Amtrak
Reporting marks	AMTK, AMTZ
Locale	Continental United States, as well as Vancouver, Toronto, and Montreal
Dates of operation	1971–present
Track gauge	4 ft 8½ in (1435 mm) (standard gauge)
Headquarters	Washington, D.C.

The National Railroad Passenger Corporation, doing business as Amtrak (AAR reporting marks AMTK and AMTZ), is a government-owned corporation that was organized on May 1, 1971, to provide intercity passenger train service in the United States. The Phrase " doing business as " (abbreviated DBA or d/b/a) is a legal term, meaning that the Name of the business or operation A reporting mark is an identification assigned by the Association of American Railroads (AAR to rail carriers and other companies operating in North America. Events 305 - Diocletian and Maximian retire from the office of Roman Emperor. Year 1971 ( MCMLXXI) was a Common year starting on Friday (link will display full calendar of the 1971 Gregorian calendar. Inter-city rail services are express Train passenger services which cover longer distances than Commuter trains Africa Inter-city services are reasonably A train is a connected series of vehicles that move along a track ( Permanent way) to transport freight or passengers from one place to another The United States of America —commonly referred to as the "Amtrak" is a portmanteau of the words "American" and "track". ^[1]

All of Amtrak's preferred stock is owned by the U. Preferred stock, also called preferred shares or preference shares, is typically a higher ranking stock than Voting shares, and its terms are negotiated S. federal government. The members of its board of directors are appointed by the President of the United States and are subject to confirmation by the United States Senate. The President of the United States is the Head of state and Head of government of the United States and is the highest political official in United States by The United States Senate is the Upper house of the bicameral United States Congress, the Lower house being the House of Representatives Common stock was issued in 1971 to railroads that contributed capital and equipment; its current holders^[2] consider the stock to be worthless but declined a 2002 buy-out offer by Amtrak. A voting share (also called common stock or ordinary share) is a share of Stock giving the Stockholder the right to vote on matters ^[3]

Amtrak employs nearly 19,000 people. It operates passenger service on 21,000 miles of track primarily owned by other railroads connecting 500 destinations in 46 states. ^[4] Some routes serve Canada. Country to "Dominion of Canada" or "Canadian Federation" or anything else please read the Talk Page In fiscal year 2006, Amtrak served 24. A fiscal year (or financial year, or sometimes budget year) is a period used for calculating annual ("yearly" Financial statements in Businesses 3 million passengers, a company record. According to estimates for fiscal year 2007, Amtrak has served over the 25 million passenger mark, a 6% increase from the previous year. ^[5]

Contents 1 History 1.1 Passenger rail service before Amtrak 1.2 Causes of decline of passenger rail 1.2.1 Government regulation and labor issues 1.2.2 Subsidized competition 1.3 Rail Passenger Service Act 1.4 Early days 1.5 Leaders and political influences 1.6 Modern history (1980s to present) 2 Public funding 2.1 Controversy 3 Labor issues 4 Amtrak operations and services 4.1 Rail passenger efficiency versus other modes 4.2 Intermodal connections 4.3 Gaps in service 4.4 Guest Rewards 4.5 Freight 4.6 Commuter services 5 Classes of Service 6 Trains and tracks 6.1 Tracks owned by Amtrak 6.1.1 Northeast Corridor 6.1.2 Philadelphia to Harrisburg Main Line 6.1.3 Empire Corridor 6.1.4 New Haven-Springfield Line 6.1.5 Other tracks 6.2 Motive power and rolling stock 7 See also 8 References 9 Other sources 10 External links

History

Amtrak's origins are traceable to the sustained decline of private passenger rail services in the United States from about 1920 to 1970. The United States of America —commonly referred to as the In 1971, in response to the decline, Congress and the President created Amtrak. The United States Congress is the bicameral Legislature of the federal government of the United States of America, consisting of two houses The President of the United States is the Head of state and Head of government of the United States and is the highest political official in United States by For its entire existence, the company has been subjected to political cross-winds and insufficiencies of capital resources and owned railway. Recent years have been among Amtrak's brightest; the corporation completed a significant rail project in the northeast in the early 2000s while its major competitors — particularly airlines — were affected by bankruptcies and rising fuel costs.

Passenger rail service before Amtrak

From the middle 19th century until approximately 1920, travel from one city to another in the United States was almost certainly by rail. By 1910, close to 100 per cent of intercity passenger trips were by railroad. ^[7] The rails and the trains were owned and operated by private, for-profit organizations. Approximately 65,000 railroad passenger cars operated in 1929. ^[8]

For a long time after 1920, passenger rail's popularity diminished and there were a series of pullbacks and tentative recoveries. Rail passenger revenues declined dramatically between 1920 and 1934,^[7] but in the mid-1930s, railroads reignited popular imagination with service improvements and new, diesel-powered streamliners, such as the gleaming silver Pioneer Zephyr and Flying Yankee. A streamliner is any vehicle that incorporates streamlining to produce a shape that provides less resistance to air. The Pioneer Zephyr is a diesel-powered Railroad train formed of Railroad cars permanently articulated together with Jacobs bogies built The Flying Yankee was a diesel -powered Streamliner built in 1935 for the Maine Central Railroad and Boston and Maine Corporation by ^[7] Even with the improvements, on a relative basis, traffic continued to erode and by 1940 railroads held 67 per cent of passenger-miles in the United States. ^[7] World War II broke the malaise. World War II, or the Second World War, (often abbreviated WWII) was a global military conflict which involved a majority of the world's nations, including During the war, troop movements and restrictions on automobile fuel generated a sixfold increase in passenger traffic from the low point of the Depression. ^[7] After the war, railroads rejuvenated overworked and neglected fleets with fast and often luxurious streamliners — epitomized by the Super Chief and California Zephyr — which inspired the last major resurgence in passenger rail travel. The Super Chief was one of the named passenger trains and the Flagship of the Atchison Topeka and Santa Fe Railway. The California Zephyr is a 2438-mile (3924-km long Passenger train route operated by Amtrak in the Midwestern and Western United In 1948, Santa Fe CEO Fred Gurley reported a "complete reversal of our passenger traffic picture", with 1947 revenues exceeding those of 1936 by 220%. Fred G Gurley (1889 &ndash July 4 1976) was president and executive committee chairman of Atchison Topeka and Santa Fe Railway.

The postwar resurgence was short-lived. In 1946, there remained 45 per cent fewer passenger trains than in 1929,^[7] and the decline quickened despite railroad optimism. Passengers disappeared and so did trains. Between 1946 and 1964, the annual number of passengers declined from 770 to 298 million. The number of U. S. commuter trains declined by more than 80 per cent, from more than 2,500 in 1954 to fewer than 500 in 1969. Few trains generated profits; most produced losses. Broad-based passenger rail deficits appeared as early as 1948^[7] and by the mid-1950s railroads claimed aggregate annual losses on passenger services of more than $700 million (almost $5 billion in 2005 dollars using CPI). ^[8][9] By 1965, only 10,000 rail passenger cars were in operation, 85% fewer than in 1929. ^[8] Passenger service was provided on only 75,000 miles of track, a stark decline. ^[8] Passenger rail service in the United States showed the signs of underinvestment. Rail facilities suffered from decrepit equipment, cavernous and nearly empty stations in dangerous urban centers, and management that seemed intent on driving away the few remaining customers. The 1960s also saw the end of railway post office revenues, which had helped some of the remaining trains break even. In the United States a railway post office, commonly abbreviated as RPO, was a Railroad car that was normally operated in passenger service as a means to sort

Causes of decline of passenger rail

Literature suggests that the causes of the decline of passenger rail were complex. The industry was hobbled by government regulation and labor inflexibility, which undermined passenger rail just as the industry faced an explosion of competition from flexible and subsidized automobile and airplane transportation. ^[10][11] These for-profit railroads were structured to sell access to elaborate, efficient roads at a profit; they lost in the competition for passengers to parallel, publicly-funded, non-profit turnpikes, air strips, and highways in the sky. A road is an identifiable route, way or path between two or more places.

