Volume 1, No.7 July IS, 1974 Amtrak's Future Plans Include Four New Train Routes Amtrak is planning major route route via the Delaware & Hudson expansions by restoring service on four Railroad. The Proposal calls for service lines presently without passenger trains. to be restored under the auspices of Two of the routes are being established Governor Malcolm Wilson's Transpor­ under authority issued to the Secretary tation Program, adopted earlier this of Transportation, and two lines are the year by the New York Legislature. The result of State Government cooperation program is to be administered by the with Amtrak. State Department of Transportation in conjunction with Amtrak under Section Advance Bookings Boston - Cleveland - Chicago 403(b) of the Amtrak law. Section 403(b) permits a State to seek Up This Year On June 27, U.S. Secretary of additional Amtrak service by contract­ Transportation Claude S. Brinegar The number of advanced summer ing with Amtrak to pay two-thirds of announced the selection of the Boston­ bookings on Amtrak trains is running any operating losses. Chicago Lake Shore route for a well ahead of the same period last year. Carl B. Sterzing, Jr., President of the two-year experimental rail passenger Amtrak currently has 170,000 active Delaware & Hudson, welcomed the service. Passenger Name Records (PNR's) on opportunity to cooperate with Amtrak, The route will connect Boston and file in its computers. System advance and said the train "will once again Chicago by way of Albany, Buffalo, bookings are a healthy 12 to 15 percent enable national and international Erie, Cleveland and South Bend. ahead oflast year. travelers to enjoy the scenic D&H route Selection of the route was authorized by along Lake Champlain and through "The reason advance bookings are so the Amtrak Improvement Act of 1973. New York's historic North Country on a healthy is that Amtrak is in a strong In announcing the Boston-Chicago daily basis." position to better serve the public this route selection, Secretary Brinegar year," said Roger Brown, Director - commented that "of the many alterna­ Sales. "We've become more efficient in tives considered, the Boston-Chicago Chicago - Lansing - Port Huron answering customer telephone in­ route serves the largest potential quiries; we're offering a record number market that does not now have The State of Michigan is proceeding of tour packages, and we've added connective Amtrak service." In addi­ with a plan, under the direction of routes to our system. All of this has tion, "this interstate route offers Governor William G. Milliken, to improved our ability to market our excellent system connectivity at Chicago restore passenger service between services. " to other major popUlation centers." Chicago, Lansing and Port Huron over the lines of the Penn Central and Grand Phil Held, Manager - Reservations Norfolk - Roanoke - Cincinnati Trunk Western. Control, said "While these programs James C. Kellogg, Michigan's Deputy have helped to cause a surge in Secretary Brinegar also announced Director of Urban and Public Trans­ business, there are trains with space that a route between Norfolk and portation, has submitted a Section available for sale by Amtrak reserva­ Cincinnati would be designated for a 403(b) proposal to Amtrak. tions, ticketing and sales personnel. two-year experimental passenger service Specific details of both 403(b) Trains which have good-to-excellent in response to provisions of the Second proposals are under study by Amtrak's space availability are the North Coast Supplemental Appropriations Act of David A. Watts, Director - State & Hiawatha, National Limited, San 1974. Local Affairs, and William Tucci, State Francisco Zephyr, James Whitcomb Albany - Montreal & Local Research Assistant. Riley, Montrealer, Panama Limited, At a later date, Amtrak will Expo '74, and Inter-American. Ofthese Plans are going forward for a service announce schedules, intermediate ser­ trains, the Montrealer and Zephyr have to be operated in conjunction with New vice points, and the date for inaugurat­ Continued on page 2, col. 1 York State on the Albany - Montreal ing service over these four routes. SUMMER - continued from page 1 Ridership Up 25% heavy booking activity close to the "By doing a conscientious job in Amtrak's system-wide ridership has departure date." ferreting out no-shows, and by encour­ risen again, increasing by 25 percent There are also several trains where aging passengers to reserve space on during May over the same month in space is very tight this summer due to alternate routes and days, Amtrak 1973. route popularity and advanced reserva­ personnel will insure that as many The number of passengers was up on tions. They are the Broadway Limited, travelers as possible find the space they virtuaIly all of Amtrak's 34 routes, Southwest