New bicycle rules on Amtrac?
 

I saw that there are new rules about luggage on Amtrac. Does anyone know what they are? I am planning on taking a cycling trip in January and I will take the train to my starting point.

John

For ease, I recommend using one of Amtrak's boxes. The amount of disassembly required is minimal.

I agree, just call ahead to check on the availability of boxes.

What is this about new rules though? They looked the same to me when I visited the Amtrak site.

Also be aware that not all bikes will fit an Amtrak box, even with some disassembly. My big city bike will not fit without removing a wheel and the handlebars and stem. FWIW Amtrak will accept a bike in a regular bike store box too. I usually keep a couple of Amtrak boxes around for shipping my bikes back and forth between NC and MA or SC.

Aaron :)

I'm curious what it is about your bike that causes it to not fit. Is it a tandem, a recumbent, or something unconventional?

The Amtrak boxes are huge and many bikes don't even require lowering the saddle to fit. I only needed to turn the bars, rotate them down and remove the pedals. According to their web site the Amtrak boxes are 69 x 41 x 8.5 inches (175 x 104 x 22 centimeters).

I found that I had to lower the seat and remove the bars from the stem in order to get my 54cm Nashbar touring frame into the box that Amtrak gave me. Once I took the bars off, the rest was a piece of cake...

This was my experience in early October heading home from San Diego to Northwest Washington.

Big (XL frame size) City Bike, wheel base is around 1100mm and it runs 700c wheels. I have had a couple of others where I have had to remove the stem too. IIRC the overall length is around 190cm.

Aaron :)

http://inlinethumb05.webshots.com/18...600x600Q85.jpg