Up for a little mischief? April 9, 2010 12:19 AM   Subscribe

Please help me get to the SF meetup this weekend from Fresno.

Amtrak seems my best bet (arv Sat, dep Sun) but I don't know which station I need and the Amtrak page is being temperamental. Also, hotel advice/alternatives for someone cardiac-challenged? Thanks!
posted by Ardiril to MetaFilter Gatherings at 12:19 AM (5 comments total)

It's actually better to get off at Richmond, which has an integrated Amtrak-to-BART transfer station. Emeryville is closer to SF, but then you're stuck in Emeryville (which is not well integrated into regional public transport).
posted by kittyprecious at 6:54 AM on April 9, 2010 [1 favorite]


Amtrak continues on to downtown SF (Ferry Building, Market Street, etc.) by bus. I find it easier than getting off in Richmond (or Oakland, in this case) and taking Bart, but I know a lot of other people don't.
posted by mudpuppie at 8:19 AM on April 9, 2010


Should have clarified -- Amtrak continues on to SF by bus from Emeryville.
posted by mudpuppie at 8:20 AM on April 9, 2010


I used to commute from Sacramento to Stonestown for a few months and I always took the train (yeah, it made for a really long day).

It's really easy. The train drops you off at Emeryville, just walk outside the station (with everyone else), wait a couple of minutes for the shuttle bus and it drops you off right at Transbay. From there it's just working out how to get wherever by cab or muni.
posted by geckoinpdx at 3:57 PM on April 9, 2010


I ride the Capitol Corridor train between Oakland and Davis every day (in fact, I'm on it now), and I can say with certainty that getting on BART in Richmond and taking it to the City will be faster than taking the Amtrak coach from Emeryville to San Francisco. You may prefer the certainty of having Amtrak handle the whole trip, though. However, if the train is on time, you won't have to wait more than 10 minutes at the Richmond station for a BART train and you'll save close to half an hour, at least according to the San Joaquin schedule I just picked up. (download a pdf of the San Joaquin schedule here.) The transfer is seamless, too- you go downstairs from the train platform and turn right to get to BART. (If the San Joaquin is anything like the CC, you'll be able to buy a 10 dollar BART ticket at the train's snack bar for eight dollars, and the round trip from Richmond to 16th st (right near Frijtz) is 8.60.)

Anyway, it may cost a little more, but that's what I would do. I like trains better than busses, even though Amtrak busses are perfectly okay.
posted by oneirodynia at 6:34 PM on April 9, 2010 [1 favorite]


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