OK so I just took the Carolinian to Charlotte, and it was... OK. Last station so lots of people got off, a decent pickup driveway, bus stop across the street (I took a Lyft though - 14.5 hours on the train destroyed my will to transit). It wasn't terrible.
Charlotee is slated to get a new multi-modal hub at Graham and Trade streets. It will be served by Amtrak, the Carolinan (the old station on N. Tryon will be closed) along with the Trade Street tram line, the future Silver line (to Matthews in the southeast and Airport/Gastonia to the west) and future north Red line Regional Rail, along with Greyhound Bus service.
I love how Miles goes through all this shit to go to least used stations that are nearly halfway across the country, but still hasn't done the least used station that's a 25 minute subway ride away.
I'm trying to save some quick/cheap ones so I can keep the series going when I inevitably don't have the time/money to go to the western ones all the time! We'll see though, there's a big draw to quickness/cheapness...
Did you know that Charlotte is the Gateway to Gastonia? So when you finally reached Charlotte, I knew you were a hop, skip, jump there. Congratz on a successful tour at the Gashouse!
if they ever make a corridor between Charlotte and Atlanta they should make a station like highpoint,nc where the platforms are on the ground but the station accessible via stairs and elevators, keeps the tracks below but gives easy access downtown without much of a footprint
Really cool that Gastonia had free transit throughout the bulk of the pandemic, looks like they only ended it in July 2022 once federal funding dried up
Eastridge Mall was once a Westfield Shoppingtown and i think i sorta remembered that night when Train 19 went forwards & backwards out of Union Station.
Hi miles, I'm a new subscriber, found you through Geoff Marshall.. I'm a Bus driver in Brighton, south of England. Uk. So love your transit vids especially buses 🇬🇧👍😁🚌
What have I just stumbled upon lmfao you came all the way down here to go on Gastonia's public transit?? Some people here like to call Gastonia "The Armpit." Good to know they have an accessible Amtrak station at least 😆
For the Madrid Metro: missing 1 south of Atocha, 2 east of Principe de Varga, 5 North of Alanso Martinez, 7 north of Guzman El Bueno and Estes from Coslanda, 8 missing Pinar Del Ray and Columbia, 9 NW of Saniz de Brenda, 10 south of Casa Del Campo/Old 8-Norte, and all of 12. Haven't actually gotten off at all stops on 3 & 6 but have gone end to end on both (the latter was after I went to Faunia and decided to take the long way back because I was bored-also did it on another occasion. Line 3 was to escape rain on Dos de Mayo). I visited most of the key stations on line 4 (but that's a whole mess your going to need to key an eye out for. I did do that trip weekly), but I did visit all 6 current stops on line 11. I've been through Reclotas once (after that time I took Metro Este), but mostly C-3(a) out to Pinto for Parque Warner and once all the way to Aranjuez, as well as the first Airport Line of the day to the Airport
I'm coming back to watch this video and it makes me wonder if places like this could do a Penn Station for their train station. Yeah the station would be below ground, but it being in the city center would be a massive improvement. Sadly trying to get that done in a place like Gastonia with the station still being so new would probably be a total disaster.
Educated guess based on another small station where I waited out a delay. The doors lock at the appointed time but you wont get in trouble for trespassing if youre ticketed for a delayed train.
You just reminded me to upload the 2nd half of all buses; Gastonia edition: Summer/Fall Edition. You had it free while I had to pay a $12 10-trip Ticket.
I also don't understand why the Charlotte Amtrak station is where it is just outside of uptown. The tracks run right through the city. Could easily put a station right around where Bank Of America Stadium is.
They're actually working on that right now (finally). A platform has already been built right where the mainline crosses Trade St., but service isn't slated to begin until next year. Back when the dinosaurs roamed, Charlotte had a lovely Southern Railway station about where the Greyhound is now, but that got torn down around the same time as most of Uptown's other historic buildings.
I like the crescent the best of any of the Eastern routes we have been on. A lot of people prefer the cardinal but actually I like the crescent better.
The extent of the Crescent that I've ridden is shown in this video - I feel like I haven't seen the good bits! I have ridden an entire Cardinal and loved it, though.
Next time you come to Philly we should meet up. When i would go get my sister in Charlotte i would take the Carolinian down and wait in the station until the Crescent took us back north at like 230am. But they changed the time it leaves so now it leaves at like 615. wouldn't it have made more sense to just bring an engine down from DC instead of backing the entire train up?
Where can we find the list of least-used stations? Gastonia remids me of Sandpoint, ID, the least (and most, it’s the only one) used station in the state. Just the Empire Builder daily in each direction, both in the middle of the night. Never got on, but stayed up a couple times to watch trains while vacationing there.
