Metro North Commuter Railroad

Gotta weigh in negatively after this report:

I used to do Metro North a lot when I lived in Connecticut for law school. Be assured that they will ALWAYS punch your tickets, no matter what. Unlike the LIRR, which sometimes won’t get your ticket the Metro North staff NEVER forget (even on major holidays). Seats are comfy, bathrooms are awful (I went in one once that was reeking in stench) & sometimes interesting things happen but it’s much safer and cleaner than the NYC subway system.
Also, unlike with the LIRR, Metro North will tell you in advance what track the train is leaving from so you don’t have to engage in a mad dash to the platform along with a hundred other people or more. Their process at Grand Central is so much more civilized and this rail is the much fancier, affluent cousin compared to LIRR. Sometimes the schedule isn’t ideal but as long as you aren’t taking the last train into New Haven, you’ll be fine.

The conductors on the commuter trains are in competition with the postal workers and the DMV to see who can be the rudest. They know there’s no private competition so they’re free to mock you and yell at you.
Going to Bridgeport CT on a Sunday afternoon in early May, this asshole conductor yelled at me for taking my ticket with me when going to the restroom. Of course, if I left it on the seat, he would have yelled at me for not taking it, or made me pay again.
Toward the end of the trip, asking him if I needed to move up to the next car to exit (as he was telling people to do for the previous stops) was a mistake. He said I’ve been annoying him with questions (nope) and if I needed to move up he would have already told me (because he’s so nice and helpful), and yelled at me to «just sit down and try to enjoy your ride» That ugly abuse for no reason ruined what was going to be a very special day and got me depressed.
I wasn’t surprised to hear about the derailment in Fairfield a couple weeks later. The animals who work on this line can’t even bother to keep the trains on the tracks because they hate their jobs and the passengers. Government unions make monsters out of men. Time to dismantle them.

When going upstate or to CT, this is the way to do it.
Usually way cheaper than Amtrak and you can mix and match if you have the time.