Airport and Amtrak Timing Question

[CynBeth6]

We just found out the time of our United flight this summer from Rome to Newark has been changed slightly so will be landing an hour later at 2:30 pm EST on a Saturday.  We had booked our Amtrak from Newark to Baltimore at 5:30 pm figuring it could take time to get through customs and baggage claim. Should we change the train to 6:30 pm or do you think we will make it if we keep it at 5:30 pm? Thanks!

[njhorseman]

2 minutes ago, CynBeth6 said:

We just found out the time of our United flight this summer from Rome to Newark has been changed slightly so will be landing an hour later at 2:30 pm EST on a Saturday.  We had booked our Amtrak from Newark to Baltimore at 5:30 pm figuring it could take time to get through customs and baggage claim. Should we change the train to 6:30 pm or do you think we will make it if we keep it at 5:30 pm? Thanks!

Assuming your flight doesn't arrive significantly late you'll be OK. BTW, check your times carefully because you'll be on EDT in the summer and you said the flight arrives at 2:30 EST.

 

Are you boarding your Amtrak train at the Newark Liberty International Airport station or Newark Penn Station? Boarding at the airport station will save the time of an unnecessary trip to Newark Penn Station .

[navybankerteacher]

While you probably can make that 5:30 train, the possibility of a slightly delayed arrival or C & I hang-ups would make me want to allow just a bit more time - especially as there is such a convenient alternative.

[CynBeth6]

1 hour ago, njhorseman said:

Assuming your flight doesn't arrive significantly late you'll be OK. BTW, check your times carefully because you'll be on EDT in the summer and you said the flight arrives at 2:30 EST.

 

Are you boarding your Amtrak train at the Newark Liberty International Airport station or Newark Penn Station? Boarding at the airport station will save the time of an unnecessary trip to Newark Penn Station .

I just meant that we are arriving at 2:30 pm New Jersey time did not want anyone to think I meant it was that time in Rome was trying to make it clear that it is the time listed for landing here in the US I apologize for any confusion.  Yes we will be getting Amtrak at the Newark Liberty International Airport station. 

[markeb]

Do you have Global Entry? If so I wouldn't expect immigration and customs to take more than a few minutes once you get there (don't know how long the walk is at Newark). So the main concern would be a flight delay. Maybe closer than I'd ordinarily go, but I agree you should be fine.

[CynBeth6]

7 minutes ago, markeb said:

Do you have Global Entry? If so I wouldn't expect immigration and customs to take more than a few minutes once you get there (don't know how long the walk is at Newark). So the main concern would be a flight delay. Maybe closer than I'd ordinarily go, but I agree you should be fine.

No we don’t have global entry just a passport. I realized if we make the switch to the 6:30 pm it is the last of the day that goes to Baltimore.  I am concerned if a lot of international flights arrive around the same time and it takes a while to get through customs.  Is there a website to check how many flights would be arriving at Newark Airport around the same time?

[princeton123211]

4 minutes ago, CynBeth6 said:

I realized if we make the switch to the 6:30 pm it is the last of the day that goes to Baltimore.

It might be the last Amtrak train that goes from the EWR airport station to Baltimore but it's hardly the last train to Baltimore. You could always Uber to Newark Penn Station and you'd have one leaving every half hour or so for Baltimore well into the evening. Not as ideal as catching one from the airport but if something catastrophic made you late you could still easily get home on Amtrak that night. 

[CynBeth6]

We looked and that other Newark station has a last train at 7:30 pm so we just switched to the 6:30 pm at the airport station and hope all goes well.  Thanks everyone!

[markeb]

You have plenty of time to apply for Global Entry. Comes out to $20/year, includes TSA Pre, and can be free with the right credit card or airline status...

 

One missed connection because of a long line at CBP could make it break even. And it's so much less frustrating. Think about it.

[GTJ]

It used to be that, other than for a few long-distance trains, a Pennsylvania Railroad ticket could be used on any train without reservations. While such a system might result in a few trains not having enough seats for everyone, it avoids the current situation where Amtrak requires reservations to be procured, old tickets swapped for new tickets, and overall greater bureaucracy and inconvenience for relatively short train trips. New Jersey Transit does just fine with all of its unreserved trains. If Amtrak allowed for unreserved travel, then situations like that here, where there is no great certainty or precision in knowing when an airplane will arrive at EWR, when immigration and customs will cleared, etc., an unreserved ticket will simply allow people to travel on the "next" train, without having to worry if there will be enough time to get to a specially-reserved train.