Government regulation and labor issues

The first interruption in passenger rail's vibrancy coincided with government intervention. From approximately 1910 to 1921, the Federal government introduced a populist rate-setting scheme, followed by nationalization of the rail industry for World War I. Ample railroad profits were erased, growth of the rail system was reversed, and railroads massively underinvested in passenger rail facilities during this time. ^[11] Meanwhile, labor costs advanced, and with them passenger fares, which discouraged passenger traffic just as automobiles gained a foothold. ^[11]

The primary regulatory authority affecting rail interest from early twentieth century was the Interstate Commerce Commission (ICC). The ICC played a leading role in rate-setting and intervened in other ways detrimental to passenger rail. In 1947, the ICC ruled that passenger trains could not exceed 79 mph (127 km/h) without in-cab signaling systems; the systems were criticized as being unnecessary and prohibitively expensive; after the regulation, plans to develop intercity high-speed rail services were shelved. Cab signalling is a Railroad safety system that communicates track status information to the train cab (driving position where the engineer or driver can see the information In 1958, the ICC was granted authority to allow or reject modifications and eliminations of passenger routes (train-offs). ^[12] Many routes required beneficial pruning, but the ICC delayed action by an average of eight months and when it did authorize modifications, the ICC insisted that unsuccessful routes be merged with profitable ones. Thus, fast, popular rail service was transformed into slow, unpopular service. ^[10] The ICC was even more critical of corporate mergers. Many combinations, which railroads sought to compete, were delayed for years and even decades, such as the merger of the New York Central Railroad and Pennsylvania Railroad, into what eventually became Penn Central, and the Delaware, Lackawanna and Western Railroad and Erie Railroad into the Erie Lackawanna Railway. The New York Central Railroad, known simply as the New York Central in its publicity was a Railroad operating in the Northeastern United States. The Pennsylvania Railroad was an American Railroad, founded in 1846 The Pennsylvania and New York Central Transportation Company, almost always called Penn Central, was an American Railroad company that operated from 1968 The Delaware Lackawanna and Western Railroad Company ( DL&W or Lackawanna) was a Railroad connecting Pennsylvania 's Lackawanna Valley The Erie Railroad was a Railroad that operated in New York State, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Indiana, and The Erie Lackawanna Railway, known as the Erie-Lackawanna Railroad until 1968 was formed from the 1960 merger of the Erie Railroad and the Delaware Lackawanna By the time the ICC approved the mergers in the 1960s, disinvestments by the federal government, years of deteriorating equipment and station facilities and the flight of passengers to the air and car had taken their toll and the mergers were unsuccessful.

At the same time, railroads carried a substantial tax burden. A World War II-era excise tax of 15% on passenger rail travel survived until 1962. ^[13] Local governments, far from providing needed support to passenger rail, viewed rail infrastructure as a ready source for property tax revenues. In one extreme example, in 1959 the Great Northern Railroad, which owned about a third of one percent (. The Great Northern Railway, running from St Paul Minnesota to Seattle Washington &mdash more than 1700 miles (2736 km &mdash was the creation of 34%) of the land in Lincoln County, Montana, was assessed more than 91% of all school taxes in the county. Lincoln County is a County located in the US state of Montana. ^[10]

Railroads also were saddled with antiquated work rules and an inflexible relationship with trade unions. A trade union or labour union is an organization of workers who have banded together to achieve common goals in key areas such as wages hours and working conditions forming Work policies did not adapt to technological change. Technological change (TC is a term that is used to describe the overall process of Invention, Innovation and Diffusion of Technology or ^[10] Average train speeds doubled from 1919 to 1959, but unions resisted efforts to modify their existing 100 to 150 mile work days. As a result, railroaders' work days were roughly cut in half, from 5 to 7½ hours in 1919, down to 2½ to 3¾ hours in 1959. Labor rules also perpetuated positions that had been obviated by technology. Between 1947 and 1957, passenger railroad financial efficiency dropped by 42% per mile.

Subsidized competition

While passenger rail faced internal and governmental pressures, new challenges appeared that undermined the dominance of passenger rail: highways and commercial aviation. The passenger rail industry wilted as government backed these potent upstarts with billions of dollars in construction.

Beginning roughly in the WWI era, cars became more attainable to most Americans. This newfound freedom and individualization of transit became the norm for most Americans because of the increased convenience. Government actively began to respond with funds from its treasury and later with fuel tax funds to build a non-profit network of roads not subject to property taxation^[14] that rivaled and then surpassed the for-profit network that the railroads had built in previous generations with corporate capital and government land grants. All told between 1921 and 1955 governmental entities, using taxpayer money and in response to taxpayer demand, financed more than $93 billion worth of pavement, construction, and maintenance. ^[10]

In the 1950s, a second and more formidable threat appeared: affordable commercial aviation. Government at many levels supported aviation. Governmental entities built sprawling urban and suburban airports, and funded construction of highways to provide access to the airports.

Rail Passenger Service Act

In the late 1960s, the end of passenger rail in the United States seemed near. The Pennsylvania Railroad was an American Railroad, founded in 1846 History The High Speed Ground Transportation Act of 1965 started a U First had come the requests for termination of services; now came the bankruptcy filings. Bankruptcy is a legally declared inability or impairment of ability of an individual or organization to pay their Creditors Creditors may file a bankruptcy petition against The legendary Pullman Company became insolvent 1969, followed by the dominant railroad in the Northeastern United States, the Penn Central, in 1970. Pullman Porter redirects here For the 1919 film starring Fatty Arbuckle, see The Pullman Porter The Pullman Palace Car Company, founded The Northeast is a region of the United States. As defined by the U It now seemed that passenger rail's financial problems might bring down the railroad industry as a whole. Few in government wanted to be held responsible for the extinction of the passenger train, but another solution was necessary.

In 1970, Congress passed and, in a surprise, President Richard Nixon signed into law, the Rail Passenger Service Act. The Rail Passenger Service Act (PL 91-518 of 1970 a United States federal law, created Amtrak, the National Railroad Passenger Corporation of the Proponents of the bill, led by the National Association of Railroad Passengers (NARP), sought government funding to assure the continuation of passenger trains. The National Association of Railroad Passengers ( NARP) "is the largest national membership advocacy organization for train and rail transit passengers" according They conceived the National Railroad Passenger Corporation (NRPC), a hybrid public-private entity that would receive taxpayer funding and assume operation of intercity passenger trains. The original working brand name for NRPC was Railpax, but shortly before the company started operating it was changed to Amtrak. There were several key provisions:

• Any railroad operating intercity passenger service could contract with the NRPC, thereby joining the national system.
• Participating railroads bought into the NRPC using a formula based on their recent intercity passenger losses. The purchase price could be satisfied either by cash or rolling stock; in exchange, the railroads received NRPC common stock.
• Any participating railroad was freed of the obligation to operate intercity passenger service after May 1, 1971, except for those services chosen by the Department of Transportation as part of a "basic system" of service and paid for by NRPC using its federal funds. Events 305 - Diocletian and Maximian retire from the office of Roman Emperor. Year 1971 ( MCMLXXI) was a Common year starting on Friday (link will display full calendar of the 1971 Gregorian calendar.
• Railroads that chose not to join the NRPC system were required to continue operating their existing passenger service until 1975 and thenceforth had to pursue the customary Interstate Commerce Commission (ICC) approval process for any discontinuance or alteration to the service.

Nearly everyone involved expected the experiment to be short-lived. The Nixon administration and many Washington insiders viewed the NRPC as a politically expedient way for the President and Congress to give passenger trains the one "last hurrah" demanded by the public. They expected Amtrak to quietly disappear as public interest waned. ^[15] Proponents also hoped that government intervention would be brief, but their view was that Amtrak would soon support itself. Neither view has yet proved correct. Popular support has allowed Amtrak to continue in operation longer than critics imagined while financial results have made infeasible a return to private operation.

Early days

Main article: List of railroads eligible to participate in formation of Amtrak

Amtrak began operations May 1, 1971. Events 305 - Diocletian and Maximian retire from the office of Roman Emperor. Year 1971 ( MCMLXXI) was a Common year starting on Friday (link will display full calendar of the 1971 Gregorian calendar. The corporation was molded from the passenger rail operations of 20 out of 26 major railroads in operation at the time. The railroads contributed rolling stock, equipment, and capital. Rolling Stock was a Newspaper of ideas and a chronicle of the 1980s published in Boulder, Colorado In return, they received approval to discontinue their passenger services, and at least some acquired common stock in Amtrak. A voting share (also called common stock or ordinary share) is a share of Stock giving the Stockholder the right to vote on matters Amtrak received no rail tracks or right-of-way at its inception. A right-of-way is a strip of land that is granted – through an Easement or other mechanism – for Transportation purposes such as for a Rail line or Railroads that shed passenger operations were expected to host Amtrak trains on their tracks, for a fee.

There was a period of adjustment. All Amtrak's routes were continuations of prior service, although Amtrak pruned about half the passenger rail network. Of the 364 trains operated previously, Amtrak only continued 182. On trains that continued, to the extent possible, schedules were retained with only minor changes from the Official Guide of the Railways. The Official Guide of the Railways, now known as the Official Railway Guide, was originally produced by National Railway Publication Company of New Former names largely were continued.

