Bicycle roll-on service is now available on these trains.
As you probably know by now, we’ve been working with Amtrak to get bike racks on trains in the eastern US. After much testing, they finally rolled it out on the Capitol Limited, and a few trains serving Richmond for the 2015 World Cycling Championships. Then this week they surprised us by confirming that roll-on service is now available on most trains serving Virginia:
- The Palmetto Route, which runs from NYC to Miami through DC, Alexandria, Richmond, Petersburg and the eastern Carolinas, on its way to Charleston, Savannah and on to Florida;
- The Silver Meteor and Silver Star, which also start in NYC and run through DC, Alexandria, Richmond, and Petersburg, but then the central Carolinas including Raleigh and Columbia before Charleston, Savannah and down through Florida;
- The Crescent Route, which runs between NYC and New Orleans through Charlotte and Atlanta, serving Alexandria, Charlottesville, and Lynchburg.
Read Amtrak’s press releases for the Palmetto, the Silver Service and the Crescent routes.
Now you can bring your bike on most trains serving Virginia, without it being boxed. However, this roll-on service is only available at stations with baggage service; there’s still a $20 fee, and a reservation is required. This is explained on Amtrak’s “Bring Your Bicycle Onboard” page — scroll down to “Walk-Up Checked Bicycle Service.”
When buying a ticket through Amtrak’s website, an option to add a bicycle will appear. Clicking this will add the charge to your ticket, and create the bike rack reservation.
There’s no word yet on the Northeast Corridor trains serving Newport News, Norfolk and Virginia Beach, or the new service coming to Roanoke. But as the new baggage cars come online we expect roll-on service to be available there too.
While we’d rather have self-serve bike racks like the Capitol Limited’s, and we may sometimes find the $20 fees prohibitive, the box was always the biggest obstacle for touring cyclists, commuters, and anyone else needing to use their bike to get to and from the station. We’re glad to finally be rid of it, and have many new opportunities for bike travel.
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I’ve used Amtrak using their box for years. While I look forward to the roll-on service, I really don’t understand how “the box” was an impediment. Just remove the pedals, turn your handlebars sideways, and roll the bike into the box. BTW the box cost about $15-20. So the fee really is no real change to the rider.
Tom,
Stop the average cyclist on the street and ask them if they know how to box their bike. I’m betting 90% + would say no way, no how.
When you do box your bike, do you pad your bike so the front wheel doesn’t scratch your frame? Do you need to pull the deurrailler off so it doesn’t get bent? How long does it take you to box your bike 20 minutes, 30 minutes? Is it convenient to box your bike at the station? Do you box your bike at home and then get someone to drive you to the station or do you drive your boxed bike to the station? How convenient is it to schlep your boxed bike and panniers/luggage thru the station?
I’ve boxed my bikes on many occaisions and shall we say it’s a pain in the saddle. And more than once – especially flying- I’ve had my bike damaged despite my best efforts to make things guerrilla (TSA) proof.
To answer your question directly, it seems much simpler to ride my bike from home to the nearest Amtrak station (leaving my car at home), roll my bike to the baggage car to check it and on arrival, immediately ride it to my final destination. No cars, no parking, no tools, no tape, no box, no hassle. And no assembly/ disassembly required.
Isn’t that better?
If that doesn’t work for you, keep on boxing your bike: Amtrak is happy to accept it as checked baggage!
I was just at the station in Baltimore. They told me I had to box my bike to get it on the 90 (Palmetto) to New York. The word was that no walk-up service is available going North, only on the trains going South. I was rather persistent in my attempts to convince them walk-up service should be offered, but to no avail.
Did anyone use this service recently on the Palmetto?
@Sjoert: Indeed you are correct, that roll-on service is officially available on the Palmetto trains. Amtrak’s bicycle page clearly shows this, as does a press release from last November. We’ve brought your case to Amtrak’s attention. They’re taking it up with station management in Baltimore, as well as their customer relations dept. Amtrak is a big organization, and sometimes it takes awhile to get everyone on the same page. Sorry for your trouble!
Hi Admin, thanks for your comment! Let me give a brief update. Yesterday, I decided to try my luck and purchase a ticket online and simply show up for train 90 with my bike in hand. The conductor at the luggage car was surprised my bike was not boxed, but accepted it anyway. When I picked up my bike on arrival in New York Penn, I noticed the luggage car is, in fact, equipped with a system to mount bicycles. But I could not tell if this system had been used for my bike (it was simply leaning against the wall).
So, as you pointed out, the Amtrak website and press release are correct and it simply appears not all Amtrak staff has experience with the new capabilities of the Palmetto trains yet.
I had a great train ride and I’m looking forward to using the bicycle roll-on service in the future!