Late comment, but very weird seeing you walking around my city and riding the same buses lol. As for the station, I used to drive by it on my way home from work when I lived in that neighborhood you walked through and I always thought it was a terrible place for a station. It doesn't help that the buses dont go anywhere near it. The bus service itself is decent for the town, the lack of multiple connections to Charlotte CATS is a but annoying though. Apologies for our lack of food downtown. Glad you had fun though. :)
@MilesinTransit oh and one more thing! If you are ever for some random reason are back in Gastonia, that ice cream place you passed with the ice cream plant next to it is called Tony's. That's some of the best ice cream I've ever had and the interior has hardly changed since like the 50s. And I don't think I've ever seen that cat cafe open lol.
@@MilesinTransit ah but like so much else in the world it’s gotten much worse since 2019 lmao. mostly due to operator shortages. in the last service update they eliminated one-seat rides from north to south across town and actually decreased frequency on some routes. and the pulse is nigh on unusable now, trips get dropped at an alarming frequency. but hey at least it’s free
Tbf just because the tracks are in a ditch doesnt mean it cant have a station. Reno grade seperated the entire city and lowered the train platform with it keeping the station in the Same place so if they actually invested properly they could have put a train station in the trench but that would require actually staffing the station. 😅
It's a shame what happened to Gastonia's transit system. A few months back they got rid of all the fixed routes, put the buses in storage pending possible sale, and made the entire thing microtransit.
@@MilesinTransit I'm guessing it was a funding issue. I'd seen a post last night with a pic of the buses parked in a lot just weathering away and a comment in the thread linked this video!
Those business centre computers are terribly out of date. That version of Chrome looks at least 5 years old and that Windows 10 is a version pre-May 2019. Also I know the Genesis locomotives are old now but three? Siemens please help!
It was, I really appreciate it! In this video I didn't include anything directly from the livestream - it was just stuff I filmed on the proper camera - otherwise I'm sure it would've made the cut!
Amtrak has a system where you can "bid" for a higher class of service, and they literally call the lowest amount a "poor bid." From there it goes "fair bid," "good bid," "strong bid," and "excellent bid."
Yo Miles, that cat café bit reminds me of a cat café that almost opened in Brighton. Here's a 50-minute documentary video on the owner's online antics, really kinda sad tbh ua-cam.com/video/wNsqEntHuV8/v-deo.html
This is so NC to me. Run down strip malls, no sidewalks, the train station is in the middle of nowhere, an afterthought 😢
OK so I just took the Carolinian to Charlotte, and it was... OK. Last station so lots of people got off, a decent pickup driveway, bus stop across the street (I took a Lyft though - 14.5 hours on the train destroyed my will to transit). It wasn't terrible.
Charlotee is slated to get a new multi-modal hub at Graham and Trade streets. It will be served by Amtrak, the Carolinan (the old station on N. Tryon will be closed) along with the Trade Street tram line, the future Silver line (to Matthews in the southeast and Airport/Gastonia to the west) and future north Red line Regional Rail, along with Greyhound Bus service.
I think you mean small town America.
I love how Miles goes through all this shit to go to least used stations that are nearly halfway across the country, but still hasn't done the least used station that's a 25 minute subway ride away.
I'm trying to save some quick/cheap ones so I can keep the series going when I inevitably don't have the time/money to go to the western ones all the time! We'll see though, there's a big draw to quickness/cheapness...
@@MilesinTransit so not like we’ll see least used station in California anytime soon
@@QuarioQuario54321lol
@@QuarioQuario54321: Don’t underestimate the power of the POOR BID! Miles might get to Cali sooner than you think! 👊😜👊
Did you know that Charlotte is the Gateway to Gastonia? So when you finally reached Charlotte, I knew you were a hop, skip, jump there. Congratz on a successful tour at the Gashouse!
Thanks!
Absolutely great you toured the entire local transit system of Gastonia, even more impressive they have one!
*Poor bid*
Thank you!
You're right to be impressed, they've since shut down the bus system in favor of subsidized ride share...
That's ALOT nicer than the Gastonia station used to be.
if they ever make a corridor between Charlotte and Atlanta they should make a station like highpoint,nc where the platforms are on the ground but the station accessible via stairs and elevators, keeps the tracks below but gives easy access downtown without much of a footprint
Really cool that Gastonia had free transit throughout the bulk of the pandemic, looks like they only ended it in July 2022 once federal funding dried up
Aw man, didn't realize it ended. Small bus systems that don't make much revenue from fares should probably be free across the board!
Eastridge Mall was once a Westfield Shoppingtown and i think i sorta remembered that night when Train 19 went forwards & backwards out of Union Station.
