5 ms·

But why do this over just flying. You can show up 30-45 mins before any domestic flight and leave as soon as you land on the other end.

viraptor 4y ago
*Usually In practice we've seen hours long security/departure queues, having to wait for the luggage after landing, joining the wait for the expensive taxi/bus transfer from the airport, and many other issues which don't exist for train travel. Then there's "yes you can show up 30min before, if you booked the plane ticket a week ago". Having done both a lot, I'll take the train any time.
eipie10 4y ago
Trains can be more frequent and carry a lot more passengers
matkoniecz 4y ago
> You can show up 30-45 mins before any domestic flight Where? I was flying in Europe and was asked to be on airport 150 minutes before departure.
- Leherenn 4y ago
  They ask you to be there early just to be sure, but you don't have to, it's at your own risks. I've done 30 mins at smaller European airports no problems. Online check-in, only carry-on luggage, 10 minutes for security and you board among the lasts with minutes to spare. Of course you don't have a lot of margins if anything goes wrong, but at airports you know it's definitely doable.
  - politelemon 4y ago
    > but you don't have to, it's at your own risks That isn't a scalable or viable solution. The recommendations exist for capacity and planning reasons. By the same logical extension you can simply show up at a train station 5 minutes before the train, the results of taking a chance are on you.
  - cmckn 4y ago
    Miss one flight and you won’t bet on this again; because unlike trains you’ll be waiting 6-12 hours (or longer) for a re-booked flight.
  - matkoniecz 4y ago
    The risk is high, and if it goes wrong you have huge problems.
bmitc 4y ago
I would say very rarely would showing up 30-45 minutes before a domestic flight work. Maybe in some airports with pre-check and if you start the clock once you walk into the terminal, but that's just not a realistic time frame. Further, the level comfort of the high-speed rail I rode on in China is not even remotely approached by any plane I have ever been on, and it was several times cheaper. There's also no difference between bringing a big suitcase or a small one versus checking or carrying on bags for a plane. In many cities, the airport is in a terrible location. Boston, Denver, NYC, and many others have poor locations. Train stations, such as those in Boston and NYC, dump you right into the thick of the city. A high-speed rail train would be as fast as a plane's gate to gate time but basically platform to platform. A train is going to be much more efficient on emissions as well. It's a little confusing why anyone would prefer a plane ride over high-speed rail for regional travel.
egao1980 4y ago
akvadrako 4y ago
30 minutes is a very long wait for a train and very short one for a flight. Plus most train terminals are in the center of the city and quicker to get to.
- llampx 4y ago
  Waiting 30 minutes after dropping off bags, checking in and going through security and walking miles to your gate is the absolute best case scenario in a metropolitan city-sized airport. It is really not comparable to getting to the train station 15-20 minutes before departure, making sure the platform is still the same, and getting a sandwich.
bigbacaloa 4y ago
In Spain train stations are centrally located while it adds additional time (in a train usually) to get to the airport in the suburbs. One can arrive at the train a few minutes before departure rather as security is nothing more than a quick scan.
9dev 4y ago
Might have heard the news, by chance, in the last 20 years even? There’s a climate crisis out there that warrants changes?

viraptor 4y ago

*Usually In practice we've seen hours long security/departure queues, having to wait for the luggage after landing, joining the wait for the expensive taxi/bus transfer from the airport, and many other issues which don't exist for train travel. Then there's "yes you can show up 30min before, if you booked the plane ticket a week ago". Having done both a lot, I'll take the train any time.

eipie10 4y ago

Trains can be more frequent and carry a lot more passengers

matkoniecz 4y ago

> You can show up 30-45 mins before any domestic flight Where? I was flying in Europe and was asked to be on airport 150 minutes before departure.

Leherenn 4y ago
They ask you to be there early just to be sure, but you don't have to, it's at your own risks. I've done 30 mins at smaller European airports no problems. Online check-in, only carry-on luggage, 10 minutes for security and you board among the lasts with minutes to spare. Of course you don't have a lot of margins if anything goes wrong, but at airports you know it's definitely doable.
- politelemon 4y ago
  > but you don't have to, it's at your own risks That isn't a scalable or viable solution. The recommendations exist for capacity and planning reasons. By the same logical extension you can simply show up at a train station 5 minutes before the train, the results of taking a chance are on you.
- cmckn 4y ago
  Miss one flight and you won’t bet on this again; because unlike trains you’ll be waiting 6-12 hours (or longer) for a re-booked flight.
- matkoniecz 4y ago
  The risk is high, and if it goes wrong you have huge problems.

bmitc 4y ago

I would say very rarely would showing up 30-45 minutes before a domestic flight work. Maybe in some airports with pre-check and if you start the clock once you walk into the terminal, but that's just not a realistic time frame. Further, the level comfort of the high-speed rail I rode on in China is not even remotely approached by any plane I have ever been on, and it was several times cheaper. There's also no difference between bringing a big suitcase or a small one versus checking or carrying on bags for a plane. In many cities, the airport is in a terrible location. Boston, Denver, NYC, and many others have poor locations. Train stations, such as those in Boston and NYC, dump you right into the thick of the city. A high-speed rail train would be as fast as a plane's gate to gate time but basically platform to platform. A train is going to be much more efficient on emissions as well. It's a little confusing why anyone would prefer a plane ride over high-speed rail for regional travel.

egao1980 4y ago

akvadrako 4y ago

30 minutes is a very long wait for a train and very short one for a flight. Plus most train terminals are in the center of the city and quicker to get to.

llampx 4y ago
Waiting 30 minutes after dropping off bags, checking in and going through security and walking miles to your gate is the absolute best case scenario in a metropolitan city-sized airport. It is really not comparable to getting to the train station 15-20 minutes before departure, making sure the platform is still the same, and getting a sandwich.

bigbacaloa 4y ago

In Spain train stations are centrally located while it adds additional time (in a train usually) to get to the airport in the suburbs. One can arrive at the train a few minutes before departure rather as security is nothing more than a quick scan.

9dev 4y ago

Might have heard the news, by chance, in the last 20 years even? There’s a climate crisis out there that warrants changes?