As a train lover, I cannot agree with David P. Wilkinson (Voice, Sept. 20) that Amtrak is a ”better alternative” to driving or flying, or that it is ”convenient.”
Last year, I wanted to attend a weekend conference in Atlanta. I checked with Amtrak and learned that to travel from Chicago to Atlanta I would have to take a train to Washington and have a six-hour layover before boarding another train to Atlanta. This roundabout trip would take, as I recall, about three days. All this to travel between two major cities 750 miles apart! That`s not my idea of a ”convenient, better alternative.”
But the situation is even worse for me because I am a cigar and pipe smoker, and Amtrak forbids cigar and pipe smoking on its trains, even if one pays top dollar for the most expensive private sleeping room! I refuse to spend that kind of money to be treated like a naughty child.
Amtrak leaves much to be desired. I wish it were not so, for I would love to travel by train.
