5 ms·

DC to NYC has horrible reliability outside of weekday commuting hours. Trains are very often seriously late. And this is despite the routes being quite expensiv

DC to NYC has horrible reliability outside of weekday commuting hours. Trains are very often seriously late. And this is despite the routes being quite expensive. Weekday Acela service is on time and nice, but the price is still ridiculous. The train is more comfortable than driving I-95, but it's definitely not cheaper and only faster if your end points are right near the stations. I don't own a car and if I want to get up and down the east coast I check Enterprise car rental for specials. For a three day trip rental + tolls + gas + insurance is still often well over $100 cheaper than the train and doesn't take more time. This isn't even considering added costs like cab rides to and from the train station.

Spooky23 12y ago
One thing for business travel is that you can almost always work on the train. For me, that means when I have to deal with some disaster or meeting, I don't lose a weekend with my kids. That's a northeast centric viewpoint though... Outside of there, many/most businesses are no longer in urban centers, and getting to the office park in the burbs is a pain.
Turing_Machine 12y ago
"For a three day trip rental + tolls + gas + insurance is still often well over $100 cheaper than the train and doesn't take more time." Sure it does. It takes all the time that you're spending paying attention to traffic. On a train (especially one of the new ones with power outlets, wifi, etc.) you can make productive use of that time, read for pleasure, or even just catch up on your sleep. The time spent on driving is simply burned up. Gone.
- GrinningFool 12y ago
  "The time spent on driving is simply burned up. Gone." Only if you choose not to enjoy the journey - just because you're not able to read or do other activity doesn't mean it's not to be appreciated.
  - Turing_Machine 12y ago
    That might be true if you're driving through a national park. It's less true of the New Jersey Turnpike. You can also, of course, enjoy the journey just as well on a train. Arguably more, since you can actually pay attention to the scenery rather than the guy riding your bumper or the one who changes lanes at random, for no apparent reason.
- __david__ 12y ago
  Sure the activities that you can do while driving are more limited than the train (can't sleep, no matter how much I want to :-)), but that doesn't mean they are nonexistent. You can read via audiobooks, or you can listen to music, or podcasts (I came to love my 50 minute commute a couple years ago when I realized each direction was almost the exact length of an episode of This American Life). I also find talking on the phone is a great way to pass the time during a commute—I have many friends and family members where I find quite often that we're talking on the phone because one of us is driving.
  - Turing_Machine 12y ago
    "I also find talking on the phone is a great way to pass the time during a commute" That's as dangerous as driving while (slightly) drunk, and "hands-free" devices don't make much difference, if any. http://www.distraction.gov/download/research-pdf/comparison-of-cellphone-driver-drunk-driver.pdf http://www.distraction.gov/download/research-pdf/comparison-... I don't know of any studies with respect to listening to audiobooks while driving, but I would be surprised if they weren't also distracting (probably directly proportional to the level of interest the driver has in the book). Conversing with a person who is actually present in the car with you is also distracting, but in that situation you also gain some safety by virtue of having another pair of eyes watching for danger, so it's more of a wash.
    - __david__ 12y ago
      > That's as dangerous as driving while (slightly) drunk, and "hands-free" devices don't make much difference, if any. I don't care—I'm willing to take that risk. For me it's better because I'm a super aggressive driver when I'm focusing solely on the road. Talking to somebody (or listening to someone talk) distracts me just enough so that I'm not super competitive—I'm happy to slide over to the right and go the speed limit in the slow lane. > Conversing with a person who is actually present in the car with you is also distracting, but in that situation you also gain some safety by virtue of having another pair of eyes watching for danger, so it's more of a wash. I highly doubt that. The other person may add more eyes but they have no control. I can't think of a single situation where back seat driving has actually helped me avoid an accident.

Spooky23 12y ago

One thing for business travel is that you can almost always work on the train. For me, that means when I have to deal with some disaster or meeting, I don't lose a weekend with my kids. That's a northeast centric viewpoint though... Outside of there, many/most businesses are no longer in urban centers, and getting to the office park in the burbs is a pain.

Turing_Machine 12y ago

"For a three day trip rental + tolls + gas + insurance is still often well over $100 cheaper than the train and doesn't take more time." Sure it does. It takes all the time that you're spending paying attention to traffic. On a train (especially one of the new ones with power outlets, wifi, etc.) you can make productive use of that time, read for pleasure, or even just catch up on your sleep. The time spent on driving is simply burned up. Gone.

GrinningFool 12y ago
"The time spent on driving is simply burned up. Gone." Only if you choose not to enjoy the journey - just because you're not able to read or do other activity doesn't mean it's not to be appreciated.
- Turing_Machine 12y ago
  That might be true if you're driving through a national park. It's less true of the New Jersey Turnpike. You can also, of course, enjoy the journey just as well on a train. Arguably more, since you can actually pay attention to the scenery rather than the guy riding your bumper or the one who changes lanes at random, for no apparent reason.
__david__ 12y ago
Sure the activities that you can do while driving are more limited than the train (can't sleep, no matter how much I want to :-)), but that doesn't mean they are nonexistent. You can read via audiobooks, or you can listen to music, or podcasts (I came to love my 50 minute commute a couple years ago when I realized each direction was almost the exact length of an episode of This American Life). I also find talking on the phone is a great way to pass the time during a commute—I have many friends and family members where I find quite often that we're talking on the phone because one of us is driving.
- Turing_Machine 12y ago
  "I also find talking on the phone is a great way to pass the time during a commute" That's as dangerous as driving while (slightly) drunk, and "hands-free" devices don't make much difference, if any. http://www.distraction.gov/download/research-pdf/comparison-of-cellphone-driver-drunk-driver.pdf http://www.distraction.gov/download/research-pdf/comparison-... I don't know of any studies with respect to listening to audiobooks while driving, but I would be surprised if they weren't also distracting (probably directly proportional to the level of interest the driver has in the book). Conversing with a person who is actually present in the car with you is also distracting, but in that situation you also gain some safety by virtue of having another pair of eyes watching for danger, so it's more of a wash.
  - __david__ 12y ago
    > That's as dangerous as driving while (slightly) drunk, and "hands-free" devices don't make much difference, if any. I don't care—I'm willing to take that risk. For me it's better because I'm a super aggressive driver when I'm focusing solely on the road. Talking to somebody (or listening to someone talk) distracts me just enough so that I'm not super competitive—I'm happy to slide over to the right and go the speed limit in the slow lane. > Conversing with a person who is actually present in the car with you is also distracting, but in that situation you also gain some safety by virtue of having another pair of eyes watching for danger, so it's more of a wash. I highly doubt that. The other person may add more eyes but they have no control. I can't think of a single situation where back seat driving has actually helped me avoid an accident.