Limited, Empire Builder and need for summer travel. By doing so, totalling 1,475,668; about 300,000 more Silver Star. employees will be performing a great persons than were carried in May of "With so many reservations in the service for the traveling public," 1973. system. we will frequently find trains concluded Brown. The highest percentage of gain was which appear to be completely booked. recorded by Amtrak's Chicago-Florida The important thing to realize is that Wolverine Makes route, up 138 percent over last year. we must keep a positive attitude and Other long-haul routes which showed open mind about this because, quite significant increases were Los Angeles­ often. space will open up on a Special Stop for Seattle up 65 percent; Chicago-Seattle completely-booked train," said Held. via Wenatchee and Billings up 41 When space IS not available, Amtrak Town's Anniversary- percent, New York/ Washi-ngtoH-e hi­ reservation and ticketing employees cago up 47 percent; Chicago-Oakland encourage travelers to reserve space on Residents of Dexter, Michigan want up 60 percent; Chicago-Houston up 37 alternate trains or dates. A case in point to thank Amtrak for superb perfor­ percent; New Orleans-Los Angeles up is the Empire Builder and the North mance in carrying over 1,300 passen­ 35 percent; Chicago-New Orleans up 32 Coast Hiawatha. Through July, the gers to the town's Sesquicentennial percent; and Chicago-Los Angeles up Empire Builder is completely booked (1 SO-year anniversary). 30 percent. on many dates. The North Coast Washington-Cumberland continued Hiawatha, except for a few key dates, According to Dave DeVries, Amtrak to lead the short-distance routes with a has space available and is an attractive Manager of Sales -Detroit, a special 192 percent increase. New York alternative. Furthermore, family plan stop was made in Dexter on Trains 361 City-Springfield was up 61 percent; dates on many services are difficult to and 360, the Wolverine, on June 25 and Empire Service (New York-Albany-Buf­ reserve. If travel can be encouraged on 26 to carry passengers from Detroit and falo) up 52 percent; and Chicago-De­ non-family dates, space is usually Ann Arbor to the celebration. troit up 38 percent. available. On the two routes which carry the Dexter citizens rode the trains in most passengers -- New York-Washing­ Amtrak personnel continually purge period costumes, carried picnic baskets, ton and New Y ork-Boston -- ridership reservations to open up space on trains and passed out cookies to passengers was up 12 percent and 47 percent by weeding out "no-shows" -- people while explaining the Sesquicentennial. respectively. Nearly 800,000 persons who make reservations but never They also distributed a brochure to all traveled by Amtrak trains in the actually ride. The no-show problem has passengers, stating: "There will be a Boston-Washington corridor during plagued the travel industry for many slight delay in your trip today because May. years. By holding reservations for seats of a special event in Dexter .... We hope not use ,no-s ows cause otner-p-assen-=­ this brief stop won't inconvenience gers to be inconvenienced and a anyone." considerable loss of revenue for the company. The Ann Arbor News, in an editorial, AMTRAK NEWS This no-show problem is eased by congratulated Amtrak for cooperating Amtrak's policy of applying a hold limit with Dexter officials. It said, "Amtrak to a reservation. Customers who have has scored a public relations triumph" Amtrak News is published twice a not purchased tickets for their reserva­ and proclaimed Amtrak "The People's tions by a certain date are telephoned Train!" month for Amtrak employees and by Amtrak reservations personnel. The employees of participating railroads customer is asked to pick up his ticket " Over 650 of the Dexter-bound who are engaged in passenger or to cancel his reservations. passengers were children and they loved service. It is published by: If the customer had changed his the trains. Many of them hadn't been plans and will not travel on Amtrak, his on one before," said DeVries. space is immediately made available for The town officials loved the trains, National Railroad Passenger Corp. use by another customer. The most too. Dexter, with a population of 1,800, Public Relations Dept. reliable customer is one who has could not have easily accommodated 955 L'Enfant Plaza North, S.W. actually purchased his ticket. He is less the guests if all of the families had Washington, D.C. 20024 likely to become a no-show. arrived in their private automobiles. -2- A passenger is the most important person in our business. A passenger is not an interruption of our work .. he is the purpose of it. We are not doing him a favor by serving him .. he is doing us a favor by giving us the opportunity to do so. A passenger is not dependent upon us .