Originally Posted by
ijgordon
Not a COVID question, but prompted by just recently passing through and I’ve wondered this before.
Who is the target customer? Where are they going? Why do they need Acela vs. NER? I mean, if they’re going to PHL or NYC then why don’t they just fly into those airports??
Seems like an utter waste of time to stop here!
I used to be a regular BWI Acela customer when I lived in Maryland, mostly BWI-PHL and BWI-NYP. For those that live in suburban MD, BWI is by far the most feasible Amtrak station (driving to BAL or WAS is usually impractical). BWI-NYP is faster, easier, more comfortable, more time options, and often cheaper than flying to LGA/JFK/EWR and taking a cab, assuming your destination is in Manhattan. And you would have to be nuts to fly BWI-PHL rather than take the train (or drive).