About Those Amtrak Buses
We call them "Motor Coaches," but you get the idea. Amtrak California Motor Coaches connect trains to many communities which may never have train service. In some instances they were introduced to test the market for Amtrak service and have been replaced by Amtrak California trains.
Amtrak Motor Coaches are only permitted to carry Amtrak passenger who are connecting to or from a train. By California law (with only one exception, also in the law), people are not permitted to ride these coaches locally. That means that although there is a bus from Bakersfield to Palm Springs, people are not allowed to ride it from Palm Springs to San Bernardino for example. If you have a question about where you can ride Amtrak California Motor Coaches, talk to an Amtrak agent.
Amtrak Motor Coaches offer the best of two worlds: train speed and comfort with local access to communities as far north as McKinleyville and Dunsmuir, and as far south as Indio. Some Amtrak California Motor Coaches even serve Oregon and Nevada. In the urban areas of Southern California, Amtrak Motor Coaches allow you to reach your destinations without going through downtown Los Angeles.
Using Amtrak Motor Coaches is easy and as seamless as possible. Tickets for Amtrak Motor Coaches are bought at the same time as your train tickets. If you don't have a ticket when you board the bus (at an away station), don't worry. Even for trains requiring reservations, the driver will take you (if there's space) to the staffed station and see that you get your tickets for both train and motor coach.
Transfers between trains and buses occur at Amtrak stations, usually staffed ones. You don't need to worry about where the transfer will be, as the tickets are for the entire trip. If you are going between staffed stations, you can even check your baggage for both train and bus trip. You can carry smaller items on both the trains and buses, stowing them in the overhead racks or bins.
Anyplace you can take a bicycle on an Amtrak train, you can do it on an Amtrak California Motor Coach. Your bicycle will be placed in the luggage bins below the bus's seats.
For more information about bring your bicycle on Amtrak Motor Coaches, or how to make Amtrak's Motor Coaches work for you, visit your Amtrak ticket office, or call 1-800-USA-RAIL.