4 Reasons Commuting by Train Trumps Flying

I'm heading home from an 11-day vacation.  First I flew to San Diego, then after a week I flew to Philadelphia. My final travel venture finds me on a train heading to Boston where I'll catch a bus back to New Hampshire before driving home to Maine.  I must confess, traveling by train is by far my preferred method of travel.  Compared to flying, it is heavenly.  As I sit comfortably in my seat I recall the abject situations I have endured lately when I fly.

1 - The Exorbitant Cost Includes Just My Seat

This is perhaps my biggest gripe.  My flight to California cost around $400.  If I wanted food, beverage, even checked luggage, I needed to pay extra.  Seriously?  When someone boards a plane, it is because he or she is traveling a great distance and thus will need to bring luggage.  Charging for this need is price gauging, plain and simple, and expecting travelers to drag heavy suitcases with them throughout the airport, and then try to cram it in the overhead compartment once on the plane just to save $25 is asinine.  Bury it in the cost of the ticket, charge only if there is a second bag, otherwise load it on the plane with a thank you and a smile. 

2 - The Exorbitant Cost Includes No Food or Drink

Let me first clarify that I am offered complimentary water or a non-alcoholic drink.  However, this free beverage is on the airline’s terms.  If I’m asleep or in the bathroom when the beverage cart wheels its way down the aisle I’m out of luck.  Plus, I’m not given a bottle, so I can’t take a sip at my leisure; I have to consume my complimentary 5 ounces of drink before the flight attendants make their way back down the aisle to collect the empty cup, otherwise I’m stuck balancing it between my knees for the rest of the flight.  It’s a similar experience with the food.  I remember a meal used to be offered on longer flights.  Now high-protein snacks and packaged produce are offered in its place, which would be OK if I didn’t have to spend an additional $9 on them.  Can airlines really no longer afford a package of peanuts anymore?  And where on Earth does almonds, cheese and a small bunch of grapes cost $9?  

3- Nothing but Bitching

I feel airlines try to make the flight as uncomfortable as possible.  I don’t think it was intentional, I think it was born from a combination of TSA regulations, client complaints, ever-changing technology and a ridiculously insane desire to drive down expenditures without passing the savings to passengers.  Inflight movies, radio stations and complimentary headphones are all long gone, so unless you bring these devices on the plane you’re out of luck in the entertainment department.  Also, there is no room for a person to sit (this kills me, since the seat is really what we’re paying for).  Two people must share one arm rest (which is awkward if you’re strangers) the recline option kinda gets you to lean back - maybe a bit - and there is no footrest to be found beneath the seat in front of you.  Basically we’re left sitting upright like private school children for the duration of the flight, and this seems to be what the airline wants because anytime someone stands the pilot or flight attendant comes on the loud speaker reminding people to remain seated and buckled in even if the seat belt light is off.

4 - Where’s My Hot Towel?

The air on an airplane is gross.  Its recycled composition is made up of morning breath, smoggy runway pollution, and subdued farts.  What lingers in the cabin is a heavy, dirty air that feels, smells, and tastes stale.  Airlines used to provide a hot towel that revitalized your face - even your energy - when you disembarked from the plane because they knew the air was gross.  Now they don’t care if you look and feel ragged when you exit the craft; you’re just cattle.  Cattle with a wallet.

Thank God in Heaven for Trains

Now I am on a train and the travel is delightful.  Truthfully, train travel holds nostalgia for me.  I was a young adult on a foreign continent and felt incredibly refined and grown up as I navigated the train system independently.  I traveled most of western Europe via train and let the sights roll past me like photographs on a Victorian viewfinder.  I saw small towns nestled in the slopes of the Alps, houses sleeping on the banks of the Rhine at night, and even big European cities bustling through the day.  When I sit in the seats of a train I am reminded of these travels and almost feel transported back to Germany, Italy, France, Prague and Switzerland.

But let's move from nostalgia back to comfort and convenience.  The windows on a train are huge – I can see everything. I have plenty of room to sit but I can get up and walk around if I want to without being given the stink eye.  The travel takes about as long as driving but I don’t need to contend with traffic and I can use the restroom without pulling off an exit.  For that matter, the bathroom is not cramped and there is an ample number of toilets.  The cost of a train ticket is substantially less than airline tickets and it includes complimentary beverages (I got two cans of soda and a bottle of water).  But, if I choose to pack food and drink I can bring them onboard without having them examined for explosives.  I’m not charged for luggage and I have plenty of room to store it.  I’m not told what devices I can and cannot use and I don’t need to take off my shoes or undergo an invasive examination to ensure I’m not a dangerous commuter.  Unless I’m going overseas or have limited time to travel, I think the train will be the way I travel from now on.   

If you haven't traveled by train, I highly recommend you give it a try.