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Travelers take Amtrak in wake of plot
Amtrak, the U.S. passenger railroad, said bookings rose 26% Thursday (Aug. 10) as travelers weighed alternatives to airlines after British police said they foiled a terrorist plot to blow up planes over the Atlantic, according to this Bloomberg News report by Rip Watson.
Calls to Amtrak's customer-service centers also increased 14% from a year earlier to 50,000, spokesman Clifford Black said Friday. The Washington-based railroad didn't give a total for the bookings, made by phone or on the Internet.
"Some of the inquiries were based on the reported security delays at airports," Black said. "We know that because some of the callers said so."
Terror alerts were raised Thursday, and security rules were tightened, delaying flights and snarling airports. The U.S. Homeland Security Department acted after the arrest of 24 people in Britain who were believed to be planning to attack airplanes bound for the United States.
Ticket sales Thursday rose 15%, the same pace as in August's first nine days, Black said. At this time in 2005, Amtrak was restarting premium-priced trains between Boston and Washington that had been idled for three months to fix the brakes. Black said Amtrak travel also might be increasing because of higher gasoline prices and more punctual service.
"Americans certainly are looking for other options and a choice to do something else for their method of transportation," said David Johnson, assistant director of the National Association of Railroad Passengers consumer advocacy group. "America needs passenger rail, and the American public is demanding it."
The increase in Amtrak reservations might not result in a matching gain in sales, because the railroad typically gives customers several days to buy tickets or cancel their plans. Reservations can be made as long as 400 days in advance.
Amtrak, in contrast to airports, doesn't extensively screen luggage or require passengers to arrive before the scheduled departure time. The railroad said on its Web site that it deployed more police and is conducting additional on-board verifications of identification in the wake of the British arrests.
Security funding for passenger rail needs to rise, because the United States spends $7 per airline passenger and less than 2 cents per railroad traveler, Johnson said.
Amtrak is in the midst of its annual funding battle, with the U.S. Senate backing $1.4 billion in annual subsidies, about 20% more than for the year ending Sept. 30. President George W. Bush's administration wants to force cost cuts by lowering the subsidy almost 20%.
(The preceding Bloomberg News report by Rip Watson was published by the Detroit Free Press on Saturday, Aug. 12, 2006.)
August 14, 2006
Amtrak, the U.S. passenger railroad, said bookings rose 26% Thursday (Aug. 10) as travelers weighed alternatives to airlines after British police said they foiled a terrorist plot to blow up planes over the Atlantic, according to this Bloomberg News report by Rip Watson.
Calls to Amtrak's customer-service centers also increased 14% from a year earlier to 50,000, spokesman Clifford Black said Friday. The Washington-based railroad didn't give a total for the bookings, made by phone or on the Internet.
"Some of the inquiries were based on the reported security delays at airports," Black said. "We know that because some of the callers said so."
Terror alerts were raised Thursday, and security rules were tightened, delaying flights and snarling airports. The U.S. Homeland Security Department acted after the arrest of 24 people in Britain who were believed to be planning to attack airplanes bound for the United States.
Ticket sales Thursday rose 15%, the same pace as in August's first nine days, Black said. At this time in 2005, Amtrak was restarting premium-priced trains between Boston and Washington that had been idled for three months to fix the brakes. Black said Amtrak travel also might be increasing because of higher gasoline prices and more punctual service.
"Americans certainly are looking for other options and a choice to do something else for their method of transportation," said David Johnson, assistant director of the National Association of Railroad Passengers consumer advocacy group. "America needs passenger rail, and the American public is demanding it."
The increase in Amtrak reservations might not result in a matching gain in sales, because the railroad typically gives customers several days to buy tickets or cancel their plans. Reservations can be made as long as 400 days in advance.
Amtrak, in contrast to airports, doesn't extensively screen luggage or require passengers to arrive before the scheduled departure time. The railroad said on its Web site that it deployed more police and is conducting additional on-board verifications of identification in the wake of the British arrests.
Security funding for passenger rail needs to rise, because the United States spends $7 per airline passenger and less than 2 cents per railroad traveler, Johnson said.
Amtrak is in the midst of its annual funding battle, with the U.S. Senate backing $1.4 billion in annual subsidies, about 20% more than for the year ending Sept. 30. President George W. Bush's administration wants to force cost cuts by lowering the subsidy almost 20%.
(The preceding Bloomberg News report by Rip Watson was published by the Detroit Free Press on Saturday, Aug. 12, 2006.)
August 14, 2006
