Oddbean new post about login | logout @c6f37363 I could wish the station weren’t such a schlep from the airport, or that there were express trains into DC, but having the current service is still a huge upgrade from an $85 cab ride. We’re way behind most major European cities in providing easy transit access to/from local airports, which is unfortunate. Hell, the 747 express bus from YUL to Montreal is better.
@b59c91f9 @c6f37363 I flew into IAD last week around 10p and figured I’d take Metro home since I’m right on the Silver line. When I checked with CityMapper, it showed I wouldn’t be home until about 11:05. I took an Uber for $50 instead. Not ideal.
@e99afe61 @c6f37363 I just came back last Friday from a trip that included - Warsaw (RT to/from city on bus; cost 4.40 zlotys, about ~$1.08/person/trip) - Riga (bus into city w/stop 5 mins. from my hotel; cost 1.50€/person) - Helsinki (combined tram/commuter rail trip to airport; cost 4.10€/person) HEL was the most comparable to IAD in distance & time, except that service on the P & I trains seems to be a lot more frequent than on the Silver Line.
@b59c91f9 @e99afe61 I've also taken the bus to RIX! Not great, not terrible. (Sorry, wrong former Soviet republic for that reference.) My last transit trip to an airport overseas was CPH, and that was a best-case scenario even though I had to double back into town on the Metro. BER, OTOH, was about an hour on two trains.
@c6f37363 @e99afe61 Haven’t been to BER or CPH, but I can’t help wistfully recalling all the places—Bergen, Milan, Vienna, Porto, etc.—where the trip from the center city is a painless train ride. (Porto involves one line change that I don’t recall being very difficult.) Rome, OTOH, was worse than BWI, so we got that goin’ for us, which is nice.
@b59c91f9 @e99afe61 I wrote a post ranking the U.S. airport-rail connections that I'd used somewhat recently a few years ago (I think IAD would rank below DCA but above SEA) but haven't done that for airports in Europe. Hmm... 1. BCN 2. LIS 3. CPH 4. BER 5. LHR (haven't tried the Elizabeth Line yet, though) 6. CDG 7. LGW https://robpegoraro.com/2018/09/08/ranking-u-s-airport-rail-connections/
@b59c91f9 It's a 4-5 minute walk, as I've timed it repeatedly. That is at or near the absolute bottom of my issues with IAD (obvs, the C/D concourse tops that list).
@c6f37363 MOON BUGGIES 4 EVA I’m curious what else is on your list. The byzantine/circuitous security-screening setup?
@b59c91f9 While I like the ramp views from the people movers, it's a bad experience to have part of a 777's worth of people crammed into one for the ride to the IAB. The low-A and, to a lesser extent, the Z gates are also awful, although Priority Pass and Capital One lounge access can make them less so.