Traveling by train? Prepare for frustration

Train

Carol Forsloff — While current news is filled with the US airlines' new tricks to get cash for more leg room on planes, as well as items and services that used to be routine, some folks might consider the train a better, more efficient, and easier means of travel. But traveling by train is no longer the easy and casual way of getting from here to there as it used to be, even a decade ago.

On an Amtrak from Portland, Oregon, to Bellingham, Washington and return, the entire trip consisted of one frustration after another. On the trip to Bellingham, the club car had an electrical problem, so there was no food or beverage available for nearly 6 1/2 hours, since not only was nothing available in the bistro because of mechanical failures, the station in Seattle had no available bottled water for passengers to purchase to take with them when transferring to a bus that would take them from the Seattle station to Bellingham.

The return trip was worse. There was a four-hour delay of the Amtrak train coming from Vancouver, B.C.,  because of engine failure. When the train finally arrived, there was no air conditioning, the seats were littered with incidental trash that had not been cleared from previous trips the train had taken, and the tray tables had grease stains on the centers or edges.

Subsequently, at Everett, Washington, about one hour from Seattle, a switching problem created another half hour delay.  This meant the train scheduled to follow the hapless one on which this journalist had traveled, was late for the Seattle passengers making their way to Portland. Train officials made the decision to transfer existing passengers traveling to Portland to a bus, advising that this would allow them a faster way to get to their final destination. Yet ,clearly this was not the case, as the train actually arrived to pick up new passengers in Portland one-half hour before the bus arrived. And the bus had its single bathroom for a load of passengers along with a tiny "snack" consisting of a few crackers and dried fruit chips with a 4 oz bottle of water to last the anticipated three-hour trip. The bus, with its narrow seats and crowded leg room, meant not just a later arrival but an uncomfortable trip as well.

But are these conditions usual or was this journalist's experience a rare occurrence that seldom happens? And is it just in the United States where folks are seeing a myriad of problems with train transportation?

Facebook users comment that Holland and British passengers often complain about the lateness of the trains in their respective countries. And other users alluded to problems in other places around the world. An East Indian youth describes train travel in Asia as uncomfortable, crowded and often a means only for the poor who are willing to experience physical and emotional trials traveling by train in order to be able to get to an important event.

Tad DeHaven of the Cato Institute writes: “The system has never earned a profit and most of its routes lose money. Amtrak’s on-time record is very poor, and the system as a whole only accounts for 0.1 percent of America’s passenger travel.”

The Daily Caller, a Washington-based online publication, goes on to expand on DeHaven's observations that "besides sucking more and more money from the U.S. government, there are many documented cases of fraud."

An article in The Economist points out that while government critics wail about the $1.4 billion of government subsidies received by Amtrak, the percentage of the national budget is so miniscule that it does not present a financial calamity as much as it reflects the fact that people are not getting their money's worth when they travel by train in the United States. "Amtrak's critics should focus on whether or not taxpayers are getting their money's worth and avoid conflating Amtrak's troubles with America's broader fiscal difficulties."

Better service, or at the very least, better and more honest explanations of disruption in service and more passenger-focused ways of correcting service errors might make the difference in Amtrak's bottom line. For the passengers on Father's Day weekend through the Oregon—Washington routes by rail, the negatives are likely to be just another black mark on an already-defaced framework that Amtrak's executives fail to recognize as the core problem related to lost revenues.

One might also wonder how focused governments are on transportation systems servicing the middle and lower classes throughout the world, while first class rides remain the method for government officials who are to look out for the ordinary citizen and not just those who can pay more money for service that should be standard for everyone.

A Permaculture Lifestyle: Part One

Bob Ewing - There is no such thing as a free lunch. If you plan on living a low impact lifestyle, you must understand this.

Everything we do has a cost. Money may not exchange hands but there is a transaction taking place when we undertake any action. We will not always be aware of the extent of our affect on the world around us, but this lack of awareness does not negate the fact that we do, indeed, effect our environment. Some affects are positive others are negative.

Permaculture recognizes and maximizes beneficial relationships while minimizing or eliminating harmful ones. My choices do matter as do yours, so it is important to understand that all we do has a cost or produces an affect.

Take transportation. We all need to get from one place to another, whether it is to work, shopping, going out for dinner, or visiting friends and relatives; we all need to move from our home to other locations, school, hockey, piano lessons and so on. The list can go on and on. Our mode of transportation can have a major impact on our environment, pollution being one of the most obvious affects.

If you are committed to living a low impact life, then begin with how you get around town. Do you drive, take public transport, ride a bicycle or walk, for example.

Walking is how I get around town; it is as low an impact as you can get for personal transportation. I emit very little greenhouse gas when I walk and use almost no fossil fuels.

My wife also walks. Our choices have consequences that some may not at first consider. One, were we presently live there is no public transit. The city is simply too small to make public transit viable. This means we would need to buy a car, use taxis everyday, both to and from work, or pick a place to live that is in a reasonable walking distance to where she works. This in bad weather is ten minutes.

The weather here gets nasty, winter is long and it get down to minus 30 Celsius on a regular basis. Snow storms and heavy rain and winds are common in season. Appropriate clothing is essential; this includes boots and coats, plus a variety of layers for warmth.

Walking to work also means buying or renting a home that is located within that ten minute radius. This limits selection. We are fortunate that her work place is close to our doctor, grocery shopping and downtown so we rarely need any other mode of transportation than our feet, but the quality, affordable housing stock in this area is limited.

The upside, we have the financial freedom that walking brings; no worries about car payments, car insurance, car repairs; no pumping greenhouse gas into the atmosphere to get to work and back or to go grocery shopping or get a coffee, a great coffee shop is within easy walking distance, as is all else we need on a regular basis.

One of our major social problems is the design of our urban centres. They are stretched out and everything is miles away from everything else. This creates a situation where a personal transportation means, such as a car, is far more convenient that taking a bus; walking takes too long and the distances are too great, and bicycling, while a good option, requires bike lanes, weather gear and a change room at the work place so you can get out of your riding clothes and into your work clothes.

Our cities, villages and towns are not likely to get redesigned anytime soon, but we can redesign our lives, next week we will begin to look at how we can apply permaculture design methods to everyday living including transportation.