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There is something magical about train travel for me. I find boarding and riding trains extremely soothing. Flying has the exact opposite effect. It's not ent

There is something magical about train travel for me. I find boarding and riding trains extremely soothing. Flying has the exact opposite effect. It's not entirely rational but that's how it is for me.

staplers 6y ago
It offers the quintessential road trip without the stress of driving or traffic. Pretty easy to see why it's romanticized.
macintux 6y ago
I'm not sure what part of that wouldn't be rational. Between the lack of TSA security theater (although I did in fact encounter a TSA checkpoint boarding Amtrak in Chicago about 7 years ago), the freedom to move around while riding, the much more open seating, the scenic views even without a window seat... Were it not for the slow speeds, inconvenient routes, and generally abysmal state of train service in the U.S., I'd never fly again.
- abraxas 6y ago
  Yeah, luckily in Europe the all cavity search hasn't (yet?) caught on as a ritual of the train station experience.
- wenc 6y ago
  Well, I have to say, with TSA Precheck, security lines have tended to be less of an issue in recent years. When I was still traveling, I would get through security lines at O'Hare in under 10 minutes. (that said, O'Hare ranks #1 in the country for fastest TSA lines, so there's that) But travel on high speed trains (in Europe and Asia) is definitely a much more pleasant experience.
bob1029 6y ago
I feel the same way. Something about the mode of transport makes it so much more reassuring to me. Accidents even when they do happen seem to rarely impact passengers. Its usually things in the way of the train that meet unfortunate outcomes. The Shinkansen has a perfect safety record and has been in operation for 53 years, carrying over 10 billion passengers. This is a train I could sleep on. It's probably safer than being in my house.
- ADent 6y ago
  Per wiki looks like just over 200 deaths involving Amtrak since 1971 - not including most grade crossing accidents and trespasser strikes.
- matmatmatmat 6y ago
  This might be pedantic, but there have been fatalities closely involving the Shinkansen: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shinkansen#Safety_record https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shinkansen#Safety_record, though, no fatalities from derailments or other issues directly caused by the trains themselves.
bogomipz 6y ago
I think there are many that share your view. I like settling in for a nice long ride with nothing else to do but read, think and look at the world passing by out the window. I can recall so many wonderful train journeys but very few if any memorable plane rides.
- Freak_NL 6y ago
  Memorable plane rides for me tend to be exclusively in the negative. Like that oaf of a steward who dumped a bucket of ice on my lap over the Gobi desert on the way to Japan, or the 12-hour intercontinental flight to London where my seat's entertainment screen was broken and no other seat was available¹. And of course the abject misery of every single flight due to being 200cm tall. Give me a train any day. Plenty of leg space, plenty of room to stretch your legs, better scenery, low noise (!), and no turbulence. Reading a book is not just possible, it is positively comfortable to do so. 1: They did compensate me by offering a bottle of champagne from the first class upon disembarking, only to discover that they couldn't give me that, because I was transferring to another flight, so customs wouldn't have it, so uhm, sorry (they were British). I did get a free meal out of it on Heathrow via a coupon, which is about as much fun as it sounds.
kzrdude 6y ago
Just one factor: Trains usually have large space overhead, this separates them from planes and even buses. In a train, you feel like you are sitting free in an airy room. (Even though it can be crowded laterally).
iso1210 6y ago
Presumably you take trains rarely? Earlier this decade I'd take 100 planes a year, but (day) trains only a few times. Trains had a similar feeling. Now (well pre covid) I take planes maybe 10 times a year and trains 100 times a year, and the feeling reversed.
csomar 6y ago
I'm guessing flying at close to 1000km/h, cramped up in a small space with hundreds of people, no possibility to open window or see normal sunshine, bad food (unless first class?), and the trouble of landing and getting in and out of the airport? What did I miss?
boruto 6y ago
After couple of delays, cancellations from deutsche bahn in Germany and Getting stranded in Rural France due to SNCF strikes I am very appreciative of convenience of Air travel in continental Europe. Even getting refund when they cancelled the train is a PITA in Germany.

