Originally Posted by
simpleflyer
I'm relieved to hear that there is accomodation for luggage on Thruway buses. I wasn't quite sure what kind of buses these Thruway buses were: were they like ordinary local city buses - in which case I worried they would be intended only for business commuters with the odd laptop, and not for people with even my small amount of luggage. But from what you guys say, they're more like Greyhound (long-distance) buses, with at least some luggage capacity (underneath or on-board is fine, as long as it travels with me in some fashion.)
Yes, they're modern long-distance coaches and are usually in better shape than Greyhound buses. Seats are decidedly narrower than train seats, but it's not bad if the seat next to you is empty (which, in my experience, it usually is--I did Thruway from LAX to BFD with all of 3 people on the bus--the bus driver asked us if we wanted to stop for donuts!).
Originally Posted by
simpleflyer
I'm also glad to hear my itinerary (which in fact is just the return leg) is legal, although the connection of my chosen route is tight at San Jose Didiron station: only ten minutes. Please, another question as this transfer station sounds like it is large and complex. I've hoofed it with my duffel and pack to connect between trains before, but will I have a problem at SJ Didiron? Do I just follow the crowd (after grabbing my luggage from under the bus, of course.)
Diridon's not a huge station--maybe six or eight tracks, and you can hoof it from one to the other in under five minutes. I'm slightly confused, as I thought you were connecting via bus here. Thruway transfers are guaranteed transfers--the bus will wait for the train, and while I don't know if the train will wait for a bus, Amtrak would do something to make sure you get to your destination. If you're connecting train to train, Amtrak will usually not allow it to be booked if it is a dubious connection (and if you do miss the connection, they will make alternate arrangements, usually via Thruway bus, though it's not always optimal).
Originally Posted by
simpleflyer
Also, Reindeerflame, it's interesting you mentioned Caltrain. I am indeed hoping to take Caltrain on the outbound run to Salinas (since I'll be coming from Palo Alto in that case, not SF) and again, I don't want to mess with the Coast Starlight, which sounds like a nightmare (today it was listed as being 3 hours late before it even reached San Jose - good grief!)
Forgive me if I'm misunderstanding you here, but Caltrain does not go as far south as Salinas--only to Gilroy (on some runs). If you are meaning that you are trying to get from Palo Alto to Diridon on Caltrain and then take an Amtrak Thruway bus to Salinas, I do not think that would be legal, as that itinerary does not include an Amtrak train (even though, technically, Caltrain and Amtrak California's Capitol Corridor is operated by the same department of the California DOT...). All Amtrak Thruway bus trips must include a connecting train trip, according to California law (it was pushed by Greyhound, who argued that government-subsidized buses should not compete with private corporations). But then again, if Amtrak.com allows you to book it, it would be legal...
Originally Posted by
simpleflyer
I have studied the latest California Amtrak on-line schedule (no 36, effective Oct 29, 2007) and it said that if the Thruway bus was a 'dedicated feeder' then I could use local bus travel if it was part of a round-trip that included train travel in the other direction. So supposedly I could book a round trip leaving San Jose on a '21' or '36' (series 6200, 4700 respectively) Thruway bus, returning to San Jose with a similar Thruway bus but connecting to a Capitol Corridors to Oakland (the required 'train' portion.)
OK, so this just invalidates my previous paragraph (I should stop replying paragraph by paragraph!). If what you read is true, then yeah, it should work. The defining thing is really if Amtrak.com allows you to book it. And you also answered my question about train-to-train transfers (I get it now that your Caltrain-to-Amtrak connection is the tight one).
One thing, though, is it sounds like it has to be booked as a round-trip. You can't book a round trip SJC-SAL-OAC--a round trip would have to be either SJC-SAL-SJC or OAC-SAL-OAC. I think what the timetable means that if you book OKJ-SAL-OAC, the OKJ-SAL leg could be a Thruway bus the whole way (I believe they do run some Thruways all the way from OKJ) as long as the return leg involves a train (or vice versa).
But if you can figure out how to get Amtrak.com to book SJC-SAL-OAC and allow you the routings/times you want, Amtrak won't stop you from using it!