Several major corridors became freight-only, including New York Central Railroad's Water Level Route across New York and Ohio and Grand Trunk Western Railroad's Chicago to Detroit service, although service soon returned to the Water Level Route with introduction of the Lake Shore Limited. The New York Central Railroad, known simply as the New York Central in its publicity was a Railroad operating in the Northeastern United States. New York ( is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States and is the nation's third most populous Ohio ( is a Midwestern state of the United States. As part of the Great Lakes region, Ohio has long been a cultural and geographical crossroads The Grand Trunk Western Railroad is an important subsidiary of the Canadian National Railway (CN Chicago (ʃɪˈkɑːgoʊ is the largest City by population in the state of Illinois and the American Midwest of the United States. The Lake Shore Limited is a daily Passenger train route operated by Amtrak in the Northeastern and Midwestern United States Reduced passenger train schedules created headaches. A 19-hour layover became necessary for eastbound travel on the James Whitcomb Riley between Chicago and Newport News. The Cardinal is a 1147-mile (1844 km Passenger train route operated by Amtrak, connecting New York Penn Station with Chicago Union Station Chicago (ʃɪˈkɑːgoʊ is the largest City by population in the state of Illinois and the American Midwest of the United States. Newport News is an Independent city in Virginia. It is at the south-western end of the Virginia Peninsula, on the north shore of the James River

Amtrak inherited problems with stations, most notably deferred maintenance, and redundant facilities resulting from competing companies that served the same areas. Deferred maintenance is a practice of allowing Machinery or Infrastructure to deteriorate by postponing prudent but non-essential repairs to save cost labor On the day it started, Amtrak was given the responsibility of rerouting passenger trains from the seven train terminals in Chicago (LaSalle, Dearborn, Grand Central, Randolph, Chicago Northwestern Terminal, Central, and Union) into just one, Union Station. Chicago (ʃɪˈkɑːgoʊ is the largest City by population in the state of Illinois and the American Midwest of the United States. In New York Amtrak had to pay to maintain Penn Station and Grand Central Terminal because of the lack of track connections to bring trains from upstate New York into Penn Station, a problem not rectified until the building of the Empire Connection in 1991. Pennsylvania Station (commonly known as “Penn Station”) is the major intercity rail station and a major Commuter rail hub in New York City "Grand Central Station" redirects here For other uses see Grand Central. The West Side Line, also called the West Side Freight Line, is a Railroad line on the west side of the New York City borough of Manhattan. In many cases Amtrak had to abandon service into the huge old Union Stations such as Cincinnati, Saint Paul, Buffalo, Kansas City, and Saint Louis and route trains into smaller Amtrak-built facilities down the line (although Amtrak has pushed to start reusing some of the old stations, most recently Cincinnati Union Terminal, and Kansas City Union Station). Union station (or depot or terminal are train stations used by more than one railroad company or line The Cincinnati Museum Center at Union Terminal, originally Cincinnati Union Terminal, is a passenger Railroad station in the Queensgate neighborhood of Union Station Kansas City in Kansas City Missouri is one of many Union stations in the United States.

On the other hand, merged operations presented efficiencies such as the combination of three West Coast trains into the Coast Starlight, running from San Diego to Seattle. The Coast Starlight is a 1377-mile (2235 km Passenger train route operated by Amtrak on the West Coast of the United States. The Northeast Corridor received an Inland Route via Springfield, Massachusetts, thanks to support from New York, Connecticut and Massachusetts. The Northeast Corridor ( NEC) is the busiest passenger rail line in the United States by ridership and service frequency The New Haven-Springfield Line or Hartford Line is a Railroad line owned by Amtrak from New Haven Connecticut north to Springfield Springfield is a City in and the County seat of Hampden County, Massachusetts, United States. The Commonwealth of Massachusetts ( is a state located in the New England region of the northeastern United States. New York ( is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States and is the nation's third most populous Connecticut ( is a state located in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. The Commonwealth of Massachusetts ( is a state located in the New England region of the northeastern United States. The North Coast Hiawatha was implemented as a second Pacific Northwest route. North Coast Hiawatha was a passenger train service operated by Amtrak. The Pacific Northwest is a region in the northwest of North America (the term refers to the land not the ocean The Milwaukee to St. Louis Abraham Lincoln and Prairie State routes also commenced. The first all-new Amtrak route, not counting the Coast Starlight, was the Vermonter/Washingtonian. History Montrealer The Montrealer was originally a service of the Boston and Maine Railroad (BM running between Montreal and Washington History Montrealer The Montrealer was originally a service of the Boston and Maine Railroad (BM running between Montreal and Washington That route was inaugurated September 29, 1972, along Boston and Maine Railroad and Canadian National Railway track that had last seen passenger service in 1966. Events 522 BC - Darius I of Persia kills the Magian usurper Gaumâta securing his hold as king of the Persian Empire. Year 1972 ( MCMLXXII) was a Leap year starting on Saturday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. The Boston and Maine Railroad, also known by the abbreviation B&M, was the dominant Railroad of the northern New England region of the United

Amtrak soon had the opportunity to acquire railway. Following the bankruptcy of several northeastern railroads in the early 1970s, including Penn Central which owned and operated the Northeast Corridor, Congress passed the Railroad Revitalization and Regulatory Reform Act of 1976. The Northeast Corridor ( NEC) is the busiest passenger rail line in the United States by ridership and service frequency The Railroad Revitalization and Regulatory Reform Act of 1976, Pub A large part was directed to the creation of a Conrail, but in addition the law enabled transfer to Amtrak of the Northeast Corridor railway from Boston, Massachusetts to Washington, D.C. That track became Amtrak's jewel. Consolidated Rail Corporation, also known as Conrail, began operations on April 1, 1976 as a federally funded takeover of the major railroad Washington DC ( formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, the District, or simply D In subsequent years, short route segments not needed for freight operations were transferred to Amtrak. Nevertheless, in general, Amtrak remained dependent on freight railroads for access to most of its routes.

Amtrak fell far short of financial independence in its first decade, but it did find modest success rebuilding trade. Outside factors discouraged competing transport, such as fuel shortages which increased costs of automobile and airline travel, and strikes which disrupted airline operations. Investments in Amtrak's track, equipment and information also made Amtrak more relevant to America's transportation needs. ^[16][17] Amtrak's ridership increased from 16. 6 million in 1972 to 21 million in 1981. ^[18]

Leaders and political influences

Unlike many large businesses, subsequent to its formation Amtrak has had only one active investor: the U.S. government. The federal government of the United States is the central United States Governmental body established by the United States Constitution. Like most investors, the Federal government has demanded a degree of accountability. Determination of congressional funding and selection of Amtrak's leadership have been infused with political considerations. As discussed below, funding levels and capital support have varied over time.

Some members of Amtrak's board and executive leadership have had little or no experience with railroads. Conversely, Amtrak also has benefited from the interest of highly motivated and politically-oriented public servants. For example, in 1982, former Secretary of the Navy and retired Southern Railway head W. Graham Claytor Jr., brought his naval and railroad experience to the job. The United States Secretary of the Navy ( SECNAV) is the Civilian head of the Department of the Navy. The Southern Railway is a former United States Railroad. It was the product of nearly 150 predecessor lines that were combined reorganized and recombined beginning William Graham Claytor Jr ( March 14, 1912 - May 14, 1994) was an American Lawyer Claytor had served briefly as an acting Secretary of Transportation in the cabinet of President Jimmy Carter in 1979, and came out of retirement to lead Amtrak after the disastrous financial results during the Carter administration (1977-1981). The United States Secretary of Transportation is the head of the United States Department of Transportation. James Earl "Jimmy" Carter Jr (born October 1 1924 was the thirty-ninth President of the United States, serving from 1977 to 1981 and the recipient of the 2002 He was recruited and strongly supported by John H. Riley, an attorney who was the highly skilled head of the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) under the Reagan Administration from 1983-1989. John H Riley ( January 19, 1947 - March 6, 1994) was an American Attorney and Railroad The Federal Railroad Administration (FRA is an administration in the United States Department of Transportation. Secretary of Transportation Elizabeth Dole also tacitly supported Amtrak. Mary Elizabeth Hanford "Liddy" Dole (born July 29 1936 is an American politician who served in both the Ronald Reagan and George H Claytor seemed to enjoy a good relationship with the Congress and was perceived to have done a good job, albeit through extensive use of short-term debt. ^[19]

In the 1990s, Claytor was succeeded at Amtrak's helm by a succession of career public servants. First, Thomas Downs, who had overseen the Union Station project in Washington, DC, which experienced substantial delays and cost overruns, assumed the leadership. Union Station is the grand ceremonial Train station designed to be the entrance to Washington D In January, 1998, after Amtrak weathered a serious cash shortfall, George Warrington succeeded Downs. George David Warrington ( September 19, 1952 &ndash December 24 2007) was an American Transportation official who served Warrington previously led Amtrak's Northeast Corridor Business Unit.