staplers 6y ago

It offers the quintessential road trip without the stress of driving or traffic. Pretty easy to see why it's romanticized.

macintux 6y ago

I'm not sure what part of that wouldn't be rational. Between the lack of TSA security theater (although I did in fact encounter a TSA checkpoint boarding Amtrak in Chicago about 7 years ago), the freedom to move around while riding, the much more open seating, the scenic views even without a window seat... Were it not for the slow speeds, inconvenient routes, and generally abysmal state of train service in the U.S., I'd never fly again.

abraxas 6y ago
Yeah, luckily in Europe the all cavity search hasn't (yet?) caught on as a ritual of the train station experience.
wenc 6y ago
Well, I have to say, with TSA Precheck, security lines have tended to be less of an issue in recent years. When I was still traveling, I would get through security lines at O'Hare in under 10 minutes. (that said, O'Hare ranks #1 in the country for fastest TSA lines, so there's that) But travel on high speed trains (in Europe and Asia) is definitely a much more pleasant experience.

bob1029 6y ago

I feel the same way. Something about the mode of transport makes it so much more reassuring to me. Accidents even when they do happen seem to rarely impact passengers. Its usually things in the way of the train that meet unfortunate outcomes. The Shinkansen has a perfect safety record and has been in operation for 53 years, carrying over 10 billion passengers. This is a train I could sleep on. It's probably safer than being in my house.

ADent 6y ago
Per wiki looks like just over 200 deaths involving Amtrak since 1971 - not including most grade crossing accidents and trespasser strikes.
matmatmatmat 6y ago
This might be pedantic, but there have been fatalities closely involving the Shinkansen: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shinkansen#Safety_record https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shinkansen#Safety_record, though, no fatalities from derailments or other issues directly caused by the trains themselves.

bogomipz 6y ago

I think there are many that share your view. I like settling in for a nice long ride with nothing else to do but read, think and look at the world passing by out the window. I can recall so many wonderful train journeys but very few if any memorable plane rides.

Freak_NL 6y ago
Memorable plane rides for me tend to be exclusively in the negative. Like that oaf of a steward who dumped a bucket of ice on my lap over the Gobi desert on the way to Japan, or the 12-hour intercontinental flight to London where my seat's entertainment screen was broken and no other seat was available¹. And of course the abject misery of every single flight due to being 200cm tall. Give me a train any day. Plenty of leg space, plenty of room to stretch your legs, better scenery, low noise (!), and no turbulence. Reading a book is not just possible, it is positively comfortable to do so. 1: They did compensate me by offering a bottle of champagne from the first class upon disembarking, only to discover that they couldn't give me that, because I was transferring to another flight, so customs wouldn't have it, so uhm, sorry (they were British). I did get a free meal out of it on Heathrow via a coupon, which is about as much fun as it sounds.

kzrdude 6y ago

Just one factor: Trains usually have large space overhead, this separates them from planes and even buses. In a train, you feel like you are sitting free in an airy room. (Even though it can be crowded laterally).

iso1210 6y ago

Presumably you take trains rarely? Earlier this decade I'd take 100 planes a year, but (day) trains only a few times. Trains had a similar feeling. Now (well pre covid) I take planes maybe 10 times a year and trains 100 times a year, and the feeling reversed.

csomar 6y ago

I'm guessing flying at close to 1000km/h, cramped up in a small space with hundreds of people, no possibility to open window or see normal sunshine, bad food (unless first class?), and the trouble of landing and getting in and out of the airport? What did I miss?

boruto 6y ago

After couple of delays, cancellations from deutsche bahn in Germany and Getting stranded in Rural France due to SNCF strikes I am very appreciative of convenience of Air travel in continental Europe. Even getting refund when they cancelled the train is a PITA in Germany.