For 25 years I have ridden the Amtrak's Keystone trains between Lancaster and Philadelphia, as well as regional trains between Washington DC and Boston. Several times in those 25 years I have written to Amtrak to ask that bicycles be allowed on the trains.
Amtrak refused. Sure, they allowed bikes on a few regional trains with baggage cars, but No! was the main answer to "Can I take my bike."
Today, Amtrak began allowing bikes on the train: for a price.
In my case, the price for taking my bike with me on a train to Philadelphia from Lancaster is double the price for me! My ticket, with the senior discount is $10.40. The bike cost is $20!
That means I can visit Philadelphia for $20.80 round trip or I can bring my bike at a total cost of $60.80. A bike with a normal adult fare makes the round trip $82.
That's crazy. Why should the bike cost $20 each way? Weight? My bikes weight 17 and 19 pounds each. A five-car passenger train with an electric locomotive weighs 2 million pounds. Is the addition of 19 pounds a problem?
Space? Keystone trains have seats for 400 passengers and lately have had 20 or 30 passengers per train. If one or two people per train take a bike, will it cause overcrowding?
If I take a bike on New Jersey Transit, the Long Island Railroad, SEPTA, the Boston MTA, the Baltimore DC MARC system or any other regional train the cost for a bike is ZERO.
Why is it $20 per trip on Amtrak?