Then in April, 2002, David L. Gunn was selected as president. For other persons also named David Gunn see article David Gunn. Gunn had a strong reputation as a straightforward and experienced manager. He was not one to shy away from conflict with others. Years earlier (between 1991 and 1994), Gunn's refusal to "do politics" put him at odds with the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority board of directors, which included representatives from the District of Columbia and suburban jurisdictions in Maryland and Virginia. The Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority ( WMATA) is a tri-jurisdictional Government agency authorized by Congress, that operates transit The Commonwealth of Virginia ( is an American state Gunn was an accomplished public servant and railroad person and his successes before Amtrak earned him a great deal of credibility, despite a sometimes-rough relationship with politicians and labor unions.

Gunn was polite but direct in response to congressional criticism of Amtrak, and his tenure was punctuated by successes in reducing layers of management overhead in Amtrak and streamlining operations. Amtrak's Board of Directors removed Gunn on November 9, 2005; he was succeeded by David Hughes, Amtrak's Chief Engineer. Events 694 - Egica, a king of the Visigoths of Hispania, accuses Jews of aiding Muslims sentencing all Year 2005 ( MMV) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link displays full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. ^[20] Given Gunn's solid performance, many Amtrak supporters feared that Gunn's departure was Amtrak's death knell, although those fears have not been realized. On August 29, 2006, Alexander Kummant was named as Gunn's permanent replacement effective September 12, 2006. Events 708 - Copper coins are minted in Japan for the first time (Traditional Japanese date: August 10, 708) Year 2006 ( MMVI) was a Common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. Alexander K Kummant (born 1962 was named by Amtrak on August 29 2006, as the railroad company's new president and CEO effective September 12 Events 1213 - Albigensian Crusade: Simon de Montfort 5th Earl of Leicester, defeats Peter II of Aragon at the Year 2006 ( MMVI) was a Common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar.

The list of Presidents of Amtrak includes:

• Roger Lewis 1971-. ^[21]
• Paul Reistrup. ^[22]
• Alan Stephenson Boyd -1982. Alan Stephenson Boyd (born July 20 1922 was the first United States Secretary of Transportation, appointed by Lyndon Johnson. ^[23][24]
• W. Graham Claytor Jr. 1982-1993. William Graham Claytor Jr ( March 14, 1912 - May 14, 1994) was an American Lawyer
• Thomas Downs 1993-1998.
• George Warrington 1998-2002. George David Warrington ( September 19, 1952 &ndash December 24 2007) was an American Transportation official who served
• David L. Gunn 2002-2005. For other persons also named David Gunn see article David Gunn. ^[25]
• David Hughes (interim) 2005-2006.
• Alexander Kummant 2006-present. Alexander K Kummant (born 1962 was named by Amtrak on August 29 2006, as the railroad company's new president and CEO effective September 12 ^[26][27]

Modern history (1980s to present)

Ridership stagnated at roughly 20 million passengers per year amid uncertain government aid from 1981 to about 2000. ^[18][28] Ridership increased in the 2000s after implementation of capital improvements in the Northeast Corridor and rises in automobile fuel costs. Since 2002, Amtrak has had four consecutive years of record ridership. During fiscal year 2006, Amtrak reported more than 24. 3 million passengers, its highest total to date. ^[29] According to Amtrak, an average of more than 67,000 passengers ride on up to 300 Amtrak trains per day.

In the 1990s, Amtrak's stated goal remained operational self-sufficiency. By this time, however, Amtrak had a large overhang of debt from years of underfunding, and in the mid-1990s, Amtrak suffered through a serious cash crunch. To resolve the crisis, Congress issued funding but instituted a glide-path to financial self-sufficiency, excluding railroad retirement tax act payments. ^[30] Passengers became "guests" and there were expansions into express freight work, but the financial plans failed. Amtrak's inroads in express freight delivery created additional friction with competing freight operators, including the trucking industry. This article is about the semi-truck For the North American use of the word see Pickup truck. Delivery was delayed of much anticipated high-speed trainsets for the improved Acela Express service, which promised to be a strong source of income and favorable publicity along the Northeast Corridor between Boston and Washington DC. Acela Express (often called simply Acela) is the name used by Amtrak for the high-speed Tilting train service operating between The Northeast Corridor ( NEC) is the busiest passenger rail line in the United States by ridership and service frequency Through the late 1990s and early 2000s, Amtrak could not add sufficient express revenue or cut sufficient other services to break even. By 2002 it was clear that Amtrak could not achieve self-sufficiency, but Congress continued to authorize funding and released Amtrak from the requirement. ^[31]

Amtrak's leader at the time, David L. Gunn, was polite but direct in response to congressional criticism. For other persons also named David Gunn see article David Gunn. In a departure from his predecessors' promises to make Amtrak self-sufficient in the short term, Gunn argued that no form of passenger transportation in the United States is self-sufficient as the economy is currently structured. ^[32] Highways, airports, and air traffic control all require large government expenditures to build and operate, coming from the Highway Trust Fund and Aviation Trust Fund paid for by user fees, highway fuel and road taxes, and, in the case of the General Fund, by people who own cars and do not. The United States Highway Trust Fund is a transportation fund with three accounts - the bulk composed by the 'Highway Fund' a smaller Mass Transit Account and a comparatively The Airport and Airway Trust Fund (AATF provides funding for the federal commitment to the aviation system of the United States of America through several aviation-related

Before a congressional hearing, Gunn answered a demand by leading Amtrak critic Arizona Senator John McCain to eliminate all operating subsidies by asking the Senator if he would also demand the same of the commuter airlines, upon whom the citizens of Arizona are dependent. The State of Arizona ( is a state located in the southwestern region of the United States. An airline provides air transport services for Passengers or Freight, generally with a recognized operating certificate or license McCain, usually not at a loss for words when debating Amtrak funding, did not reply.

Under Gunn, almost all the controversial express business was eliminated. The practice of tolerating deferred maintenance was reversed to eliminate a safety issue. Deferred maintenance is a practice of allowing Machinery or Infrastructure to deteriorate by postponing prudent but non-essential repairs to save cost labor The policies improved labor relations to some extent, even as Amtrak's ranks of unionized and salaried workers thinned.

Amtrak's current chief, Alexander Kummant, is committed to operating a national rail network, and he does not envision separating the Northeast corridor (the segment from Boston to Richmond) under separate ownership. He has said that shedding the system's long distance routes would amount to selling national assets that are on par with national parks, and that Amtrak's abandonment of these routes would be irreversible. Amtrak is seeking annual congressional funding of $1 billion for ten years. Kummant has stated that the investment is moderate in light of Federal investment in other modes of transportation. ^[33]

Public funding

Amtrak commenced operations in 1971 with $40 million in direct Federal aid, $100 million in Federally insured loans, and a somewhat larger private contribution. ^[34] Officials expected that Amtrak would break even by 1974, but those expectations proved unrealistic and annual direct Federal aid reached a 17-year high in 1981 of $1. 25 billion. ^[35] During the Reagan administration, appropriations were halved. The United States Presidency of Ronald Reagan, also known as the Reagan Administration, was a Republican administration headed by By 1986, Federal support fell to a decade low of $601 million, almost none of which were capital appropriations. ^[36] In the late 1980s and early 1990s, Congress continued the reductionist trend even while Amtrak expenses held steady or rose. Amtrak was forced to borrow to meet short-term operating needs, and by 1995 Amtrak was on the brink of a cash crisis and was unable to continue to service its debts. ^[37] In response, in 1997 Congress authorized $5. 2 billion for Amtrak over the next five years — largely to complete the Acela capital project — on the condition that Amtrak submit to the ultimatum of self-sufficiency by 2003 or liquidation. ^[38] Amtrak made financial improvements during the period, but ultimately did not achieve self sufficiency.

In the aftermath of the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, during which Amtrak kept running while airlines were grounded, the value of a national passenger rail service was briefly acknowledged in Washington. But when Congress returned to work following the attacks, the airlines received a $15 billion bailout package, and inattention toward Amtrak resumed.

