Taking train to Quebec
 

I will be riding the Green Route in Quebec and I have a bit of a problem. Amtrak does not accept any baggage on it's train to Montreal. Does anyone know if they will allow baggage larger than the 28x22x16 standard? When I asked at the train station they said "no", but this size will not allow most backpacks to travel. Anyone with any information will be greatly appreciated. I do not want to rent a bike there and I leave in two weeks.

John

Try this site for some info http://www.bikeaccess.net/bikeaccess/
you can use fedex/ups or try shipping via usps

I don't think there's much chance you'd be able to get your bike on that train.

Regarding the 28x22x16 size restriction: I've seen plenty of large, oversized bags as carry on bags on Amtrak. But they're bags. Bikes is another matter, and they'd most likely balk at someone bringing a full size bike as carry-on baggage. Amtrak allows true folding bikes as carry-on on any of their trains. From what I've heard, bringing a full-sized bike as a carry-on is "conductor's discretion". I doubt that a conductor would allow that on one of the busy, crowded routes in the Northeast Corridor. And if you did manage to get it on with the conductor's approval, the problem that could be encountered is on longer routes there are several different conductors. So you might find a sympathetic conductor when you get on, but then there could be a crew change and the new conductor could boot your bike off.

If you wanted to try bringing your bike with you on the train, you could take the Lake Shore Limited train from NYC to Buffalo, get off and ride across the border at Niagra Falls, then hop on a VIA Rail train to Montreal from there. It would definitely be a lot longer, but it's the only feasible option I know of where you could bring the bike as checked baggage.

It's a pity, though. The Vermonter (the route that goes through Vermont to St. Albans) used to allow bikes and skis in their baggage car. Then Vermont cut the funding for it.

The Vermonter train still runs. Its an Amtrak train, and I highly doubt that Vermont pays for the train. Vermont did fund a train that ran from Charlotte to Burlington for a couple of years, but that was 10 years ago.

Why not just ship your bike via FedEx/UPS to a bike shop in Burlington (I'd recommend Old Spokes Home), then take the train to Vermont. Then you could ride up to the Route Verte in Quebec in a day. There are numerous connections between the Route Verte & Vermont. Check out the
site:

www.champlainbikeways.org

While it is an Amtrak train, the state of Vermont does subsidize a portion of its operating costs. This happens frequently with regional Amtrak lines--the Cascade trains are subsidized by Oregon and Washington, and the various California lines (Capitol Corridor, San Joaquins, and Pacific Surfliner) by the state of California. Vermont subsidized the baggage car that allowed for unboxed bikes, but then cut funding for that in 2002. So now there's no way to bring a full-sized bike on that route.

Thanx's for that information, I didn't realize that the states contribute to Amtrak.

OP - There is also a Amtrak train that runs up the west side of Lake Champlain in NY state. I believe it starts in Albany, but perhaps originates in NYC and ends in either Plattsburg or Rouses Point NY. Check on what services that line has for baggage.

my friends and i were just wondering about getting bikes on amtrak after a brooklyn to portland ME tour. we ended up taking the C&J bus out of portsmouth.

but i wonder if anyones packed up a full sized bicycle into two separate soft bags. wheels and some clothes in one bag and frame / fork / everything else in the other and gotten onto amtrak undetected?

Thanks for all the information. It looks like I will buy a used bike in Montreal or rent. My French is very shakey, so I do expect to pay more than a "native". I was going to try to package one of my junk bikes, but it sounds like a dicey propostion. thanks again for all of the info.

John

That would be the Adirondack. It originates at Penn Stn. in NYC and runs all the way to Montreal. Unfortunately, no checked baggage service either, so no way to bring a full-sized bike. The convoluted routing through Buffalo that I suggested is the only option that I know of in the area.

The only Amtrak route that crosses the border and allows bikes is the Cascades (Eugene-Portland-Seattle-Vancouver BC), which if the OP is coming out of Jersey (which I'm assuming) would be a very circuitous route! I guess theoretically one could "check" the bike to Montreal at a station in the Northeast. But if that did work, it would take about a week as the bike is shipped from east to west coast, up to Vancouver, and then eastbound across Canada. Not exactly efficient or fast.

Could work, but don't know anyone who has pulled it off. Probably would work best with a bike that had couplers. As long as it doesn't register "bike" to the Amtrak employees...

I still think shipping your bike ahead to either Burlington or Plattsburg would work extremely well. Since you want to ride the Route Verte anyway, why not just ride it into the city. The riding along the Richelieu River from the border northward is pretty, with many B&B's along the way. You'd get a day or two of riding in the countryside, then visit the city when you bike into Montreal. Coming back, you could cycle a different route back to the border, or perhaps there's bus service, or you might meet someone who could give you a ride back. With the exchange rate, we see lots and lots of our northern neighbors down here. In fact, just the other night I had a couple from Montreal drive down here to buy a bike I was selling, then drove back the same night. Its really only 3 hours round trip.

The route from the Vermont border to Montreal is very flat. It can be windy and the trafic may be moving at high speed, but there is a shoulder as I recall. It passes through mostly farmland. Your route will get a little tricky starting in St Jean, but it's possible to choose country roads with little traffic all the way to Montreal. Check here: http://www.bikely.com/listpaths/coun.../35/city/15243.

Also choose your bridge for entering Montreal carefully. http://velo.qc.ca/fr/reseau/ponts_traverses I like the Jacques Cartier Bridge---very scenic and it takes you to a quiet neighborhood west of downtown.

My wife and I just rode from Brooklyn to Montreal and took the train back.

Dissapointed to find out Amtrak's Adirondack line doesn't accept bikes (and shocked at the size of the "carry-ons" people manage to get by the guy taking tickets; I'm almost sure you could pack a full-size bike into something the size of the suitcases these people were getting on the train with), we took our bikes to a shop in Montreal called "Le Grand Cycle" at 901 Cherrier Est. $25 per bike to box them and $180 to ship them both via UPS (just left them at the bike store and the UPS picks them up).

All in all a fantastic trip. And Montreal is an incredibly bike-friendly city. Many hotels have "Bienvenus Cyclists" signs and accomodate cyclists and their bikes.

Footnote: we just got our bikes from UPS and had to pay an additional "brokerage" fee of $102 per bike to the UPS guy. We weren't told about this up front and have put in a call to UPS to find out what this is about. Next time, I'm just sticking them in a big duffel bag and getting on the train.