Taking The Train To Ft. Lauderdale (Part 2 of 2)

The next morning, with ticket already in hand, I needlessly arrive at the Ft. Lauderdale station 30 minutes early, affording me the opportunity to sit outside and listen to the roar of passing traffic on I-95 and watch the pigeons at my feet. As Tri-Rail and Amtrak share the same tracks, I get a closer look at one of Tri-Rail’s double-decked trains and pick up a copy of their map and schedules. It looks like a system well-integrated with local bus service in each of the three counties served, including stops near the three major airports in the area and Miami’s Metrorail. I wish Pinellas County offered something like this.

The train arrives and departs on time, the same conductor from yesterday instructing Tampa passengers to a single car at the rear of the train. It’s a newer, somewhat more attractive car but, to my slight horror, there are no electrical outlets. Guess I was spoiled by the southbound train. I note the passenger next to me setting up his DVD player and I think, why didn’t I think of that? A movie would be a good idea! Still, I have a book, magazine and laptop to keep me busy. I could, after all, get some work done.

But no, I think lunch is a better idea. I encounter the conductor on the way forward and ask if I can move to another car with electrical outlets. I should have learned yesterday that short answers were not this guy’s strong suit. Bottom line was no, though largely empty, these other cars were going to be used for reserved seats for passengers going the Carolinas, but there are plenty of outlets in the lounge car. That sounded like a fine compromise.

The dining car was only slightly busier today, but there were still empty tables. I chose a table to myself looking forward. I was drinking respectable iced tea before we reached West Palm Beach. I note again that the wait staff are mature adults with a sense of calm that reminds me of eating at the yacht club. One man, two women and a cook make up this dining crew, with another man in a second car that serves snacks and offers a full bar. My particular server, George, is obviously a seasoned Amtrak veteran, willing to answer any questions and address any complaints from any part of the train, though he is quick to add that he is not in charge.

The Chef’s Special was chicken and rice again, only this time with a curry sauce. I opt for the Angus Steak Burger with cheese. It was delivered to me in less than two minutes and was quite good, save for the lettuce chopped, as if for a salad, rather than leaves that might stay longer between the buns. Potato chips and a pickle spear round out the meal. I’m thinking I should have ordered the chicken and rice again for a meal I might have savored longer, so I order a piece of raspberry-lemon cream cheese cake and a cup of coffee. By this time the train is passing by pine forests to my left, and then the massive Pratt and Whitney plant, parallel to the Beeline Highway to my right. We are well on our way to Okeechobee. The cake and coffee are quite tasty. Really, no airplane or car can match this.

The sleeping car is immediately forward of the dining car. Leo is the steward and clearly enjoys his work and is dedicated to the comfort of his passengers. George arranges for me to meet him in order to get a tour of the rooms. They come in three flavors: The Sleepette, The Sleeper, and the Handicap Sleeper. Each includes seats that fold down into a bed, similar to a futon mattress. Additionally, a bunk pulls down from the ceiling for additional sleeping space. The Sleeper offers adequate storage for your luggage and a combination private toilet and shower, similar to what you would find on a yacht. Passengers in the Sleepette must share the bath facility elsewhere in the car. I noted that passenger seats in the Sleepette face each other and offer noticeably less leg room. The Handicap Sleeper is large enough to accommodate an electric wheel chair. The bathroom is huge. Of course this room is the last to go, made available to someone in legitimate need, but it is well worth asking for.

None of the rooms are luxurious, but the privacy, the bathroom, the included meals and, of course, someone as dedicated as Leo, all combine to make this option worth considering for an overnight or distant trip.

I return to the dining car and spend some time talking with George. He explains how the cars are easily forty years old, how they still have trouble maintaining wired connections with the PA speakers, and how pipes still freeze. We both agree it is surprising these challenges haven’t been solved in 200 years of rail travel. The cars on our line are among the oldest in the fleet for a reason though. Apparently the route to New York passes though some Civil War-era tunnels that cannot be enlarged to accommodate taller trains. The tracks belong to CSX, so it seems Amtrak must deal with the hand they’re dealt. George says he believes new and improved cars will come on line in the near future but, like those we’re now driving, they’ll be smaller.