I've also been on the Sunway bus that stops in Gastonia twice. It links Charlotte w/Gastonia, Lincolnton, Hickory, Lenoir and ends in Boone.
When I worked in downtown you could set your watch to the bus it always passed through downtown around 640. I don't think I ever saw them late
@@charlesg-vg6sr yea I remember Sunway buses being consistently on time.
You’re a really good narrator, sometimes I listen to your videos like an audiobook
Thank you so much!
Least used Amtrak stations in every state. What a simple but brilliant idea
Thank you so much!
Hi miles, I'm a new subscriber, found you through Geoff Marshall.. I'm a Bus driver in Brighton, south of England. Uk.
So love your transit vids especially buses 🇬🇧👍😁🚌
Let’s hear it for Miles and his POOR BID! 👊❤️👊
I actually live near gastonia… so surreal seeing you go by so many familiar places too me
When you said you were going to Charlotte I hoped you were planning a video there. Very excited for the video on the light rail system!
Next week!
@@MilesinTransit I don’t know what I am going to do if you ever stop posting 😅 You fill such a perfect niche
@@AutumnBosco Thank you so much, I really appreciate that!
What have I just stumbled upon lmfao you came all the way down here to go on Gastonia's public transit?? Some people here like to call Gastonia "The Armpit." Good to know they have an accessible Amtrak station at least 😆
For the Madrid Metro: missing 1 south of Atocha, 2 east of Principe de Varga, 5 North of Alanso Martinez, 7 north of Guzman El Bueno and Estes from Coslanda, 8 missing Pinar Del Ray and Columbia, 9 NW of Saniz de Brenda, 10 south of Casa Del Campo/Old 8-Norte, and all of 12. Haven't actually gotten off at all stops on 3 & 6 but have gone end to end on both (the latter was after I went to Faunia and decided to take the long way back because I was bored-also did it on another occasion. Line 3 was to escape rain on Dos de Mayo). I visited most of the key stations on line 4 (but that's a whole mess your going to need to key an eye out for. I did do that trip weekly), but I did visit all 6 current stops on line 11. I've been through Reclotas once (after that time I took Metro Este), but mostly C-3(a) out to Pinto for Parque Warner and once all the way to Aranjuez, as well as the first Airport Line of the day to the Airport
I remember that live stream
I'm coming back to watch this video and it makes me wonder if places like this could do a Penn Station for their train station. Yeah the station would be below ground, but it being in the city center would be a massive improvement. Sadly trying to get that done in a place like Gastonia with the station still being so new would probably be a total disaster.
Educated guess based on another small station where I waited out a delay. The doors lock at the appointed time but you wont get in trouble for trespassing if youre ticketed for a delayed train.
I've gotten on and off the train at Gastonia a few times. Including this April and November.
Can't wait for when you do the least used Amtrak station in Texas! Great vid!
Thanks! I'm hoping to save that one for last but we'll see!
You just reminded me to upload the 2nd half of all buses; Gastonia edition: Summer/Fall Edition. You had it free while I had to pay a $12 10-trip Ticket.
I also don't understand why the Charlotte Amtrak station is where it is just outside of uptown. The tracks run right through the city. Could easily put a station right around where Bank Of America Stadium is.
They're actually working on that right now (finally). A platform has already been built right where the mainline crosses Trade St., but service isn't slated to begin until next year.
Back when the dinosaurs roamed, Charlotte had a lovely Southern Railway station about where the Greyhound is now, but that got torn down around the same time as most of Uptown's other historic buildings.
I'm surprised you didn't have a travel companion in this video
These trips always look fun
4:53 I like how Classy Whale got in the video lmao
I like the crescent the best of any of the Eastern routes we have been on. A lot of people prefer the cardinal but actually I like the crescent better.
The extent of the Crescent that I've ridden is shown in this video - I feel like I haven't seen the good bits! I have ridden an entire Cardinal and loved it, though.
Hear any Gastonese while you were there? It a pretty unsettling language to an English speaker, but as a local you get use to it.
Next time you come to Philly we should meet up. When i would go get my sister in Charlotte i would take the Carolinian down and wait in the station until the Crescent took us back north at like 230am. But they changed the time it leaves so now it leaves at like 615. wouldn't it have made more sense to just bring an engine down from DC instead of backing the entire train up?
I had know idea we had this
Where can we find the list of least-used stations? Gastonia remids me of Sandpoint, ID, the least (and most, it’s the only one) used station in the state. Just the Empire Builder daily in each direction, both in the middle of the night. Never got on, but stayed up a couple times to watch trains while vacationing there.
There's a link to a spreadsheet of all the least used stations in the video description!
That „ business center“ made me laugh..
Nobody has updated anything there since ca 2007😂
And just when I thought we couldn’t get another “poor bid” in! 17:59
Late comment, but very weird seeing you walking around my city and riding the same buses lol.
