DCist: Obama to Arrive in D.C. Via Amtrak

buddah

Fri, 19 Dec 2008 21:08:42 -0500

This Is a great boost for Amtrak PR, Amtrak will finally get the funding they deserve.. and sorry to burst everyone's bubble but details on the inside is yes he's riding Amtrak from Chicago to Washington DC but no its not one of Amtraks routed trains. The president and vice pres will HAVE THERE OWN TRAIN. setup will be similar to the Good Morning America train. ( for those who did not know GMA did a nation wide tour and Amtrak gave them there own train). So sorry for those who thought they would ride the rails with the president. To high of a security risk. You dont see regular citizens riding air force one, so dont plan on them riding Amtrak 1. Hers 2 pics of GMA's Amtrak train. with satellite car and all. http://www.railpictures.net/viewphoto.php?id=255755&nseq=0 http://www.railpictures.net/viewphoto.php?id=251270&nseq=7

Fluxgirl

Wed, 17 Dec 2008 10:51:27 -0500

watch out for those sliding doors on the bathrooms, make sure you get one on which the latch actually...latches.

littlewings

Tue, 16 Dec 2008 22:56:24 -0500

I remember the good old days when you could take photos anywhere and no one would care... I do wonder, though, what Obama's arrival by train will do to Amtrak schedules for the rest of the day. There are probably tons of people up and down the east coast who are hoping to take the train into DC (and Amtrak is late enough on a good day).

badtzmaru

Tue, 16 Dec 2008 21:08:09 -0500

Agreed. the hot dog is the best item on the menu.

Caribou Barbie

Tue, 16 Dec 2008 17:17:22 -0500

Mr. President-elect, Don't worry about going to the cafe car. Bring your own booze (it's allowed!), set yourself up with a couple of DVD episodes of Lost on the laptop and go to town.

Stanton Park

Tue, 16 Dec 2008 16:19:45 -0500

My advice: If Michelle will be going to the cafe car to sit and eat, make sure there are a few Secret Service guys to protect her from the loud-mouthed drunks that will hit on her. I actually saw one idiot hitting on the wives of Washington Capitals players on their way back from a game in the City of Brotherly Love. After the drunk loudly delivered the punch line to an off color joke, the uncle of one of the hockey wives got him to return to his seat in another car.

Wizzyliz

Tue, 16 Dec 2008 15:31:31 -0500

Hopefully the PA system at Union Station will be working: Me: What did he say? You: He said the President-Elect is near.

IMGoph

Tue, 16 Dec 2008 15:18:07 -0500

good on both of them. the whistle-stop tour would be a nice thing to revive 'round these parts!

Q

Tue, 16 Dec 2008 15:13:28 -0500

He'd go through in disguise and in hiding in the middle of the night if he were going to transit through Baltimore like Lincoln.

monkeyrotica

Tue, 16 Dec 2008 14:54:32 -0500

What? Hopping boxcars with a hobo bindle not good enough for America's First Marxist President? "Man of the People" indeed!

dlutes

Tue, 16 Dec 2008 14:38:22 -0500

In response to sumergocognito >...will they call this Amtrak One? See the Rail Force One: http://www.railpictures.net/viewphoto.php?id=108264

voteroo

Tue, 16 Dec 2008 14:29:39 -0500

I hope you all realize he's not actually going to ride Amtrak...he's going to ride a private car possibly attached to the end of an Amtrak train. But there's tricked out old Pullman cars that are gorgeous and (more importantly) private, and there's a guy in Philadelphia who has a bullet-proof one that foreign dignitaries use, so I'd imagine he'll be on that or something like it. And this allows him to stop at all those smaller stops (and Philly and Baltimore) and give the people what they want here, so less of them may crush DC on the 20th.

glasswindow

Tue, 16 Dec 2008 14:18:40 -0500

RJ: With 5 trillion people coming to see him on the 20th, and many by train, won’t this just screw things up even worse? Then pick another mode of transportation you'd prefer to be halted. I think I'm beginning to see the sheer genius in this idea.

miss bee

Tue, 16 Dec 2008 13:59:04 -0500

jamie's tip is the best tip - all trains headed to DC from philly are always late. but that just means you have enough time to check out denise's pink caribbean food truck across the street.