In 2004, a stalemate in Federal support of Amtrak forced cutbacks in services and routes as well as resumption of deferred maintenance. In fiscal 2004 and 2005, Congress appropriated about $1. 2 billion for Amtrak, $300 million more than President George W. Bush had requested. George Walker Bush ( born July 6 1946 is the forty-third and current President of the United States. However, the company's board requested $1. 8 billion through fiscal 2006, the majority of which (about $1. 3 billion) would be used to bring infrastructure, rolling stock, and motive power back to a state of good repair. In Congressional testimony, the Department of Transportation's inspector-general confirmed that Amtrak would need at least $1. 4 billion to $1. 5 billion in fiscal 2006 and $2 billion in fiscal 2007 just to maintain the status quo. In 2006, Amtrak received just under $1. 4 billion, with the condition that Amtrak would reduce (but not eliminate) food and sleeper service losses. Thus, dining service were simplified and now require two fewer on-board service workers. Only Auto Train and Empire Builder services continue regular made onboard meal service. Auto Train is an long scheduled train service for passengers and their automobiles operated by Amtrak between Lorton Virginia (near Washington D The Empire Builder is a Passenger train route operated by Amtrak in the Midwestern and Northwestern United States.

State governments have partially filled the breach left by reductions in Federal aid. Several states have entered into operating partnerships with Amtrak, notably California, Pennsylvania, Illinois, Michigan, Oregon, Missouri, Washington, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Wisconsin, Vermont, Maine, and New York, as well as the Canadian province of British Columbia, which provides some of the resources for the operation of the Cascades route. California ( is a US state on the West Coast of the United States, along the Pacific Ocean. The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania ( often colloquially referred to as PA (its abbreviation by natives and Northeasterners is a state located in the Northeastern The State of Illinois ( roughly ill-i-NOY is a state of the United States of America, the 21st to be admitted to the Union. Michigan ( is a Midwestern state of the United States of America. Oregon ( is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. Missouri ( or) is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States bordered by Iowa, Illinois, Kentucky, Tennessee Washington ( is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. North Carolina ( is a state located on the Atlantic Seaboard in the southeastern United States Oklahoma ( is a state located in the South Central region of the United States of America. Wisconsin ( or wɪˈskɑnsɨn (French Ouisconsin) is one of the fifty United States of America, located in the north central part of the United States Vermont ( is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. The State of Maine ( is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America, bordering the Atlantic Ocean New York ( is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States and is the nation's third most populous Country to "Dominion of Canada" or "Canadian Federation" or anything else please read the Talk Page British Columbia (ˌbrɪtɨʃ kəˈlʌmbiə ( BC) ( (la Colombie-Britannique C The Amtrak Cascades (originally named Cascadia) is a Passenger train route operated by Amtrak in partnership with the states of Washington

With the dramatic rise in gasoline prices during 2007-2008, Amtrak has seen record ridership (although the population of the US is also bigger than ever - 303 million people). Capping a steady five year increase in ridership overall, regional lines saw 12% growth in May, 2008. ^[39] In October, 2007, the Senate passed S-294, "Passenger Rail Improvement and Investment Act of 2007" (70-22) sponsored by Senators Frank Lautenberg and Trent Lott. The United States Senate is the Upper house of the bicameral United States Congress, the Lower house being the House of Representatives Frank Raleigh Lautenberg (born January 23 1924 is an American businessman and Democratic Party Politician. Chester Trent Lott Sr (born October 9, 1941) is a former United States Senator from Mississippi and a member of the Republican Party Despite a veto threat by President Bush, a similar bill passed the House on June 11, 2008 with a veto-proof margin (311-104). ^[40]

Controversy

Aid to Amtrak by government was controversial from the beginning. Formation of Amtrak in 1971 was criticized as a bailout serving corporate rail interests and union railroaders, not the traveling public. Critics assert that Amtrak has proven incapable of operating as a business and does not provide valuable transportation services meriting public support,^[41] a "mobile money-burning machine. "^[42] They argue that subsidies should be ended, national rail service terminated, and the Northeast Corridor turned over to private interests. "To fund a Nostalgia Limited is not in the public interest. "^[43] Critics also question Amtrak's energy efficiency. ^[44] The U. S. Department of Energy considers Amtrak among the most energy-efficient forms of transportation. ^[45]

Proponents point out that the government heavily subsidizes the Interstate Highway System and many aspects of passenger aviation. The Dwight D Eisenhower National System of Interstate and Defense Highways, commonly called the Interstate Highway System (or simply the Interstate System) Massive government aid of those forms of travel was a primary factor in the decline of passenger service on privately owned railroads in the 1950s and 60s. Meanwhile, Amtrak, through fees to host railroads, pays property taxes that highway users do not pay. Advocates therefore assert that Amtrak should only be expected to be as self-sufficient as those competing modes.

Critics claim that gasoline taxes amount to use fees that entirely pay for the government subsidies to the highway system and aviation. In fact this is not true: gas taxes cover little if any of the costs for "local" highways and in many states little of the cost for state highways. ^[46][47] They don't cover the property taxes foregone by building tax-exempt roads. They also don't cover policing costs: Amtrak, like all U. S. railroads, pays for its own security, the Amtrak Police; road policing and the Transportation Security Administration are paid for out of general taxation. The Amtrak Police is a Railroad police agency that acts as the security and law enforcement agency of Amtrak, a passenger train system in the United The Transportation Security Administration ( TSA) is a US government agency that was created as part of the Aviation and Transportation Security Act

Labor issues

Intractable positions staked out by labor leaders were blamed for part of the decline of passenger rail service in the early to middle 20th century, and labor union clout was widely credited with facilitating the creation of Amtrak in 1971. A trade union or labour union is an organization of workers who have banded together to achieve common goals in key areas such as wages hours and working conditions forming Many trade union jobs were saved by the bailout.

In recent times, efforts at reforming passenger rail have addressed labor issues. In 1997 Congress released Amtrak from a prohibition on contracting for labor outside of the corporation (and outside its unions), opening the door to privatization. ^[48] Since that time, many of Amtrak's employees have been working without a contract. The most recent contract, signed in 1999, was mainly retroactive.

Still, though, the influence of unions is a strong force against change. Amtrak has 14 separate unions to negotiate with, because of the fragmentation of railroad unions by job. And it has 24 separate contracts with those unions. ^[49] This makes it difficult to make substantial changes, in contrast to a situation where one union negotiates with one employer. Current Amtrak president Kummant seems poised to follow a cooperative posture with Amtrak's trade unions. He has ruled out plans to privatize large parts of Amtrak's unionized workforce. ^[50]

In late 2007 and early 2008, however, major labor issues came up, a result of a dispute between Amtrak and 16 unions over healthcare, specifically to which employees healthcare should be available to. The dispute was not resolved quickly, and the situation escalated, to the point of President Bush declaring a Presidential Emergency Board to resolve the issues. It was not immediately successful, and a strike was threatened, to begin on January 30th, 2008. In the middle of that month, however, it was announced that Amtrak and the unions had come to terms and January 30th passed without a strike. In late February it was announced that three more unions had worked out their differences, and as of that time it seems unlikely that any more issues will arise in the near future.

Amtrak operations and services

Main articles: List of Amtrak routes and List of busiest Amtrak stations

Amtrak is no longer required by law, but is encouraged, to operate a national route system. Amtrak operates the following Passenger train routes Current routes Full listing including discontinued routes Note that intercity Amtrak's busiest stations in fiscal 2007 ^[51] Amtrak has some presence in all of the 48 contiguous states except Wyoming and South Dakota. The State of Wyoming ( is a sparsely populated state in the western region of the United States. South Dakota ( is a state located in the Midwestern region of the United States of America. ^[52] Service on the Northeast Corridor, between Boston, Massachusetts, and Washington, D.C., as well as between Philadelphia and Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, is powered by overhead wires; for the rest of the system, diesel locomotives are used. The Northeast Corridor ( NEC) is the busiest passenger rail line in the United States by ridership and service frequency The Commonwealth of Massachusetts ( is a state located in the New England region of the northeastern United States. Washington DC ( formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, the District, or simply D Philadelphia (ˌfɪləˈdɛlfiə Harrisburg is the Capital of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, in the United States of America The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania ( often colloquially referred to as PA (its abbreviation by natives and Northeasterners is a state located in the Northeastern Routes vary widely in frequency of service, from three trips weekly on the Sunset Limited, from Los Angeles, California, to New Orleans, Louisiana, to weekday service several times per hour on the Northeast Corridor, from New York City to Washington, D. The Sunset Limited is a Passenger train that for most of its history has run between New Orleans and Los Angeles California, and that from early Los Angeles (lɑˈsændʒələs los ˈaŋxeles in Spanish) is the largest City in the state of California and the American West California ( is a US state on the West Coast of the United States, along the Pacific Ocean. New Orleans (nʲuːˈɔrliənz nʲuːˈɔrlənz French: La Nouvelle-Orléans) is a major United States port city and the largest city in Louisiana The State of Louisiana ( or, État de Louisiane, pronounced) is a state located in the southern region of the United States of America The City of New York C. ^[53] Amtrak also operates a captive bus service, Thruway Motorcoach, which provides connections to train routes. Thruway Motorcoach is Amtrak's system of Amtrak-owned intercity coaches locally contracted transit buses through-ticketed local bus routes and taxi services to

