October 23, 2006
Santa Barbara – San Diego 9:21am – 3:10pm
Amtrak “Pacific Surfliner” Business Class

Santa Barbara’s train station was built in 1905 and nicely reflects the mission style architecture so prominent throughout the city. Stately royal palms grace the station grounds, along with what may be the oldest fig tree in California.

Amtrak operates a number of daily trains between San Diego and San Luis Obispo. Branded as Pacific Surfliners, these trains have specially built double deck passenger cars unique to this service. The normal consist includes two or three coaches, a coach/café and a Business Class car.

One way coach train fare for the 230 mile journey down to San Diego is $32.00. For just $17.00 more, Amtrak’s Pacific Business Class offers more spacious seating along with complimentary coffee, juice, snacks and newspapers. Never having experienced Amtrak’s Business Class, I decided to give it a try.

The distant whistle from the big F59 locomotive signaled the Surfliner’s on-time arrival from San Luis Obispo. We all watched with anticipation as the five-car train came into view and powered into the station. Interestingly, the engine was located at the rear of the train, essentially pushing us into Los Angeles. Boarding was available at each car, so despite a crowd of about forty people, we were ready to go after a stop of less than two minutes.

Seating is available on both levels of each car, though an announcement was made requesting that the lower seats were reserved for elderly and handicapped travelers. There was no baggage storage facility, so I dropped my pack off in a big open area to the right of the stairway and headed upstairs.

Business Class seating is 2-2 with the front half of the car facing forward while the rear half faced backwards. Seat pitch is about 50” and each seat is equipped with a footrest, decent recline, a tray table and access to a 120-volt outlet. Mounted in each seatback is a 7” television screen, though I soon found out that these had yet to ever function. Hopefully Amtrak will be able to negotiate a deal with a satellite TV provider. There were also four different spots throughout the upstairs section where seats faced eachother across a large table - perfect for small groups or business meetings.

At the rear of the Business Class car was a service area where passengers could help themselves to coffee, juice and packaged muffins in the morning. Also available was a stack of USA Today newspapers. I poured myself a coffee and selected a blueberry muffin, then retired to my seat to revel in the reports of yesterday’s Denver Broncos victory over the Cleveland Browns.

Scenery along the way included some pretty nice coastal views between Santa Barbara and Ventura, as well as a twenty-mile stretch of coastline north of San Diego. Otherwise, it was mostly agriculture and industrial areas. As such, I managed to get a good bit work done on this report. I also paid a visit to the Café Car where I purchased a very good Sierra Chicken Sandwich. The chicken is grilled and comes with a nice variety of peppers, onions and tomatoes. I highly recommend it.

Finally the announcement was made that we’d soon be arriving into San Diego’s Santa Fe Depot. The five and a half hours that I spent on this train passed quickly thanks to a comfortable seat, an electrical outlet and attentive service from the crew.

Based upon these most recent trips with Amtrak, it appears the company is working harder than ever toward putting out a quality product. I’ve even been told that pressure is being put on the host railroads to be more considerate of Amtrak trains vs. local freight traffic. Indeed, the vast majority of Amtrak’s well documented delays are due to actions taken by the host railroads, so hopefully we’ll see an improvement in on time performance in the coming years. Budgetary limitations have definitely affected the meal service of yesteryear, but the food is generally adequate and occasionally surprisingly good. In both First Class and Coach the cars are comfortable and the service attentive. All of the Amtrak employees who I’ve encountered on this trip have been unfailingly polite and capable, seemingly eager and happy to serve. For their sakes, I hope Amtrak will have a long future serving America’s transportation needs. And for any of you that have yet to experience anything other than ride on a commuter train, I hope this report might inspire you to give Amtrak a try.


That’s all for now. Next up are flights on Mexican carriers Aviacsa and Azteca along with a ride on the Chihuahua Pacific through Mexico’s Barranca del Cobre – otherwise known as the Copper Canyon. Hang in there!