I had been working all week in Tokyo and decided to take a weekend trip to Nagaskai. The train ride was 8 hours and I was in a middle seat. Something I ate must have made me sick because I had to RUN to the bathroom. If you haven’t been to Japan, I’ll just say some of the toilets are holes you must squat over to use. Now imagine trying to aim while the train is going 100mph. The only thing that made it worse was that the whole car smelling like cigarettes. I have never been so weak in my life. I think I was grey by the time I got back to my seat. Sadly, I had to repeat lovely experience a couple of times before I got to my destination. I’ve never been so happy to have fresh air.
-- Helene S., Paris
Amtrak actually is getting better, but it used to suck bad. Believe it or not, most of the time it isn't Amtrak's fault. There is a federal law mandating that a train crew can only work twelve consecutive hours. After that, the train has to stop where it is. Therefore, trains are timed to switch crews when required at the appropriate place. However, since most of the track Amtrak operates on is owned by frieght railroads, Amtrak trains get sidetracked for long, slow frieghts. The thing is, the Amtraks are required by law to operate with higher priority than frieghts. Recently, the government has been cracking down on violaters and as a result, Union Pacific has been giving Amtrak priority. Don't know much about the other rail companies.
This is based on many news reports throughout the United States; AmTrak really sucks. And, although it just celebrated it's 30th year in business (why?), the company still expects us to sacrifice our lives. Thank you for the thought, but at 49, I am still very fond of my life.
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