YESS! Time to ride those rails!
Wednesday, August 1st, 2007Amtrak is offering $100 in free alcohol to some overnight passengers.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Amtrak is trying to gin up new business by offering $100 in free alcohol to customers on some overnight trains.
The national passenger rail company is making the unusual offer to promote a new high-end service being offered on a trial basis for certain sleeper car trips.
Members of Amtrak’s guest rewards program — the railroad equivalent of frequent fliers — can get a $100 per person credit for alcohol between November and January.
But, this is America, so of course someone has a problem with this.
Mothers Against Drunk Driving questioned whether $100 in free alcohol was too much.
“This sounds like a lot of credit toward possible overindulging,” said MADD spokeswoman Misty Moyse.
Uh, it’s not as if they’re driving the train, lady. 
3 Responses to “YESS! Time to ride those rails!”
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JB says:
August 2nd, 2007 at 5:24 pmSince my last comment, I have noticed the following policy statement from MADD’s web site: “MADD supports enforcement of underage drinking laws and therefore cannot support safe ride programs for those under the legal drinking age.” http://www.madd.org/aboutus/4225#saferides
This is yet more evidence that MADD seems more concerned with emphasising an abstinence-only approach to alcohol for those under 21 than actually reducing the number of people who die from drunk drving.
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Stopper says:
August 2nd, 2007 at 5:31 pmI think that Amtrak will charge a lot per drink, probably $6-8 for a glass of wine or bottle of beer, and $10-15 for other drinks. They’re probably counting on their customers falling asleep before they reach the credit limit, anyway.
Ah, the news report says “At about $6 for a house wine or $7 for a top-shelf scotch, that credit could fuel a long ride. The credit would not go nearly as far for, say, a $250 bottle of Dom Perignon — also available.”
The Amtrak routes that will offer this perk are long-ass rides, too.
Oh, and MADD sucks.
August 2nd, 2007 at 3:56 pm
Mothers Against Drunk Driving demonstrated long ago that it is, in the words of its founder who felt compelled to abandon the organisation, more of a “neo-prohibitionist” organisation than one concerned with drunk driving. It opposes lowering the drinking age to eighteen due to concerns about young people’s propensity to mix bad driving with drinking; however, a more sensible approach would be to recognise that the real danger itself is the automobile and to reduce the need and ability of young people to use them. It is mind boggling that MADD objects to serving alcohol on trains given that encouraging more people to take the train will reduce all types of traffic fatalities, including those involving people who tend to drink too much.