One important tip George shared with me was about power surges. He said he wouldn’t worry about plugging a cheap DVD player into their power grid, but he uses a surge protector when he plugs in his own computer. That seemed like the best advice I had heard all day.

I inquire if he believes the construction we encountered yesterday will cause the train to arrive late in Tampa. No one was certain, but it turns out that the construction will soon represent a greater problem than you would immediately realize. There was a reason for all of those railroad ties and the construction equipment I saw lining up along the route. CSX will be closing and rebuilding a whole stretch of track for about six weeks that will necessitate routing trains on alternative tracks and using busses to transport passengers and their luggage between effected stations. This is all part of track maintenance that understandably happens throughout the rail system. If I recall correctly, a trip from Tampa to Ft. Lauderdale next month will involve a bus ride from Tampa to Winter Haven. As we pass through Avon Park, I see more signs of pending construction as the train slows to a crawl. I’m thinking we’re going to be late.

Amtrak’s use of busses aren’t limited to routing around regular maintenance. I overheard the station master in Ft. Lauderdale advising a young passenger that she would need to get off the train at Lakeland and take a bus to Gainesville for the remainder of her trip. I’m thinking Amtrak has a larger fleet of busses than most people realize.

Nature finally called in time for me to add sensitive detail to this journal. I can report that each coach includes two restrooms that, in every way, resemble those found on airlines, except they’re three times larger. A rough section of track that sways you gently side-to-side is a train’s equivalent to mild turbulence. Enough said, except it doesn’t appear you’ll ever have to wait in line, nor worry about breaking Federal Law that prohibits congregating close to the cockpit door.

As I return to my car at the rear of the train, I see that more passengers have boarded since I left for lunch. Someone is sitting in the seat I left and every row is occupied by one passenger. Rather than invade someone’s space by sitting next to them, I grab my things and move forward to a car that is virtually empty. You would think that I had learned my lesson earlier. I’m lucky I didn’t get thrown off the train. Still a different conductor “needed to know” where I was going in order to make sure I got off the train at the right station. He accomplished this by writing “TPA” on a small piece of paper that is placed in a crack above my seat. I’m going to guess that people failing to get off at the right station is something of a pandemic for Amtrak, but I have to believe that Tampa Union Station is impossible to miss (the train sits there for a while, rather like a stopover at an airport), I’m beginning to think these guys’ attitude don’t serve Amtrak as well as they deserve.

With the sun now low in the sky, I begin to recognize familiar landmarks on the outskirts of Tampa. The train’s whistle is blowing almost continuously now, stopping traffic at more and more crossroads. The conductor announces we’ll be “backing into the station” in about 10 minutes. Considering how fast we appear to be going forward, I wonder if the train turned around while I wasn’t paying attention, or just how this will be accomplished. Moments later, the train turns north into an area of warehouses just east of Ybor City and stops just short of I-4. I keep my seat as other passengers begin to stand, as if they might get off the train. The conductor comes up to me and asks if I know this isn’t where I get off. I allow that I grew up in Ybor City, pointed at I-4, and assured him that I would recognize Union Station when I saw it. I must be wearing my “dumb tourist look” today! The train then began moving backwards. Mystery solved.

There can be no doubt that I enjoyed this trip. Traveling by train afforded me the opportunity to do any number of things I could never accomplish as easily or as well while driving or flying. The train isn’t perfect, primarily because there is so little (or no) schedule flexibility. Unlike Southwest Airlines, with eight flights a day between Tampa and Ft. Lauderdale, Amtrak will leave in the noon hour and arrive in the five o’clock hour. If you can live with that single limitation, everything else about the trip is well worth the consideration. I know I’ll be back. Hope this journal encourages you to give it a try.

Be sure to check Amtrak’s robust web site for a lot more details that will familiarize you with how different train travel is from flying, and how to better prepare for your trip.

