AMTRAK does a great job of announcing all the stops before you get there. The conductors (or “ticket punchers” as you called them) are friendly and helpful — even at 4:30 in the morning, (ugh!). The transfer to the bus into San Francisco itself was very easy (though knowing which of the two busses to board was a little confusing the first time, but the bus drivers were helpful, too).

The AMTRAK to BART connection was a little scarier because there are no conductors on BART, and the person at the information booth was less than informational. If you read the signs and use a bit of common sense, it all works out though. BART also has a handy little application for your PDA so that you can carry the schedules, maps, and fares around with you. Sure I looked geeky (or was I just looking cool and trendy and the geekiness was all in my head?), but nobody seemed to care. Everyone else was too busy listening to their iPods to care what I was doing. BART is rather noisy, so something soothing for the ears IS helpful.

In the San Jose area the VTA light rail is very nice. It’s totally clean and feels very safe. The station announcements are fully automated and are both verbal and displayed on a scrolling LED marquee. I read that my transfer from AMTRAK was valid for my fare, but I never got a chance to test that. The only time I saw the fare inspectors, they took off after some young punks who skipped the train when they saw the inspectors coming (the whole train laughed at the kids because they were caught).

The best thing to do is use http://511.org before you go or dial 511 from your cell phone or (gasp!) a pay phone when you are there. 511.org has ALL the routing, fares, maps, and planning information you could ever need. Tell it where you are coming from, where you are going, and what time it all needs to happen, and they walk you right through it. Just grab a few alternates, too, just in case one of the links (usually the train or a bus) is late due to traffic. (Yes, trains suffer from traffic, too.)

I just love being able to work and relax without fighting the traffic. It may take longer than driving (not always if the traffic is really bad), but it’s also good for the environment. My whole outlook on public mass transit has improved a lot since all that travelling in January. Now if only Sacramento would improve their system to the same level.

Sorry my reply is so long. Your post inspired me. *blush*

Very corny, but it works for me.