The most-popular and heavily used routes are those on the Northeast Corridor, which include the Acela Express, and Regional. The Northeast Corridor ( NEC) is the busiest passenger rail line in the United States by ridership and service frequency Acela Express (often called simply Acela) is the name used by Amtrak for the high-speed Tilting train service operating between The Northeast Regional is Amtrak 's service between Newport News Virginia and Boston Massachusetts. Those routes serve Boston, Massachusetts; New York City; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; Washington, D.C.; and many communities between. The City of New York Philadelphia (ˌfɪləˈdɛlfiə Washington DC ( formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, the District, or simply D Four of the six stations busiest by boardings are on the corridor: New York (Penn Station) (first), Washington (Union Station) (second), Philadelphia (30th Street Station) (third), and Boston (South Station) (sixth). Pennsylvania Station (commonly known as “Penn Station”) is the major intercity rail station and a major Commuter rail hub in New York City Union Station is the grand ceremonial Train station designed to be the entrance to Washington D 30th Street Station is the main railroad station in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. South Station, located at Atlantic Avenue and Summer Street in Dewey Square, in Boston Massachusetts, is the largest Train station and The other two of the top six are Chicago (Union Station) (fourth) and Los Angeles (Union Station) (fifth). Union Station is a Chicago Train station that opened in 1925 replacing an earlier 1881 station and is now the only Intercity rail terminal in Chicago

Amtrak trains have both names and numbers. Train routes are named to reflect the rich and complex history of the routes and the areas traversed by them. Each scheduled run of the route is assigned a number. Generally, even-numbered routes run northward and eastward, while odd-numbered routes run southward and westward. Some routes, such as the Pacific Surfliners, use the opposite numbering system, inherited from the previous operators of similar routes, such as the Santa Fe Railroad. The Pacific Surfliner is a 350-mile (563 km Amtrak Passenger train route serving communities on the coast of Southern California between The Atchison Topeka and Santa Fe Railway, often abbreviated as Santa Fe, was one of the larger railroads in the United States.

Some of the trains used more often:

Rail passenger efficiency versus other modes

Per passenger mile, Amtrak is 18 percent more energy-efficient than commercial airlines and automobiles^[54] Advanced technology further increases efficiency: regenerative braking on the Acela Express, for example, reduces electric-energy consumption by 8 percent. A regenerative brake is a mechanism that reduces Vehicle speed by converting some of its Kinetic energy into another useful form of energy Passenger rail is also competitive with other modes in terms of safety per mile.

Mode	Revenue per passenger mile[55]	Energy consumption per passenger mile[56]	Deaths per 100 million passenger miles[57]	Reliability[58]
Domestic airlines	12. 0¢	3,890 BTUs	0. 02 deaths	82%
Intercity buses	12. 9¢[59]	3,698 BTUs	0. 05 deaths	N
Amtrak	26. 0¢	2,100 BTUs[60]	0. 03 deaths	74%
Autos	N/A	3,597 BTUs	0. 80 deaths	N/A

Intermodal connections

Intermodal connections between Amtrak trains and other transportation are available at many stations. Intermodal passenger transport involves more than one Mode of transport of passengers Most Amtrak rail stations in downtown areas have connections to local public transport. A central business district ( CBD) is the commercial and often geographic heart of a city Amtrak also code shares with Continental Airlines, providing service between Newark Liberty International Airport (via its Amtrak station and AirTrain Newark) and Philadelphia 30th St, Wilmington, Stamford, and New Haven. Code sharing is a business term which was first originated in the airline industry in 1990 when the Australian airline Qantas Airways and the U Continental Airlines Inc ( is a United States certificated air carrier. Newark Liberty International Airport, first named Newark Airport and later Newark International Airport, is an international Airport within the Newark Liberty International Airport is a Northeast Corridor line station in the New Jersey Transit rail system. AirTrain Newark is a 19-mile (3km Monorail system connecting Newark Liberty International Airport (EWR to the Newark Liberty International Airport train 30th Street Station is the main railroad station in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Wilmington is the largest city in the state of Delaware, United States and is located at the confluence of the Christina River and Brandywine Stamford is a city in Fairfield County, Connecticut, United States. Union Station is the main Railroad passenger station in New Haven Connecticut. Amtrak also serves airport stations at Milwaukee, Oakland, Burbank, and Baltimore. General Mitchell International Airport is a county-owned public Airport located five miles (8 km) south of the Central business district of Milwaukee The Oakland Coliseum Amtrak/BART Station is actually a reference to two separate stations of two Public transit providers that are within 600 ft (183 m) of Bob Hope Airport Train Station is an unstaffed Amtrak and Metrolink rail station at Bob Hope Airport in the city of Burbank California The Baltimore/Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport Rail Station is an Amtrak and MARC commuter rail Train station in Linthicum,

Amtrak coordinates Thruway Motorcoach service to extend many of its routes, especially in California. Thruway Motorcoach is Amtrak's system of Amtrak-owned intercity coaches locally contracted transit buses through-ticketed local bus routes and taxi services to California ( is a US state on the West Coast of the United States, along the Pacific Ocean.

Gaps in service

Main article: List of major cities in U.S. lacking Amtrak service

Outside the Northeast Corridor, Amtrak is a niche player in passenger transportation. Several major cities and regional business centers in the Continental United States lack Amtrak service. In 2003, Amtrak accounted for just 0. 1% of U. S. intercity passenger miles (5,680,000,000 out of 5,280,860,000,000 total, of which private-automobile travel makes up the vast majority). ^[61] In fiscal year 2004, Amtrak routes served over 25 million passengers, while, in calendar year 2004, commercial airlines served over 712 million passengers. ^[62]

Amtrak provides some rail service in 46 states. The only states that are not served by Amtrak are Hawaii (in the middle of the Pacific Ocean), Alaska (served by the Alaska Railroad), and South Dakota (although in years past there was service by the Milwaukee Road to South Dakota, Amtrak has never instituted any service to that state) and Wyoming (lost rail service in the 1997 cuts, and in early 2008 lost the Denver-Casper motorcoach service). The State of Hawaii ( or həˈwaɪʔiː Hawaiian: Mokuāina o Hawaii) is a state in the United States located on an Archipelago in the The Pacific Ocean is the largest of the Earth 's Oceanic divisions Alaska ( Аляска Alyaska) is a state in the United States of America, in the northwest of the North American continent The Alaska Railroad is a Class II railroad which extends from Seward and Whittier, in the south of the state of Alaska, in the United States South Dakota ( is a state located in the Midwestern region of the United States of America. The Milwaukee Road, officially the Chicago Milwaukee St Paul and Pacific Railroad ( CMSP&P RR), was a Class I railroad that operated in the Midwest The State of Wyoming ( is a sparsely populated state in the western region of the United States. Amtrak serves many states only nominally through stations along borders and/or away from major population areas. Many major cities in the Midwest, West, and South have two or fewer trains per day, such as Atlanta, Denver, Cincinnati, Indianapolis, and Minneapolis–Saint Paul. The City and County of Denver (pronounced /ˈdɛnvɚ/ is the Capital and the most populous city of Colorado, in the United States

Amtrak's reliance on freight railroads also has caused its service elimination. Passenger rail service was entirely discontinued to Phoenix, Arizona, in 1997, after the Union Pacific Railroad, which owns the tracks that served Phoenix, announced that it was abandoning the right of way. Phoenix (ˈfiːˌnɪks O'odham Skikik, Yavapai Wasinka, Western Apache Fiinigis, Navajo Hoozdo, The State of Arizona ( is a state located in the southwestern region of the United States. Amtrak did not have the funds to maintain the trackage. Today, the city is served only by Thruway Motorcoach. In 1983, the Palmetto was truncated from St. Petersburg to Tampa, Florida because Amtrak was unable to take on the costs of maintaining the Seaboard Coast Line Railroad drawbridge, which took the train over Tampa Bay. St Petersburg (often shortened to St Pete) is a city in Pinellas County Florida, United States. Florida ( is a state located in the southeastern region of the United States, bordering Alabama to the northwest and Georgia to the The Seaboard Coast Line Railroad was created July 1 1967 as a result of the merger of the Seaboard Air Line Railroad (SAL with the Atlantic

Damage to railroad track caused by Hurricane Katrina interrupted service on the Sunset Limited. Hurricane Katrina of the 2005 Atlantic hurricane season was the costliest hurricane, as well as one of the five deadliest in the history of the United States The Sunset Limited is a Passenger train that for most of its history has run between New Orleans and Los Angeles California, and that from early Originally the train departed from Orlando, Florida, but the track damage along the Gulf coast caused the train to originate at New Orleans, Louisiana. Orlando is a major City in central Florida, USA and is the County seat of Orange County Florida. New Orleans (nʲuːˈɔrliənz nʲuːˈɔrlənz French: La Nouvelle-Orléans) is a major United States port city and the largest city in Louisiana Although the track's owner, CSX, completed repairs by early 2006, Amtrak service has not resumed over two years later, leaving the intermediate stations between Jacksonville, Florida and New Orleans without any Amtrak service.