Taking The Train to Ft. Lauderdale (Part 1 of 2)

I travel regularly to the Ft. Lauderdale to work with clients. Ordinarily, most meetings are scheduled for late morning or the afternoon, necessitating a flight from Tampa, or a drive that, with stops, lasts nearly five hours. Flights can be expensive for meetings called on short notice and no matter how appealing I find the Florida Everglades, the drive is grueling. Today is different. I don’t need to arrive in Ft. Lauderdale before 7:00 PM, making this the perfect opportunity to try another mode of transportation. Considering the round-trip cost is only $61.20 (AAA Rate), I’m pretty excited about taking Amtrak from Tampa.

The response from most people I tell I’m taking the train is the same: really? Yes, really. Here’s my journal from the trip with this bottom line: Really, I’d do it again!

The Tampa Union Station preservation is impressive. Built in the era of the cavernous and needlessly large, it is still beautiful and well lit. I was pleased to learn of free, overnight parking located behind locked gates. Passengers are far less anxious, with no security or lines. Not a single suit or tie in sight like you see at airports. Some people may appear a little more down-trodden but, for the most part, they’re a civilized lot.

We’re instructed to stand on a covered, concrete platform outside as the train backs slowly into the station. Passengers are told to board one car at the rear of the train for Palm Beach and Ft. Lauderdale, another for Miami and all other destinations.

The car is empty and there are plenty of seats, so there is no real need to scramble to be first. Seats are comfortable with outstanding leg room. Most passengers’ legs might not reach the seats in front of them. I was surprised to see two, 120-volt electrical outlets at every seat, but they didn’t work when I plugged in my lap top. Turns out power is only working on the “port side” in this car. One passenger offered to trade seats with me without prompting. My view of fellow passengers immediately stepped up a notch.

Big windows afford maximum view. Guess it is asking too much for someone to wash them more often. The train left the station at 12:53, only eight minutes late, riding through the familiar back side of Ybor City I knew well as a child, though it looks far more gentrified today. We pick up speed pretty rapidly, too. The train is quiet and the air conditioning works well, but you will have to get used to the rocking back and forth on certain parts of the track. No need to pack your noise-canceling headphones, but you can hear the train’s whistle blowing often in the distance, which is a good argument for being seated at the rear of the train.

Not as much chatter from the conductors, like flight attendants on an airplane, but they do have a sense of humor, indicating they will find the stowaways when they collect tickets. Our conductor is a large, bearded man who seems polite, friendly and confident.

As soon as my ticket is taken, I head forward to the dining car. My first impression is less than expected. It’s really more like a snack bar. I indicate to the lady behind the counter that it is my first trip and she kindly advises I should check out the dining car farther forward. It was good advice.

Tables for four with white linen table cloths, glass salt and pepper shakers and real, metal utensils (you won’t find that on a plane any more). Sit where you wish, either alone or join someone at a table already occupied. Apparently this is appropriate train etiquette, as if we’re all the same on this train. I opt to sit with an older woman traveling this train for the third time to visit her daughter in Miami. She has already ordered a Corona.

The dishes are the harder plastic kind that might be reusable, but are still presentable. I’m drinking respectable iced tea before we reach Plant City. Breakfast, lunch and dinner are served on this train, and there’s even a children’s menu. The short menu of main courses for lunch include Spicy Buffalo Chicken Wings as an appetizer for $7.50, Today’s Warm Sandwich ($8.00), Amy’s Organic Veggie Burger ($7.75), Angus Steak Burger ($7.75), Freshly Made Specialty Salad ($9.00) and the Chef’s Luncheon Special (9.00). Breakfast is reasonably priced, but dinner is going to set you back a bit more, with prices ranging from 12.50 to 22.50. But really, where else are you going to go? All entrees include coffee, tea or milk. Beer, wine and premium cocktails are all available at reasonable prices.

The burger seemed like the safe call, but I’m a sucker for Chef’s specials, so I take a chance, ordering grilled chicken and mushroom sauce over a wild rice medley, served with a small salad and a warm roll. Gourmet it’s not, but my lunch fell squarely in the comfort food category and was quite satisfying. Three baskets of T. Marzetti’s salad dressings, real butter and Promise, condiments and Mini Moos on the table assure you won’t be wanting anything, but the wait staff always seemed to be within eyesight and are friendly and responsive. There are several desserts available that sounded quite nice, including a warm apple crisp with ice cream, but I decline. I’m comforted knowing I can still try the burger on the way back.

