were also handled.

A sample of a coupon ticket for the Overland Route from Chicago to San Francisco issued in the 1950s would have included:

Chicago - C&NW - Omaha (1st Class)

Omaha - UP - Ogden (1st Class)

Ogden - SP - San Francisco (1st Class)

Chicago - Pullman - San Francisco (berth or space charge)

If a room was shared by multiple passengers, there would be coupons for eahc railroad for each passenger, but only one Pullman coupon.

Certain trains required an extra fare coupon, as well.  SP went back and forth over the years on requiring a separate coupon for the ferry from Oakland to San Francisco.  Coupons could also be issued for Parmalee Transfer in Chicago and other services that were published in the tariffs.

[rjemery]

rcdrye,

Thank you for the clarification.  I was reviewing old passenger schedules of the Lehigh Valley Railroad for their name trains and their interconnection with a number of other railroads for travel beyond the LV system.  Many LV stations had the reference mark "coupon station."  Your explanation makes sense.

[Deggesty]

An iteresting (to me) item about the coupon tickets was that each coupon could be punched to indicate checked baggage and to indicate half fare--and when the ticket was folded one punch all the way through would indicate checked baggage or half fare.

My last interline coupon ticket, issued in early 1972, was an eleven coupon ticket reading Birmingham to San Francisco and back--and I did not go into San Francisco. The fare was based on a round trip Birmingham-Chicago and Chicago-San Francisco--even when going by way of Los Angeles and returning by way of Seattle==and had a free round trip to San Diego. 

In the old days, there were also "competitive fares"--the fare between two points served by two or more railroads were the same, no matter wich road you rode--Montgomery, Alabama, to Washington, D.C., was the same whether you went through Atlanta on the West Point Route or through Waycross on the ACL. The most interesting, to me, competitive fare was that between Chicago and Washington/Baltimore. The fare to Baltimore was the same as the fare to Washington, probably because the B&O went through Washington to reach Baltimore, and the Pennsy went through Baltimore to reach Washington. 

The Pullman charges were the same for the same accomodation from Chicago to the West Coast, no matter which city was your West Coast destination, or whether your train took two nights or three nights.

[CSSHEGEWISCH]

I used an updated version of a coupon ticket on a round trip to Toronto on the "International" in 1983.  It resembled an airline ticket with one foil for Amtrak for Chicago-Port Huron and one foil for VIA for Port Huron-Toronto.

[NKP guy]

   Thanks to rcdrye for that detailed explanation of coupon stations.  Just last week I was given a 1962 copy of the Official Guide and saw this term used on many timetables.  Even at my age I had never encountered this term before; it's very helpful to see it defined here.

   When I bought my first B&O ticket for a trip from Ohio to Baltimore in 1967, I was pleasantly surprised to learn I could use my B&O ticket on the Pennsy from DC to Baltimore.  I   wanted to expand my railfan experiences and so I took one of their trains, which had a GG1 on the point.  All I can say is that the train accelerated so fast that, after my head snapped back, I was thrilled with how fast, smooth, and generally wonderful the ride to Baltimore was.  

   My return from Baltimore to DC was on one of B&O's Budd cars from ancient Camden Street Station, over the Relay viaduct, and into DC to my awaiting connection (the Chicago Night Express).  

   Fifty-one years later I still fondly recall these and other details of my first solo long distance train trip, when the world beyond Ohio began to beckon me.

 

[Deggesty]

I call Amtrak when I am planning a trip, and am sent what I need by email. All I have to do is print it and take the printout to the station here. I could simply show what I printed to each conductor, who would scan it.

I prefer having a ticket in my possession, and Amtrak will print a multi-train ticket if you ask for it. The printout has a separate "coupon" for each leg, and each "coupon" has a stub. Occasionally, a conductor will simply scan the "coupon" for his train and not lift it. Once, I boarded the  northbound Starlight in Oakland--and the conductor never came by; when I spoke to the attendant about it, he told me that he had told the conductor that I was on board.

A few minutes before each train is expected to arrive here, a conductor comes in, lifts each person's transportaion, and gives each person a slip that indicates the space, coach (car number) or sleeper (car number and room), that the person has.