I Wish I Was Writing This On a Train: The Confounding Routes of Amtrak

 

    The distance from Paris to Dijon, France is roughly 195 miles. This is more than the distance of Poughkeepsie, NY to Northampton, MA. Depending on what station a person departs from, the journey from Paris to Dijon may take 3.75-4 hours, roughly the same amount of time it takes to drive, or there are some trains that take only1.5 hours (literally half the time it takes to drive). Thetrainline.com says there are 15 trains running daily between the 2 cities, 12 of which are direct. 

    seat61.com says that the maximum speed of France's TGV's or Trains à Grand Vitesse are 186 mph, but some newer lines are actually hitting 199 mph. Comparatively, Amtrak's Acela train can go as fast as 135mph, but it on average it tops out at a little over 70mph because most of the rail lines are over 100 years old and cannot handle anything faster.

    So, while it takes 2.5 hours to drive from Poughkeepsie to Northampton, the same journey by train is 6.75 hours. With 2 transfers.

    Part of this obviously is due to just how fucking slow these trains are. 

    But, also, the routings just make no sense.

    Let's look at how Amtrak would route us to Northampton MA, from Poughkeepsie NY using their app. Our first leg of the trip takes us on the Empire Service from Poughkeepsie to Moynihan Train Hall at Penn Station in New York Fucking City. We have a 50 minute layover, and then we get on a Vermonter Train that will take us to Northampton MA as well as 8 other stops with the duration of the trip being a little less than 4.5 hours. It takes only a little over 3 hours to drive from NYC to Northampton. 

    And, it's at this point that I wonder if Amtrak actually knows where Northampton MA is in relation to Poughkeepsie? Why does the route have me go South for about 80 miles only to have me pivot back North again? If you're not sure what I'm talking about, I should mention that there is a useless Amtrak station in Albany; the Albany Rennselaer train station that is literally across the Hudson River from the city of Albany (we will revisit this topic in another post)! Meanwhile, it takes 1.5 hours to drive from Albany, NY to Northampton, MA; and if you Google how to get from one to the other using public transportation, Amtrak isn't even listed as an option! The focus is on Greyhound buses* (which take twice the time!) probably because Google knows ain't nobody foolish enough to go to the other end of New York State when you could just go across!

   My frustration may strike readers as strange: Are there enough passengers to necessitate a regular schedule of Amtrak trains trips from Albany to Northampton?  And, also, Rosie, why do you have an issue at all? Just drive; it's only 2.5 hours from your doorstep!

    Okay, to the first question: ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

    And is that even the point? Maybe the point is that there's 2 Amtrak stations less than 2 hours from one another and there is no direct train connecting them. 

    This reminds me of when I was in college in Savannah, Georgia wishing to travel to Atlanta, Georgia, Again, both these cities have Amtrak stations, but Amtrak wanted to route me through Washington Goddamn D.C. This route pointlessly adds more than 300 miles and ten hours to the journey. WHY?????

    And again, some people might ask: is there even demand for such a route? In this circumstance I think the answer is much clearer:

YES

    Yes there is! Savannah, as of 2007, is an adorable, picturesque small Southern city with access to the beach, great food options, and very walkable. In my mind it is the capitol city of Coastal Grannies. 

    And then Atlanta is like the far more happening, hip, bustling large city. There are so many reasons why people in Savannah would want to make a day trip, or long weekend to Atlanta, and vice versa; and the do! But the 4 hour long drive might make them not as excited about making the trip. Consider France's TGV trains that reach a top speed of 180/mph; if there was a rail connection between the two cities like that you could travel between the 2 in less than 2 hours! Adding other regional stops like Warner Robins, Dublin, and Macon would stretch the itinerary to, like, 3 hours.

    Since we brought up how 4 hours of driving can be exhausting let's address the second question regarding North East travel: if you can drive, why not just drive?

    And my answer to that is look at the title of this post. I understand, and mostly accept, that not everyone is as enthralled by trains as I am. But that's their problem and they can write their own blog about it. 

    If I were on a train, I'd be reading the New Yorker, working on a crossword puzzle, taking a nap, knitting, reading a book, writing a blog about how much I love trains, on the phone to a family member, eating a sandwich, admiring the Great American Countryside.

    I would not be reciting calming affirmations as I pass an 18-wheeler truck on its left; I would not be muttering how, apparently, 75 MPH on a 65 MPH speed limit is too slow for the Beamer riding my ass; I would not be anxiously counting the miles to my exit, panicked that I haven't been able to mere into the right lane yet and it's coming up in 1 mile. 

    On the Mass Turnpike, or I-90 to everyone outside of Massachusetts, I noticed signs telling me not only the distance to a destination eg: Boston 165 miles, but also the span of time until reaching that destination: 1.5 hours. I imagine this is due to traffic congestion on major highways like the Mass Turnpike, which is a growing problem everywhere. In years past the solution was to AdD aNOthEr laNe to the highway, but we have physically run out of room to do that. Also, it turns out that was never a solution in the first place: roadways were expanded to accommodate the existing level of traffic... and more traffic showed up to take advantage.  What experts and consultants keep coming back to as a solution to congestion is:

A single apparatus that can move a large amount of people quickly. 

Hmmm, that sound like a van, or a ride share, or a bus or a

TRAIN.

    Yeah, alright: I'm not an engineer, or urban planner, but I do know that more regional train service connecting communities within the country can and will be a good thing. 

*I will admit to having a very classist disgust for Greyhound buses. But it is ever so slightly justified in that trains have more legroom, a smoother ride, opportunities for walking and moving around within the train, and a café car. Suck it Greyhound.