Mobile Blog Sunday Afternoon

It’s a beautiful day today in the land where Walt built his first kingdom. There were pancakes, the paper, and a very good dog making the morning very nice and very easy.

While I have quite a bit to do today (there are still some scripts to be read, paperwork to fill out, and contracts to finish) Rene and I had planned a quick jaunt to San Diego to see her friend’s band at the Sicilian Festival. We thought we could take the train so that we would avoid traffic, be able to drink a bit and it drops us off practically door to door! It seemed like the perfect plan – until we saw what Amtrak charges for a trip into Old Town. It would have cost us $88 round trip for two for coach, unreserved seats! That’s insane! I have gotten tickets that took me from London to Scotland that didn’t cost as much! Hell, I expect to spend money like that for Japanese bullet trains, but a coach ticket to San Diego?

Maybe I have a skewed view of how trains work, I still see them as a form of mass transit even over longer distances, and would hope that the cost would at least be comparable to what it would cost to drive yourself. I even expect to spend a bit more for the convenience of not having to drive but $88 exceeded what I am willing to plop down for a pair of seats.

Am I wrong? What’s your opinion?

See you tomorrow!

Sent from my BlackBerry® wireless device

2 Comments

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2 Responses to Mobile Blog Sunday Afternoon

  1. I had to pay 22 bucks to get from Baltimore to DC during the inauguration this year. 32 bucks one-way! It was only a 30 mile trip. Insanity, but I had no other choice.

    I’m use to Europe where you can get a high-speed one-way from Frankfurt to Paris for 30 bucks. We are just so backwards about our mass transit here its ridiculous.

    I bet your train to SD was pretty empty. They probably charge so much, cause they gotta charge you for the cost of the empty seats next to you.

  2. Liz

    Yeah, a few years ago I visited a friend going to school in SD and took the train back…it was almost $30 for a one-way unreserved coach ticket, and we were appalled. If there had been alternative modes of transportation, I would have considered them first but I didn’t really have a choice.

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