Amtrak Coast Starlight now easier to use

[PeteJack]

I recently traveled from Oakland to Seattle on the Amtrak Coast Starlight train and was delighted to find you no longer have to box up your bike. Just pay $20 bike fee and take your bike to the baggage car when the train arrives. No boxes, no removing pedals, no turning bars, just "remove anything that might fall off" and you're done. you get a claim tag and have to show it when you pick up your ready to ride bike from the baggage car at your journey's end.

This does have the slight drawback that you can't check your boxed up bike the night before (unless I suppose you want to box it yourself) which may sometimes be convenient.

[indyfabz]

Amtrak has been expanding walk on bike service across its route system. In September I took the Vermonter from Philly to Brattleboro, VT. There is a bike "cubby" in each coach car that you hang your bike in after removing panniers, etc. (I left my tent bungeed to the rear rack.) Advanced reservation required. $20 charge for my trip. I believe it's $15 if you only go to New Haven, CT heading north. When the train arrived in Philly, two people got off with bikes. Three of us got on in Philly. (We were not travelling as a group.) When I got off at Brattleboro, there were two people with bikes waiting to get on. Seems to be a popular service. The Capitol Limited, which parallels the GAP trail, also recently introduced walk on service.