Questions about travelling by train?

Question

1. Is it much cheaper than other forms of travel?

2. Are the trains comfortable to stay extended periods of time in (some rides I was looking at took like 46 hours)?

3. How safe are they?

4. How much luggage can you bring? I'm planning on staying at my destination for 2-3 months.

5. How reliable are their schedules?

6. All of them go through Chicago and stay there for a while, which sounds fabulous to me. What could I do to kill a few hours in Chicago?

Answer 1

1) Usually, using a car or a bus (Greyhound etc.) is cheaper, but the train is usually cheaper (but slower) than the plane. And of course you can sit back and relax on a train, unlike when driving a car.

2) Most trains nowadays are very comfortable and are no problem for extended journeys - see source 1 below. Overnight journeys often have sleeper cars with beds you can use. The good thing on a train is that you can get up and walk around, to stretch your legs.

3) Trains are very very safe - in the UK, official figures show that you are 9 times more likely to die in a car crash, and a 'bit' more likely to die in a plane crash. Only buses and ships are apparently safer. I'm sure the USA statistics must be fairly similar, and because the UK has a more difficult car driving test, it's possible that in the USA you are even more likely to be killed in a car accident. See source 2.

4) Amtrak's luggage policy is that you can take a couple of large items, which is realistically all you can carry anyway, plus a laptop or briefcase. Each bag may not weight more than 50lbs and must not exceed 22x28x14 inches. You must have a name and address tag on each bag. See source 3.

5) Hmm, well, don't expect Japanese-style punctuality. Services generally run fairly on time (give or take 30 minutes) but due to the long distances delays of more can soon mount up, as sources 4 and 5 below show. Around one-third of Amtrak services run over 40 minutes late. However, are the planes any better? Not much, really.

6) There's loads of venues and ideas on this website:

http://www.chicagotraveler.com/attractio...

Answer 2

Never been to the USA but trains in India are z bets they are safe economical and reach on time you are allowed to carry loads of luggage and even a 48 hour trip is not that long because you have what is called the night journey.We have special trains that cover the span of the country especially for tourists and they have a host of facilities to offer to make the journey a memo rouble one and yes it is a poor mans means of transport as well ie in addition to the AC compartments there are general compartments where one cannot move for any reason unil the end of the joy ride...Now what % of safety is there between a car plane and a train is of no concern to me since we have to try and experience all types of change .Welcome To India.