[princeton123211]

3 minutes ago, GTJ said:

an unreserved ticket will simply allow people to travel on the "next" train, without having to worry if there will be enough time to get to a specially-reserved train.

Amtrak operates on essentially a 4 tiered system in the Northeast Corridor though-- the "next train" might not be in the same category as the one you booked. There are the Regionals, Acela Express, local services like the Keystone which is priced totally differently, and the long distance trains that you can also book segments on. They just aren't compatible. Frankly I like that the Acelas are not only all reserved but that your seat is also reserved ahead like an airplane. 

 

All NJ Transit trains are essentially the same level of service so the comparison doesn't really hold up. 

 

Someone who has a subsidized ticket on the Keystone Service shouldn't be able to just climb aboard the Acela. Also you're not taking into account dynamic pricing they use-- every ticket cost is slightly different based not just on train but also occupancy of that train. It allows them to push demand around the schedule and flatten out spikes. 

[GTJ]

2 minutes ago, princeton123211 said:

Amtrak operates on essentially a 4 tiered system in the Northeast Corridor though-- the "next train" might not be in the same category as the one you booked. There are the Regionals, Acela Express, local services like the Keystone which is priced totally differently, and the long distance trains that you can also book segments on. They just aren't compatible.

As I had noted, the long-distance trains are distinct (though the Pennsylvania Railroad added unreserved coaches within the northeast corridor onto some of its long-distance trains), and the same could be said for the Acela trains.

 

The Keystone trains are interesting, though. Originally they operated from Harrisburg to the upper level of 30th Street in Philadelphia, and then on to Suburban Station. They were really just extensions of the Paoli commuter trains, were all unreserved, and had relatively low commuter-type fares. A number of years ago Amtrak change their operation, putting them in the lower level of 30th Street, and sending them direct to New York. I believe that the segment between Harrisburg and Philadelphia is still unreserved, but the segment between Philadelphia and New York is reserved.

 

Within the northeast corridor, the basic trains--regionals and Keystone--should not be reserved. They are a single class, just as the NJT commuter trains. Tickets should be interchangable among these trains, without having to deal with reservations. If I miss a corridor train, I should be able to board the next basic train--which might be scheduled to depart half an hour later--without having to spend an hour on the telephone changing my reservation!

[mjkacmom]

18 hours ago, princeton123211 said:

Amtrak operates on essentially a 4 tiered system in the Northeast Corridor though-- the "next train" might not be in the same category as the one you booked. There are the Regionals, Acela Express, local services like the Keystone which is priced totally differently, and the long distance trains that you can also book segments on. They just aren't compatible. Frankly I like that the Acelas are not only all reserved but that your seat is also reserved ahead like an airplane. 

 

All NJ Transit trains are essentially the same level of service so the comparison doesn't really hold up. 

 

Someone who has a subsidized ticket on the Keystone Service shouldn't be able to just climb aboard the Acela. Also you're not taking into account dynamic pricing they use-- every ticket cost is slightly different based not just on train but also occupancy of that train. It allows them to push demand around the schedule and flatten out spikes. 

The pricing can be very different, and I believe when you change up your tickets you need to pay the current price on Amtrak. My daughter took a train back to college purchased in advance, $30, her friend got a last minute ticket for $100.  Two of my kids used NJ transit trains to travel back and forth to college, so easy (one accidentally booked Amtrak the first time, fortunately he also booked the insurance so he was able to cancel 🤣).

[navybankerteacher]

8 hours ago, mjkacmom said:

The pricing can be very different, and I believe when you change up your tickets you need to pay the current price on Amtrak. My daughter took a train back to college purchased in advance, $30, her friend got a last minute ticket for $100.  Two of my kids used NJ transit trains to travel back and forth to college, so easy (one accidentally booked Amtrak the first time, fortunately he also booked the insurance so he was able to cancel 🤣).

This is why it makes sense to not plan timing too closely -- while there may be convenient later trains if you miss your first choice, the cost can be really significant.