My train snapped a cable on the tracks this morning and I was stuck for 45 minutes

I was on the 7:15 Amtrak out of Newark and we just stopped dead near Metropark around 7:30. The conductor came on and said an overhead wire broke somewhere up ahead. No AC, no announcement updates for 20 minutes, just people sweating and checking their phones. I ended up missing a client meeting at 9 and had to reschedule from the platform. Has anyone else had Amtrak just fall apart on them mid-commute?

3 comments

3 Comments

scott.miles2d ago

Happened to me last year and honestly I'd take that over the bus replacement any day. At least on the train you can sit there and read something instead of standing in traffic for two hours.

johnson.faith2d ago

Actually that's a GOOD point @scott.miles, but bus replacement isn't always that bad. Some of the double deckers have charging ports now and you can actually get work done. But yeah, sitting in traffic for hours is the WORST. I had a rail replacement bus once that took a detour through some random industrial estate and added 45 minutes to the journey. At least with the delay on the train you're still moving and you've got a proper seat with a table. The bigger issue is when they put you on those cramped single decker buses where you're shoulder to shoulder with strangers and your bag is on your lap the whole time.

jesse_williams622d ago

Haha yeah I feel that. I'm the kind of person who'd sit on a delayed train for an extra hour just to avoid having to make eye contact with a bus driver. Guess that says more about my social skills than public transport though.