As for the station, I used to drive by it on my way home from work when I lived in that neighborhood you walked through and I always thought it was a terrible place for a station. It doesn't help that the buses dont go anywhere near it. The bus service itself is decent for the town, the lack of multiple connections to Charlotte CATS is a but annoying though.
Apologies for our lack of food downtown.
Glad you had fun though. :)
I did probably overrate this station, if we're being honest! Thanks for watching!
@MilesinTransit oh and one more thing! If you are ever for some random reason are back in Gastonia, that ice cream place you passed with the ice cream plant next to it is called Tony's. That's some of the best ice cream I've ever had and the interior has hardly changed since like the 50s.
And I don't think I've ever seen that cat cafe open lol.
Bet they had PTC issues with the engines at DC.
I wouldn't be surprised!
You are really learning the knobs of the video editing tool 😂
miles come to richmond and ride GRTC with me it’s so bad it’ll be fun
I don't hate GRTC! I rode it in 2019 and I feel like it punches above its weight for a small city bus system - the Pulse is overrated though.
@@MilesinTransit ah but like so much else in the world it’s gotten much worse since 2019 lmao. mostly due to operator shortages. in the last service update they eliminated one-seat rides from north to south across town and actually decreased frequency on some routes. and the pulse is nigh on unusable now, trips get dropped at an alarming frequency. but hey at least it’s free
Oh wow, that sounds like a HUGE downgrade! Fair enough!
Genuinely I’ve never been on a train that’s left union station to go south on time
Tbf just because the tracks are in a ditch doesnt mean it cant have a station. Reno grade seperated the entire city and lowered the train platform with it keeping the station in the Same place so if they actually invested properly they could have put a train station in the trench but that would require actually staffing the station. 😅
Good point!
It's a shame what happened to Gastonia's transit system. A few months back they got rid of all the fixed routes, put the buses in storage pending possible sale, and made the entire thing microtransit.
I didn't hear about that! That's terrible!
@@MilesinTransit I'm guessing it was a funding issue. I'd seen a post last night with a pic of the buses parked in a lot just weathering away and a comment in the thread linked this video!
Those business centre computers are terribly out of date. That version of Chrome looks at least 5 years old and that Windows 10 is a version pre-May 2019.
Also I know the Genesis locomotives are old now but three? Siemens please help!
Surprised it wasn’t Kannapolis 😂
@6:10 ALCs can’t come soon enough
Oh wow this was actually filmed on my birthday 😂😂 12-8
Happy belated birthday!
Where did this guy start from what city?
Philly
Amlate for sure
I live in Gastonia. The area where that station is and where he is walking around before. Daylight is full of drug addicts and homeless people
But what did you get for lunch in Charlotte?
A burger!
You missed the secret abandoned top floor of the mall
Damn they don't serve "railroad french toast" before 3:22 am? What a scam smh
the "eating dinner" portion of this video had some major Beatles rooftop concert energy
WOAH HOLY CRAP YOU DID GET RAILROAD FRENCH TOAST!!! I am glad I persevered with this video because that was an AMAZING reveal
9:54 you're following the rules? wow, disappointed
I love that Dairy Queen you passed in the downtown!!! It's very mid-century modern, look at those checkered tiles!!!
14:50 "Plastics Drive"
What does the poor bid thing mean?
Amtrak has a system where you can "bid up" to a higher class of service, and if you do the lowest price possible, they call it a "poor bid"!
In Poland timetable must be correct, not old. In USA not?
There are lots of old timetables here :(
I should've been in it lol, that 2 dollar donation was clutch no?
It was, I really appreciate it! In this video I didn't include anything directly from the livestream - it was just stuff I filmed on the proper camera - otherwise I'm sure it would've made the cut!
@@MilesinTransit Thank you for this video though. I enjoyed every second of it.
Thank you so much!
What does it mean that your bid was "poor"?
Amtrak has a system where you can "bid" for a higher class of service, and they literally call the lowest amount a "poor bid." From there it goes "fair bid," "good bid," "strong bid," and "excellent bid."
Yo Miles, that cat café bit reminds me of a cat café that almost opened in Brighton. Here's a 50-minute documentary video on the owner's online antics, really kinda sad tbh
ua-cam.com/video/wNsqEntHuV8/v-deo.html
Oh wow, this looks fascinating - I'll have to check it out!
The soda or water in the machine is already cold why get ice? You're wasting space in the cup of what matters the soda.
I eat the ice
🤔😲✌🏾
Poor bid? More like poor vid /s
Well that's mean
@@MilesinTransit yet I still liked the vid. Just felt the need to make a bad pun
Fair enough!
Lol they are all barely used stop coping