Several significant Amtrak routes have been eliminated because of lack of funding since 1971, creating other gaps. The east–west train feeding Kansas City, Missouri, with New York and Washington, D. Kansas City Missouri only Items for the metro area Kansas City Kansas or North Kansas City MO should go on their respective pages Missouri ( or) is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States bordered by Iowa, Illinois, Kentucky, Tennessee C. , called the National Limited, was cut, leaving Chicago as the only throughway for direct links between the Midwest and East. The National Limited was the premier train of the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad (B&O on its route between New York City and St Chicago (ʃɪˈkɑːgoʊ is the largest City by population in the state of Illinois and the American Midwest of the United States. The North Coast Hiawatha, between Chicago and Seattle, provided only reduced service between Chicago and the Pacific Northwest. North Coast Hiawatha was a passenger train service operated by Amtrak. The last link with the vaunted Chicago–Florida services of such trains as the City of Miami, the Dixie Flagler, and the South Wind, was broken when the Floridian was discontinued, in October 1979. Chicago (ʃɪˈkɑːgoʊ is the largest City by population in the state of Illinois and the American Midwest of the United States. Florida ( is a state located in the southeastern region of the United States, bordering Alabama to the northwest and Georgia to the South Wind may refer to The South wind, a wind that originates in the south and blows north The Floridian is a former Amtrak route that ran from Chicago to Miami and St In 1997, the Desert Wind and Pioneer were discontinued, along with service to Las Vegas, Boise, and all of Wyoming. Desert Wind was a Passenger train route operated by Amtrak from October 28, 1979 to May 10, 1997. Las Vegas ( Spanish: "The Meadows" is the most populous City in the state of Nevada, the seat of Clark County, and an internationally Boise (ˈbɔɪsi is the capital and most populous city of the U In 2003, Amtrak discontinued the Kentucky Cardinal, ending all service to Louisville. The Kentucky Cardinal was a nightly 312-mile (502 km Passenger train operated by Amtrak from 1999 to 2003 between Chicago Illinois In 2005, Three Rivers (a reborn Broadway Limited) was nixed, removing the only direct New York–Chicago service through central Pennsylvania. Consist Unlike most Amtrak trains East of Chicago the Three Rivers ' consist did not use any single type of coach

Guest Rewards

Amtrak's loyalty program, Guest Rewards, is similar to the frequent-flyer programs of many airlines. A frequent flyer program (FFP is a Loyalty program offered by many Airlines. An airline provides air transport services for Passengers or Freight, generally with a recognized operating certificate or license Guest Rewards members accumulate points by riding Amtrak and through other activities, and can redeem these points for free or discounted Amtrak tickets and other rewards.

Freight

Amtrak Express provides small-package and less-than-truckload shipping among more than 100 cities. Not to be confused with the unrelated former British parcel company Amtrak Express Parcels Amtrak Express is Amtrak 's freight and shipping service Amtrak Express also offers station-to-station shipment of human remains to many express cities. At smaller stations, funeral directors must load and unload the shipment onto and off the train. Amtrak hauled mail for the United States Postal Service and time-sensitive freight, but discontinued these services in October 2004. On most parts of the few lines that Amtrak owns, trackage-rights agreements allow freight railroads to use its trackage. Railway companies can interact with and control others in many ways

Commuter services

Main article: Commuter rail in North America

Through various commuter services, Amtrak serves an additional 61. Commuter rail services in the United States, Canada, and Mexico provide Common carrier passenger transportation along railway 1 million passengers per year in conjunction with state and regional authorities in California, Connecticut, Maryland, Virginia, and Washington. California ( is a US state on the West Coast of the United States, along the Pacific Ocean. Connecticut ( is a state located in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. The Commonwealth of Virginia ( is an American state Washington ( is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. Amtrak's Capitol Corridor, Pacific Surfliner (formerly San Diegan), and San Joaquins are funded mostly by a state transit authority, Caltrans, rather than the federal government. The Capitol Corridor is a 172-mile (275 km Passenger train route operated by Amtrak in California. The Pacific Surfliner is a 350-mile (563 km Amtrak Passenger train route serving communities on the coast of Southern California between The San Diegan was one of the named passenger trains of the Atchison Topeka and Santa Fe Railway, and a " Workhorse " of The San Joaquins are Passenger trains operated by Amtrak California in California 's Central Valley. The California Department of Transportation ( Caltrans) is a Government department in the U

Classes of Service

Amtrak has a variety of cabins that suit a variety of needs. Classes are similar to those used by airlines.

First Class service is offered on the Acela Express only. First Class passengers have access to Amtrak ClubAcela lounges in Washington DC, Philadelphia, New York and Boston (lounges offer complementary drinks, personal ticketing service, lounge seating, conference areas, computer/internet access and televisions tuned to CNN). At the Philadelphia and Washington DC ClubAcelas, passengers can board their train directly from the ClubAcela (In Philadelphia, passenger use an elevator while in Washington, passengers leave through a side door leading to the tracks). Seats are larger than those of Business Class and come in a variety of seating modes (single, single with table, double, double with table and wheelchair accessible). First Class is located in a separate car than the other classes and each train set contains only one First Class car. First Class includes complimentary meal and beverage service along with free newspapers and hot towel service. First Class seats are set in a 1x2 configuration. There are two attendants per car.

Business Class is the minimum class of service on the Acela Express and is offered as an upgrade on Regional and other short to long distance trains. Business Class seats are larger than those in coach. Business Class passengers have easy access to the cafe car. they also receive complementary non-alcoholic beverages and free newspapers. Business Class seats all have power outlets for electronics. Business Class seats are located in different areas depending on the train. On some trains, Business Class is located at the front of the Cafe Car. These seats are in a 1x2 style and feature leather upholstery, cup holders and leg rests. These seats also recline to a more "sofa recliner style". The other type of Business Class seat is located in an actual Business Class car. These seats are organized in a 2x2 style and feature more legroom than the coach seats in the other cars.

Coach Class is the minimum class of service on Amtrak trains and includes footrests and decent legroom. Coach seats are set in a 2x2 configuration.

Sleeper Service rooms are considered First Class on long distance trains. Rooms are classified into roomettes, bedrooms, family bedrooms and accessible bedrooms. With the price of a room comes complementary meals and attendant service. At night, rooms turn into sleeping areas with fold down beds and fresh linens. Complementary bottled water, newspapers and turn down service is included as well. Sleeper car passengers have access to the entire train. Sleeper passengers also have access to the Club Acela lounges in stations along the Northeast Corridor and access to the Metropolitan Lounges in Chicago, Miami, New Orleans, and Minneapolis/Saint Paul.

Trains and tracks

Most tracks on which Amtrak operates are owned by freight railroads. Amtrak operates over all seven Class I railroads in the United States, as well as several short lines: the Pan Am Railways, New England Central Railroad, and Vermont Railway. A Class I railroad in the United States and Mexico, or a Class I rail carrier in Canada, is a large freight Railroad, as classified Short Line is also one of the four railroads in the popular Board game Monopoly, probably named after the Shore Fast Line, an Interurban streetcar Pan Am Railways (PAR known as Guilford Rail System (GRS before March 2006 is a Class 2 railroad covering northern New England from Mattawamkeag The New England Central Railroad is a subsidiary of RailAmerica. The Vermont Railway is a railroad in Vermont and eastern New York. Other sections are owned by terminal railroads jointly controlled by freight companies or by commuter rail agencies. Commuter rail, regional rail or suburban rail is a Passenger rail transport service between a city center and outer suburbs and Commuter towns The arrangement has two notable impacts on Amtrak operations. The host railroad is responsible for maintenance and occasionally Amtrak has suffered service disruptions from untimely track rehabilitation. When host railroads have simply refused to maintain their tracks to Amtrak's needs, Amtrak occasionally has been compelled to pay the host to maintain the tracks. Also, Amtrak enjoys priority over the host's freight traffic only for a specified window of time. When a passenger train misses that window, host railroads may (and frequently do) direct passenger trains to follow lumbering freight traffic, severely exacerbating even minor delays.

