(The Associated Press circulated the following article on March 19.)
SHELBY, Mont. — Karyn Hamilton, like many Amtrak riders, had a dim view of the nation’s passenger railroad as low-class, uncomfortable and not much better than a bus.
But the marketing director of a financial-management firm in Portland, Ore., changed her mind during a trip last August on the Empire Builder, an Amtrak long-distance train undergoing a dramatic makeover that includes new carpeting and colors, pleasant staff and upgraded food service. As the silver, diesel-powered train rolled across the prairie, Hamilton and other first-class passengers were treated to a wine-and-cheese tasting party. They dined on meals made with recipes drawn from the bygone heyday of train travel. At bedtime, she found a fresh-baked chocolate-chip cookie in her spiffed-up sleeping cabin.
“It’s getting more like a cruise ship,” Hamilton said.
After years of financial and political crisis, Amtrak is making a calculated gamble: To boost revenue on its longer-haul trains, the railroad is altering its longstanding one-size-fits-all approach to passengers. Instead, it is courting affluent leisure travelers willing to pay extra for first-class, sleeping-car service. The differential is substantial. Fares vary by season and day of the week, but if someone were planning to travel, for example, on April 16, a one-way coach fare from Chicago to Seattle would cost $134 for the two-night trip. First-class passengers would pay the basic coach fare plus another $270 for a roomette or $466 for a bedroom.
‘We’re living on borrowed time’
The changes began with a major makeover of the Empire Builder last summer. Now, Amtrak plans to extend the changes to some other long-haul trains, while also attacking union work rules and bloated food-service expenses. Amtrak’s board also is considering cuts to its headquarters overhead by streamlining repair shops, maintenance operations, reservation call centers and train stations.
The shakeup is an acknowledgment by Amtrak officials that they are running out of chances to stave off pressure from the Bush administration to break up or even liquidate the federally subsidized — and unprofitable — railroad. “We’re living on borrowed time,” says David Laney, Amtrak’s chairman. “We have to demonstrate what we can do on our own before it is taken out of our hands.”
Laney says the next crucial step for Amtrak is to fix some notorious customer-service problems, ranging from dirty cars to unhelpful and rude onboard employees. About 30 percent of all Amtrak trains are late.
Hip blue-and-white decorating scheme
The restructuring likely puts Amtrak on a collision course with its 17,000 unionized workers, two-thirds of whom haven’t had a new contract for about five years. Amtrak officials estimate union restrictions cost the railroad about $100 million a year.
Some of Amtrak’s worst problems are beyond its control. Amtrak shares nearly 22,000 miles of track with the freight trains, and congestion is worsening.
The Empire Builder is the rolling laboratory for some of the changes. The train, which made its first trip in 1929, is one of Amtrak’s most popular, carrying nearly 500,000 riders a year. During the daily 2,200-mile trek between Chicago, Seattle and Portland, Ore., the Empire Builder chugs past spectacular scenery. Its on-time record is about 68 percent.
The Empire Builder’s added amenities and upgraded service are noticeable. Amtrak put a small fleet of rebuilt passenger cars with hip blue-and-white interiors on the line — a big improvement over the drab orange and brown that dominated older cars. Employees now must introduce themselves to passengers, and conductors must stay up all night in the dining car in case they are needed.
So far, the Empire Builder makeover appears to be enticing more passengers, particularly during the off-season when ridership typically declines.