Avoid Amtrak And Greyhound - Page 3

Oh really.........i thought we can use that ID

You honestly dont even have to worry when traveling on the west coast, amtrak on the west coast is like from the 70s. But when you get to chicago, which is where i transfered to go to new york its like an airport there, cops, drug sniffing dogs etc. But yea i never got checked for ID, and also, on the amtrak website there states a list of acceptable id, and one of them is School ID. Heres the link

http://www.amtrak.com/servlet/ContentServerpagename=Amtrak/am2Copy/Title_Image_Copy_Page&c=am2Copy&cid=1080080554204&ssid=342

so basically its like a state ID but student ID?

I recently order ISIC card but do I have to send photo pictures and school transcript ? anything like that?

Thats just for buying tickets and random ticket checks on board. That has nothing to do with ICE or CBP doing random checks. For them, anything less than government issued ID is unacceptable. If you're Latino/Latina you'll definitely be asked for govt. ID. If you're white you probably can get away with non-govt. Id but thats if you can talk the agent out of it.

If you're Arab or Middle Eastern looking, make sure to recite the national anthem and even then, your allegiance to our country is in doubt.

I just traveled on Amtrak from NJ to Washington, D.C. (Union Station) - my ID wasn't checked either way, and from what I could see no one in my train-cart was checked either.

Hi everyone,
I just discovered this website a couple days ago and am comforted that I'm in the company of other high acheiving dreamers. It brings me to tears when I read some of your stories because I can feel your pain.

I have a warning and a question for those of you who may know.
Last year, I traveled on an eastbound Amtrak train and was stopped by ICE at Rochester. At the time, I was totally not lucid and annoyed that the guy woke me up from my nap so I didn't really know what he was talking about. Heck, I didn't even know Rochester is only 37 miles or so away from the border! Anyway, I apparently gave a convincing enough argument using my college ID so the guy only hovered over my seat for 10 minutes thinking to himself about the gravitas of the situation and giving me a lecture before moving on. Lesson of the story here: Avoid the Amtrak stop in Rochester. I nearly had a heart attack.

So here's my question: I'm again traveling this year from NYC and want to know whether those who have traveled this summer on Amtrak or Greyhound have had trouble with the ICE guys. I don't want to pay a bundle for tickets only to know that I can't use it. And also, I only have one year of school left and it would suck alot if I had to leave now. Actually, it would probably break my mom's heart.

Thanks in advance! All your stories have truly helped me see how lucky I am in spite of our mutual situation.

Really, its not safe to travel anywhere now on the Amtrak or Greyhound. But if you're traveling upstate, there is an even greater degree of risk. If you're traveling downstate such as to PA, DE, MD, VA, NJ, then its a little less risky.

Have you considered the Chinatown buses? They're cheap and they carry virtually no risk.

china town buses, now that's smart, that's actually brilliant idea!!! I think those buses are cheaper by the way, I live in CA and some Chinese or Korean tourist buses to LA are typically cheaper than greyhound. Living in Cali I had no idea it was this dangerous to travel around the country, makes me kinda scared. But seriously if you only carry your student ID they are going to give you crap on a train? I mean I could be a total American citizen and only carry student ID...

why risk it?