Trains and taxis

Amtrak hoist - does the job - manual wind

I'm trying to write this on Amtrak train No 64, on route from Niagara Falls to New York - returning the way we came on Thursday.  It's quite a pleasant journey although too long - we left at 10:18 am and won't be at Penn Station until 9:45 pm, assuming we are on time.  It's also very bumpy - like their "sidewalks", I don't think America maintains its rolling stock or train tracks as well as we do.  Maybe it has something to do with the Americans' reluctance to pay tax??

Meeting other Aussies at the train station

John's space in this carriage is much larger, and therefore more comfortable than on the journey up.  He can fully recline his chair without any problem.  I've also commandeered a forward facing seat with a tray - for the moment - hence my attempt to write a blog on John's laptop. (Did I tell you I managed to smash the screen on my own laptop on our last night in the UK?)

The Amtrak hot spot is working well.  On our return journey we remembered to bring our American power attachments in our hand luggage.

As I said, we boarded the train at 10:18 am at Niagara Falls (ON), and travelled across the river to Niagara Falls (USA) where we were stationery for two hours whilst customs came through the train.  Other passengers are usually asked to get off the train with their luggage and then reboard (they were on the journey up) but this time I think everyone stayed seated.  Neither Canadian nor American customs officers are people with whom to crack a joke!  Hopefully this delay was scheduled - probably was, since the journey back to NY is about an hour longer.

Our unreliable taxi - Central Taxis - do not recommend

We've had the usual dramas with taxis.  Amtrak's contract travel agent couldn't arrange transport from stations to our hotels, so John has taken on that role.  It fouled up on our first attempt at Niagara Falls (Ontario side).  He'd found a taxi company and booked it, but when we arrived, no sign of a wheelchair cab.  Other taxi drivers from that company were helpful and finally he turned up.  He didn't turn his meter on, and said it was a flat rate.  But we got there.

John booked through the same company for the return trip this morning and they scheduled the booking, but no show.  We'd left plenty of time for the journey (our wheelie friends will understand that!) so the hotel was able to find another company to do the job and Elite Cabs turned up very quickly, turned the meter on and charged much less. So if you are needing a wheelchair accessible cab in Niagara Falls, for peace of mind, don't bother with Central Taxis, go for Elite instead.  A third company didn't have any wheelchair accessible cabs.

I wonder what our experience with cabs will be in Boston, Chicago and Seattle?  Our Boston hotel is only a short distance so John can probably wheel himself there whilst I find a regular cab.