multimodal commuter
Join Date: Nov 2006
Location: NJ, NYC, LI
Posts: 19,808
Bikes: 1940s Fothergill, 1959 Allegro Special, 1963? Claud Butler Olympic Sprint, Lambert 'Clubman', 1974 Fuji "the Ace", 1976 Holdsworth 650b conversion rando bike, 1983 Trek 720 tourer, 1984 Counterpoint Opus II, 1993 Basso Gap, 2010 Downtube 8h, and...
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I took my Downtube Mini folding bike on a business trip from Trenton to DC last month. It was a complete success.
I rode to the station in the early morning darkness; the train was crowded, though, and there was no room in the luggage rack at the front of the coach, so I put the bike on the overhead rack on the train; and rode from there to the Old Post Office building. No problem other than that my train was seriously delayed; even so I got to my 9:00 meeting just after it started at 9:10.
On the way home I put the bike in the luggage rack at the front of the coach; it was not as convenient as the overhead rack, but more legal.
The overhead rack on the Amtrak regional train is actually bigger than the overhead rack on the NJTransit trains I normally take. Amtrak rules are, I think, that you may not stow a bike on the overhead racks no matter what; and NJTransit has no such rule that I know of. I'm pretty sure the conductor saw the bike up there, but did not hassle me.
No one at either Amtrak or the Old Post Office gave me any trouble about the bike. It was not bagged or anything.