Deep

Tue, 16 Dec 2008 13:56:35 -0500

I hope that kid from Deliverance is sitting outside the caboose.

erincarly

Tue, 16 Dec 2008 13:49:05 -0500

tip: those who stand in line way early will ultimately board the train last and cranky from waiting. just find yourself a comfy seat, eat your lunch/dinner, and join the mob once boarding is called. also, board the first car (the last car on the train). i don't know why people make a mad dash for the front of the train and squish for seats. it won't get you to your destination faster.

MikeB

Tue, 16 Dec 2008 13:46:33 -0500

I'll be a dork and repeat my comment on GGW: will they call this Amtrak One? Probably. The president's limo is informally known as Cadillac One. Really I think they're allowed to slap "One" onto anything.

boondoggle

Tue, 16 Dec 2008 13:46:04 -0500

Is that your black president? Such small words, but they can mean alot..

ill on the hill

Tue, 16 Dec 2008 13:45:01 -0500

You forgot a key piece of advice: Ummm... don't go to Philly.

jdg

Tue, 16 Dec 2008 13:41:51 -0500

Make sure to cut in line when waiting to board at Philly, you're sure to draw the love and compassion of everyone who queued up properly...

DrLRonHoover

Tue, 16 Dec 2008 13:25:28 -0500

The "quiet car" is a misnomer. So don't be surprised when that AU/GW student next to you, sporting her "freshman 40" whips out the "celly" and starts yelling at the top of her lungs "YER NEVER GONNA GUESS WHERE I AM! AND GUESS WHO'S SITTING NEXT TO ME! OBAMA! OH-BAH-MAH! Y'KNOW....THAT GUY WHO'S GONNA LIVE IN THE WHITE HOUSE?"

Deep

Tue, 16 Dec 2008 13:19:08 -0500

Wow! Hundreds of Washingtonians pulling a train at Union Station and DCist is there. Woo Woo!

DcRat

Tue, 16 Dec 2008 13:19:07 -0500

FWIW my wife spent at least an hour taking pictures inside Union Station on Saturday and didn't get hassled once, perhaps they revised that inane policy.

ces12

Tue, 16 Dec 2008 13:14:20 -0500

if he takes a photo of union station, then he is definitely linked to william ayers! terrorist!

RJ

Tue, 16 Dec 2008 13:09:22 -0500

With 5 trillion people coming to see him on the 20th, and many by train, won’t this just screw things up even worse?

sumergocognito

Tue, 16 Dec 2008 13:07:30 -0500

I'll be a dork and repeat my comment on GGW: will they call this Amtrak One?

greeper

Tue, 16 Dec 2008 12:58:27 -0500

Tip #1: First class is $80 more for some bad food, and you will have to listen to a pretentious low-end executive loudly blather on his cell phone for the entire trip. Take the quiet car and eat first. Tip #2: Metroliner seats are far superior to Acela seats.

no_more_caffeine

Tue, 16 Dec 2008 12:54:55 -0500

Seems like this will present an interesting security issue... Those tracks are hardly secure. And with a known number of departure times? Seems unnecessary.

fausmane

Tue, 16 Dec 2008 12:52:50 -0500

The hot dogs are the best thing on the menu!

districtdon19

Tue, 16 Dec 2008 12:52:27 -0500

oh how we love to make silly dumb lists

tecki

Tue, 16 Dec 2008 12:50:32 -0500

Upon reaching Baltimore, Obama will then put on a dress while changing train platforms at Penn Station, in homage to Lincoln's trip through Charm City on the eve of the Civil War.

Jamie R. Liu

Tue, 16 Dec 2008 12:49:23 -0500

The trains on that line are always late. Plan accordingly.

Guy LaDouche

Tue, 16 Dec 2008 12:47:39 -0500

Stay out of the bathroom at Union Station!