News for hackers. Stuff that matters.

A comment on Slip Coaches: Back When British Express Trains Detached Passenger Cars at Speed. Parent comment

Re:Slip Coaches: Back When British Express Trains Detached P... by mncharity on Saturday June 09, 2018 @05:24AM (#17272211)
Taking intercity bus from Boston to NYC, I've many times been fully stopped in Connecticut rush-hour traffic, and looked longingly out the window at an oh-so-close commuter rail station, with trains rumbling away, fast and empty. Or later, stopped at a red light in the city, mused that by getting off now, I'd shave an hour off my travel time. In India, in much of the world, one could just go for it. I often forget to notice the severe systemic inefficiencies of everyday life.
[ Parent | on HN ]
Re:Slip Coaches: Back When British Express Trains Detached P... by CalRobert on Saturday June 09, 2018 @08:31AM (#17272703)
Not intercity, but for a time london's routemaster buses made this sort of thing possible. Alas, no more. https://metro.co.uk/2016/09/02/you-can-no-longer-hop-on-hop-...
[ Parent | on HN ]
Re:Slip Coaches: Back When British Express Trains Detached P... by isostatic on Saturday June 09, 2018 @11:31AM (#17273497)
Why not take the train?
[ Parent | on HN ]
Re:Slip Coaches: Back When British Express Trains Detached P... by amalcon on Saturday June 09, 2018 @12:32PM (#17273745)
The BOS-NYC Amtrak route costs a significant multiple of the buses (2-3x fares of the reputable bus companies, depending on day+time). On average, it takes about the same amount of time -- the bus is just higher variance.

The train that mncharity refers to is the much more reasonably priced NYC commuter rail, which does not reach Boston.

[ Parent | on HN ]
Re:Slip Coaches: Back When British Express Trains Detached P... by ohyes on Sunday June 10, 2018 @11:23AM (#17278516)
If you book at least 2 weeks out and travel off-peak you can get the Amtrak trip for about $50. Otherwise it’s $70-100.

Ignoring the costs, I find the quality of life on the train to be far superior. No traffic, you can walk around, there are power outlets and the seats are pretty big.

For me, being able to work for 4.5 hours vs feeling carsick on a bus for similar or more time (I get nausea very easily when other people drive me), it was always worth it.

The other thing I would do is drive the car to an MTA stop and garage it for a couple of days while I took the commuter rail into town. Which option I took depended on ticket prices and the length of time I was staying.

[ Parent | on HN ]
Re:Slip Coaches: Back When British Express Trains Detached P... by twic on Saturday June 09, 2018 @03:29PM (#17274575)
Could he take a bus to the edge of New York's railway network, then change to a train? I did roughly that to get from Hartford to New York once - got to New Haven by car, then got a Metro-North train into town. So, train to Providence, bus to New Haven (a bit over two hours), train to New York? It does seem like quite a trip.
[ Parent | on HN ]