Tracks owned by Amtrak

Along the Northeast Corridor and in several other areas, Amtrak owns 730 route-miles of track (1175 km), including 17 tunnels consisting of 29. 7 miles of track (47. 8 km), and 1,186 bridges (including the famous Hell Gate Bridge) consisting of 42. The Hell Gate Bridge (originally the New York Connecting Railroad Bridge or The East River Arch Bridge) is a 1017-foot (310 m steel arch railroad 5 miles (68. 4 km) of track. Amtrak owns and operates the following lines:^[63]

Northeast Corridor

Main article: Northeast Corridor

The Northeast Corridor between Washington, D.C. and Boston via Baltimore, Philadelphia, Newark, New York and Providence, Rhode Island is largely owned by Amtrak, working cooperatively with several state and regional commuter agencies. The Northeast Corridor ( NEC) is the busiest passenger rail line in the United States by ridership and service frequency Washington DC ( formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, the District, or simply D Philadelphia (ˌfɪləˈdɛlfiə Newark is the largest city in New Jersey, United States and the County seat of Essex County. The transportation system of New York City is a cooperation of complex systems of infrastructure Amtrak's portion was acquired in 1976 as a result of the Railroad Revitalization and Regulatory Reform Act. The Railroad Revitalization and Regulatory Reform Act of 1976, Pub

• Boston to the Massachusetts/Rhode Island state line (operated and maintained by Amtrak but owned by the Commonwealth of Massachusetts)
• 118. Rhode Island ( officially named the State of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations, is a state in the New England region of the United States The Commonwealth of Massachusetts ( is a state located in the New England region of the northeastern United States. 3 miles (190. 4 km), Massachusetts/Rhode Island state line to New Haven, Connecticut
• 240 miles (386 km), New Rochelle, New York to Washington, D. New Rochelle ( French: Nouvelle-Rochelle) is a city in the south-east portion of the U C.

The part of the line from New Haven to the New York/Connecticut border (Port Chester/Greenwich) is owned by the state of Connecticut, while the portion from Port Chester to New Rochelle is owned by the state of New York. Port Chester is a village in Westchester County, New York, United States. Greenwich is a town in Fairfield County, Connecticut, United States. Connecticut ( is a state located in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. New York ( is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States and is the nation's third most populous The Connecticut Department of Transportation and the Metropolitan Transportation Authority operate this line through Metro-North Railroad. The Connecticut Department of Transportation (ConnDOT is responsible for the development and operation of Highways railroads, Mass transit systems The Metropolitan Transportation Authority ( MTA) is a Public benefit corporation responsible for Public transportation in the U The Metro-North Commuter Railroad Company, or MTA Metro-North Railroad, or more commonly Metro-North, is a Suburban commuter rail service

Philadelphia to Harrisburg Main Line

Main article: Philadelphia to Harrisburg Main Line

This line runs from Philadelphia to Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. The Philadelphia to Harrisburg Main Line is a Rail line owned and operated by Amtrak in the U Harrisburg is the Capital of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, in the United States of America As a result of an investment partnership with the commonwealth of Pennsylvania, signal and track improvements were completed in October 2006, and now allow all-electric service with a top speed of 110 mph (about 175 km/h) to run along the corridor.

• 104 miles (167 km), Philadelphia to Harrisburg (Pennsylvanian and Keystone Service)

Empire Corridor

Main article: Empire Corridor

• 11 miles (18 km), New York Penn Station to Spuyten Duyvil, New York
• 35. Route details The Pennsylvanian operates over Amtrak and Norfolk Southern Railway trackage Amtrak Northeast Corridor, New York to Amtrak 's Keystone Service provides frequent Passenger train service along the Amtrak-owned Keystone Corridor and Northeast Corridor The Empire Corridor is a term used to refer to the approximately 430-mile corridor between Buffalo and Albany, New York, including the cities Rochester Pennsylvania Station (commonly known as “Penn Station”) is the major intercity rail station and a major Commuter rail hub in New York City Spuyten Duyvil ( is the name of a subsection of the Riverdale section of the Bronx in New York City. 9 miles (57. 8 km), Stuyvesant to Schenectady, New York (operated and maintained by Amtrak, but owned by CSX)
• 8. Stuyvesant is a Town in Columbia County, New York, United States. Schenectady (skəˈnɛktədi Θkahnéhtati in Tuscarora) is a City in Schenectady County, New York, United States 5 miles (13. 8 km), Schenectady to Hoffmans, New York

New Haven-Springfield Line

Main article: New Haven-Springfield Line

• 60. The New Haven-Springfield Line or Hartford Line is a Railroad line owned by Amtrak from New Haven Connecticut north to Springfield 5 mi (97. 4 km), New Haven to Springfield (Regional and Vermonter)

Other tracks

• Chicago-Detroit Line - 98 miles (158 km), Porter, Indiana to Kalamazoo, Michigan (Wolverine)
• Post Road Branch - 12. Springfield is a City in and the County seat of Hampden County, Massachusetts, United States. The Northeast Regional is Amtrak 's service between Newport News Virginia and Boston Massachusetts. History Montrealer The Montrealer was originally a service of the Boston and Maine Railroad (BM running between Montreal and Washington Porter is a town in Westchester Township, Porter County, Indiana, United States. The Post Road Branch is a Railroad line owned and operated by Amtrak in the U 42 miles (20 km), Post Road Junction to Rensselaer, New York (Lake Shore Limited)

Amtrak also owns station and yard tracks in Chicago; Hialeah (near Miami, Florida) (leased from the State of Florida); Los Angeles; New Orleans; New York City; Oakland (Kirkham Street Yard); Orlando; Portland, Oregon; Saint Paul, Minnesota; Seattle; and Washington, D.C.

Amtrak owns the Chicago Union Station Company (Chicago Union Station) and Penn Station Leasing (New York Penn Station). Rensselaer is a City in Rensselaer County New York, US, located on the Hudson River, directly opposite Albany. The Lake Shore Limited is a daily Passenger train route operated by Amtrak in the Northeastern and Midwestern United States Chicago (ʃɪˈkɑːgoʊ is the largest City by population in the state of Illinois and the American Midwest of the United States. Hialeah is a city in Miami-Dade County, Florida, United States. Florida ( is a state located in the southeastern region of the United States, bordering Alabama to the northwest and Georgia to the Los Angeles (lɑˈsændʒələs los ˈaŋxeles in Spanish) is the largest City in the state of California and the American West New Orleans (nʲuːˈɔrliənz nʲuːˈɔrlənz French: La Nouvelle-Orléans) is a major United States port city and the largest city in Louisiana The City of New York Oakland (ˈoʊklənd founded in 1852 is the eighth-largest city in the U Orlando is a major City in central Florida, USA and is the County seat of Orange County Florida. Portland is a city located in the Northwestern United States, near the Confluence of the Willamette and Columbia rivers Saint Paul ( abbreviated St Paul) is the capital and second most populous city in the U Washington DC ( formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, the District, or simply D The Chicago Union Station Company owns Chicago 's Union Station and the approach tracks Union Station is a Chicago Train station that opened in 1925 replacing an earlier 1881 station and is now the only Intercity rail terminal in Chicago Pennsylvania Station (commonly known as “Penn Station”) is the major intercity rail station and a major Commuter rail hub in New York City It has a 99. 7% interest in the Washington Terminal Company^[64] (tracks around Washington Union Station) and 99% of 30th Street Limited (Philadelphia 30th Street Station). The Washington Terminal Company was a corporation created in Washington DC to provide support to railroads using Washington Union Station. Union Station is the grand ceremonial Train station designed to be the entrance to Washington D 30th Street Station is the main railroad station in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Also owned by Amtrak is Passenger Railroad Insurance. ^[65]

Other infrastructure:

Motive power and rolling stock

Main article: Amtrak rolling stock

See also

References

Other sources

External links

Trains is a monthly magazine dedicated to Trains and railroads, and is one of the two flagship publications of Kalmbach Publishing. Trains is a monthly magazine dedicated to Trains and railroads, and is one of the two flagship publications of Kalmbach Publishing.

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