About the only down side to the meal is the view. With wide open windows, the dining car affords you both the best and worst Florida has to offer in the way of scenery. Unfortunately, the stretch between Plant City and Lakeland offers little to enjoy, but that is hardly criticism. I am well fed and watered, that battle already won.

The view begins to improve as we approach Winter Haven just after 2:30, passing close to large lakes and over the small canals that connect them. One momentarily unsettling event occurred earlier when the train slowed to a stop and was then passed by another passenger train moving at full throttle. Our train is clearly “the local,” virtually crawling through the city, whistle constantly blowing. I begin to feel sorry for the neighbors. Maybe a couple of passengers disembark at Winter Haven. The train doesn’t stop but for a couple of minutes, at most. Just past the station we cross over another canal-between-lakes. Four people on a pontoon boat wave at the train as it passes overhead. You won’t see that happen from an airplane.

The train doesn’t ever seem to maintain any given speed, and seems to slow more often than ever reach any noticeable speed. Still, I see orange groves, lakes and the wide, open spaces Central Florida is known for, along with white sand ridges covered with the palmetto, pine and oak hammocks that I happen to love. It appears the track is under repair every few miles, with wooden ties strewn along the grade and CSX (the rail line) workers and their equipment found in isolated locations giving reason for the train to slow. We pick up speed again on a straight stretch of track north of Avon Park. With my handy GPS in hand, driven crazy by my constantly driving off the road, I am comforted by always knowing where I am.

As we approach Sebring at 3:25 PM, the scenery improves dramatically with miles of orange groves to my right and big lakes and oak forests to my left. We pass a large RV park, filled with refugees from the cold north, the train, no doubt, something they’ve grown used to. Soon the orange groves engulf us on both sides, just before we pull into a small station on the outskirts of Sebring, the train’s whistle still blowing.

It turns out I was right about all the construction. Apparently it has slowed the train and we are predicted to roll in fifty minutes late to Ft. Lauderdale. At least we can use our cell phones to call ahead and change arrangements. I have to admit that I wouldn’t have known we were late if the conductor hadn’t told us. There is a timelessness to train travel that is dramatically different from air travel. There is a difference between sitting in frustration at an airport, waiting for a delayed flight, and sitting comfortably on a train in motion, largely doing as you please. I don’t think I will feel half as bad about being late by train as I would were I flying Southwest Airlines into Ft. Lauderdale’s airport.

I also learned the conductor isn’t as happy as he first appeared. Apparently “management” has chosen not to maintain the public address system on the train—he claims it hasn’t worked in over two years—so conductors must walk the length of the train, repeatedly announcing the next stop. Unlike airplanes, where you are instructed to stow all your electronic toys before you land, including those that involve headphones or earbuds, a lot of people are missing the announcements about the next stop, and failing to get off the train when they’re supposed to. The conductor was clearly unhappy about this and a little condescending of people who failed to pay attention. I considered his behavior less than professional, and certainly not the best face Amtrak would want to present.

Just short of Ft Lauderdale, the train comes to a complete stop, presumably to allow traffic on the rails ahead to clear. Unlike air travel, train travel is a very linear, two-dimensional concept. This stop affords me the opportunity to confirm gangs are alive and well in Broward County. The back side of warehouse buildings facing the tracks are covered with highly ornate graffiti. If they did not signify some form of lawlessness and danger, I could appreciate the art.

In Palm Beach, Broward and Dade Counties, Amtrak shares the rails with the Tri-Rail, a local train providing frequent, regular service. The stations take on a stark, open, modern look resembling bus, light rail and subway stations. That’s fine, I think, unless it is raining. As the train pulls into the station at 5:55 PM, about 45 minutes late, my impression of the trip remains strongly positive. I look forward to tomorrow’s return trip.