I have taken AirTrain three times in the last month. It is worth the 5 dollars!
It is amazingly fast from JFK to Jamaica. I was expecting a tricycle speed train like the one at Sewark "Liberty" (an airport I will never ever use again). Even though I left from the Delta terminal (2/3), the time it takes to reach Jamaica is about the same amount of time it takes just to get out of the airport on the bus.
The signage from AirTrain to the subway could use some improvement. I've been to Jamaica twice before but not that particular location. I did manage to find it by guessing that it might be around the corner.
I don't know why everyone is saying the Sutphin Ave subway station is seedy. It appears to be a typical NYC subway station -- not glamorous, but functional.
And now for a tangent -- the only slight downside was that seeing the turnstiles at the Jamaica AirTrain station reminded me of my hell trip to Washington, DC I took three years ago (same kind of turnstile the Metro uses). I was trying to figure out how to pay the fare on the Metro for more than one person, and the transit employee wouldn't help me (turns out you need a complicated card purchase for every passenger). Well, I wasn't going to stand there all day and miss my DCA flight, so I climbed over the turnstile. While I was waiting for the train, the bitch came downstairs and chewed me out. I swore I would never visit Washington, DC again. Newark and DC -- may you both rot in hell!
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"Be careful about reading health books. You may die of a misprint." -- Mark Twain
[This message has been edited by JS (edited Jan 30, 2004).]