I like trains and free tickets, and I had not been to New Haven or Springfield in awhile, so of course I cleared my schedule for the Hartford Line’s opening weekend.
The first day, in my experience, went smoothly. At Hartford’s Union Station, Hartford Rail ambassadors were plentiful when needed, directing passengers to the platform and announcing arriving trains. The mid-morning Saturday ride to New Haven was on Amtrak, but I was able to get a nice seat in the cafe car and comfortably enjoy the views on what was a fast-moving trip south. We were not stopped long for boarding in Berlin, Meriden, and Wallingford, but long enough to notice that effort had been put into improving the area around stations in two of those three towns. The evening return trip to Hartford was similarly easy, again able to get a seat in the cafe car where there was no trouble with air conditioning. I read that delays had been happening, but I was fortunate enough to be in the right place at the right time.
My luck would be different on Sunday. It seemed there were fewer ambassadors at Hartford’s Union Station, and when a train arrived that we and other passengers assumed was either going to New Haven or Springfield, we boarded, only to find out this one was actually going to a rail yard. This meant getting off the train and finding an ambassador who could tell us when the Springfield train would arrive. We learned we misread the schedule and had another full hour. We left, grabbed coffee down the street, and returned with time to spare. But now, we were loaded onto a train from which few passengers had exited.
Having been in SRO situations on subways, I was not terribly bothered by this, except for having witnessed an incredibly rude passenger. An elderly man boarding asked if an empty seat next to a younger woman (early 20s?) was available. She initially refused to move, saying that she was wearing a short dress and did not want to sit on a sweaty seat. This high maintenance bullshit resulted in her getting some deserved heat, and she eventually stood up to allow the older passenger in. From my spot in the back of the train car — wedged in a nook next to a shovel and dustpan — I noticed a man with a cane who was standing, along with several older passengers. I see thoughtlessness every day, but was and am astounded by how few younger riders offered up their seats.
The actual ride was much different from the previous ones. If the air conditioning was working, I did not notice. The tracks were rough, jostling riders around. The stops in Windsor and Windsor Locks were thankfully brief. In Springfield, it took quite some time to get off the train, and then, passengers crossed the tracks into what looked like a construction zone.
Turns out, they are working on building a new platform, due to open in November. This felt confusing, knowing that Springfield’s Union Station was revamped just last year, and before searching around, wondered why a recently renovated station would use low platforms. Springfield’s Union Station inside, however, is clean, air conditioned, and has charging stations. It is brightly lit and does not feel like walking through a dungeon.
The way back to Hartford was frustrating as well. Only late in the day did I bother getting on social media, which is when I learned there had been some widespread train issues. Ambassadors were not as easy to locate in Springfield, though to their credit, when they went to the tracks, they let people know — loudly — that they could leave but not return to Springfield that day. The boarding experience was, to quote another passenger, “a fucking fiasco.” All passengers exited from one door, until it came time to use a wheelchair lift that was rolled up to another door, cranked by hand, and seemingly not secured to anything. The passenger using this had trouble lining her chair’s wheels up and temporarily got stuck on the lift’s edge. She looked scared. It was dicey. She got some assistance and was able to safely leave, eventually. After everyone was off, the train rolled forward, placing the loud engine next to dozens of passengers who could not move up. The actual seating situation on the train worked out, and I swear I could hear a collective sigh of relief about that.
It’s too soon to call it a #CTrailFail, but there was a clear failure to anticipate exactly how popular free train rides would be. Now that passengers require purchased tickets, operations should be smoother. The other shortcoming was that CTrail did not seek passenger feedback over opening weekend: not in person nor through a link/QR code printed on the complimentary tickets handed to all riders. Gathering comments about user experience in this way would inform service improvements and give people an outlet for concerns so that they don’t all go straight to blast mode on Facebook and Twitter. Regardless, it’s a welcome service for those who want and need improved access north and south of Hartford.
The Hartford Line: Momentum
The first day, in my experience, went smoothly. At Hartford’s Union Station, Hartford Rail ambassadors were plentiful when needed, directing passengers to the platform and announcing arriving trains. The mid-morning Saturday ride to New Haven was on Amtrak, but I was able to get a nice seat in the cafe car and comfortably enjoy the views on what was a fast-moving trip south. We were not stopped long for boarding in Berlin, Meriden, and Wallingford, but long enough to notice that effort had been put into improving the area around stations in two of those three towns. The evening return trip to Hartford was similarly easy, again able to get a seat in the cafe car where there was no trouble with air conditioning. I read that delays had been happening, but I was fortunate enough to be in the right place at the right time.
My luck would be different on Sunday. It seemed there were fewer ambassadors at Hartford’s Union Station, and when a train arrived that we and other passengers assumed was either going to New Haven or Springfield, we boarded, only to find out this one was actually going to a rail yard. This meant getting off the train and finding an ambassador who could tell us when the Springfield train would arrive. We learned we misread the schedule and had another full hour. We left, grabbed coffee down the street, and returned with time to spare. But now, we were loaded onto a train from which few passengers had exited.
Having been in SRO situations on subways, I was not terribly bothered by this, except for having witnessed an incredibly rude passenger. An elderly man boarding asked if an empty seat next to a younger woman (early 20s?) was available. She initially refused to move, saying that she was wearing a short dress and did not want to sit on a sweaty seat. This high maintenance bullshit resulted in her getting some deserved heat, and she eventually stood up to allow the older passenger in. From my spot in the back of the train car — wedged in a nook next to a shovel and dustpan — I noticed a man with a cane who was standing, along with several older passengers. I see thoughtlessness every day, but was and am astounded by how few younger riders offered up their seats.
The actual ride was much different from the previous ones. If the air conditioning was working, I did not notice. The tracks were rough, jostling riders around. The stops in Windsor and Windsor Locks were thankfully brief. In Springfield, it took quite some time to get off the train, and then, passengers crossed the tracks into what looked like a construction zone.
Turns out, they are working on building a new platform, due to open in November. This felt confusing, knowing that Springfield’s Union Station was revamped just last year, and before searching around, wondered why a recently renovated station would use low platforms. Springfield’s Union Station inside, however, is clean, air conditioned, and has charging stations. It is brightly lit and does not feel like walking through a dungeon.
The way back to Hartford was frustrating as well. Only late in the day did I bother getting on social media, which is when I learned there had been some widespread train issues. Ambassadors were not as easy to locate in Springfield, though to their credit, when they went to the tracks, they let people know — loudly — that they could leave but not return to Springfield that day. The boarding experience was, to quote another passenger, “a fucking fiasco.” All passengers exited from one door, until it came time to use a wheelchair lift that was rolled up to another door, cranked by hand, and seemingly not secured to anything. The passenger using this had trouble lining her chair’s wheels up and temporarily got stuck on the lift’s edge. She looked scared. It was dicey. She got some assistance and was able to safely leave, eventually. After everyone was off, the train rolled forward, placing the loud engine next to dozens of passengers who could not move up. The actual seating situation on the train worked out, and I swear I could hear a collective sigh of relief about that.
It’s too soon to call it a #CTrailFail, but there was a clear failure to anticipate exactly how popular free train rides would be. Now that passengers require purchased tickets, operations should be smoother. The other shortcoming was that CTrail did not seek passenger feedback over opening weekend: not in person nor through a link/QR code printed on the complimentary tickets handed to all riders. Gathering comments about user experience in this way would inform service improvements and give people an outlet for concerns so that they don’t all go straight to blast mode on Facebook and Twitter. Regardless, it’s a welcome service for those who want and need improved access north and south of Hartford.
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