Comfort or speed, but not both
I don’t fly (often). Not that I can’t. Not that I won’t. Rather, a case of need (or lack thereof). As I read about the total nonsense going on in airports, in the name of passenger safety, I am bewildered.
Once upon a time, I had two homes. One, with family; the other, with my school. From time to time, I journeyed between the two, and with the budget allowed, I took the train. Planes were seen as impractical, with standard air fare being beyond my reach (except once, during a national rail strike). For years, I travelled in the comfort class, where a box of beer provided the only comfort. Typical transit times from the Maritimes to T-O used to be well beyond the full day, but it was fun.
We’ve had a change in viewpoint. Now, people believe that if you can’t fly up and down, then the trip is less than necessary. And, ever in tune with economics, the cost of a plane ticket has dropped to below the point of rediculous.
I decided to see how things had evolved, and called up those fare planner screens that are so important to the frequent traveller. On the train, little has changed. Just to have a point of comparison, I chose Groundhog Day, and pretended that a trip from “under the shadow of the CN Tower” all the way to “under the shadow of the Citadel”. Toronto-Halifax, one-way.
First of all, there is no train that day. Chalk up an extra 24 hours to the virtual travel (although I won’t). In a fit of good sense, I chose economy class (where the box of beer is no longer welcome) and made my request. $157. Not so bad, especially because I could call the seat “my own” for a minimum time of 28 hours.
Now for the plane. I didn’t need to shop much, because Air Canada knows the way. Without calculating the need for shuttle bus tickets (at both ends of the trip), I could have my choice of departure times and fares, all on the 2nd. Lowball, I could sit in the back of a plane for $89, or the front for $1241 (no typo). A whole string of other taxes apply, so my ticket would probably cost pretty close to train fare when all was charged up. Forget the front seat class…
Now, I just need to get my mind around the need to take off my shoes, belt, ring, glasses and a few other personal things in order to get a chance to sit in a really cramped seat for three hours. The train is still more comfortable, as long as you pack some good books.
