National Railroad Passenger Corporation history

On April 21, 1971, the President nominated eight people to serve on the corporation's Board of Directors.

April – Purchases the Beech Grove, Ind., heavy maintenance facility from Penn Central (PC had been performing heavy overhauls of Amtrak equipment at Beech Grove since early 1972). August 7 – The first of the new single-level Amfleet cars enter revenue service on the Statesman (Washington-Boston).

The Regional Rail Reorganization Act of 1973 created Conrail (Consolidated Rail Corporation), a federally supported freight company made up of seven bankrupt railroads operating in the Northeast.

1975: The first Amfleet cars enter revenue service.

Three years later, following the passage of the Railroad Revitalization and Regulatory Reform Act in 1976, Amtrak acquired 621 miles of right-of way from Conrail.

December 12 – In partnership with the Commonwealth of Virginia, extends daily Northeast Regional service to Norfolk, Va., providing intercity passenger rail service to South Hampton Roads for the first time since 1977.

Finally, under restructuring in 1979, several routes were dropped as the basic network was cut to 24,000 miles.

1980: Amtrak launches "America's Getting Into Training" advertising campaign.

In addition to revenues from the commuter and 403(b) trains, by 1981, Amtrak's real estate revenues were generating about $9 million a year.

After 1982, under Amtrak's bargaining agreements, crews were paid based on a 40-hour work week, not on mileage and other factors as had been the case with the freight lines.

May 12 – With financial support from the state of North Carolina, Amtrak initiates the Carolinian (New York-Raleigh-Charlotte). Linking the state’s financial hub and capital, the train is an outgrowth of an earlier trial service over the same route that operated from 1984-85.

In 1985, Amtrak's supporters argued that shutting down Amtrak completely would result in costly drops in productivity due to traffic jams and crowded airports in the major corridors, especially in the northeast.

In 1986, Amtrak became the dominant carrier between New York and Washington, with 38 percent of the total air-rail market.

The takeover of the operating crews continued for the next several years, until, by 1987, Amtrak employed most of the crews operating passenger trains around the country.

——. "Why Amtrak Must Go." Newsweek, 7 March 1988.

In 1989, the company began another period of capital investment, as Amtrak purchased 104 short-distance passenger cars to alleviate crowding on routes in the Midwest and in California's San Joaquin Valley.

1990: With financial support from the state of North Carolina, Amtrak initiates the Carolinian (New York-Charlotte) in May.

“Amtrak Source Book,” Washington, D.C.: National Railroad Passenger Corporation, 1991.

Amtrak chosen to operate the new Virginia Railway Express commuter rail service (VRE begins service in 1992)

1994: Given the company's impressive revenues, Congress demands that Amtrak become a self-sufficient corporation.

Shaw, Russell. "Amtrak Offers Budget Cuts to Avoid the End of the Line." Insight on the News, 23 January 1995.

Although revenues increased to $1.6 billion in fiscal year 1996, debt and capital lease obligations were almost $1 billion.

Buttressed by the Taxpayer Relief Act of 1997 Amtrak launched a $360 million capital improvement program.

In California, 14 new dual-level dining cars were introduced on the state-supported routes, and in Washington, three pendular "tilt" Talgo trains were ordered by Amtrak and the Washington Department of Transportation for delivery in 1998.

Elliott, Stuart. "An Offbeat Campaign for Amtrak Introduces a New Rail Service." New York Times, June 4, 1999.

In 2000 only a single service route, the high-speed-rail Metroliner between New York City and Washington DC generated a profit.

hecker, jayetta z. "intercity passenger rail: the congress faces critical decisions about the role of and funding for intercity passenger rail systems." washington dc: general accounting office, 2001.

Hightower, Brendan. "Break-up and Partial Sell-off Put Forward as Way to Rescue United States Railways." Financial Times, 14 February 2002.

In July 2003 two competing funding plans warred for prominence.

By February 2004 the Amtrak supporters had won, and Amtrak was approved for $2 billion a year for six years.

October 30 – State Supported services between Chicago and downstate Illinois double from three roundtrips to seven as the state invests in additional frequencies following record ridership in Fiscal Year 2006.

Amtrak wins the "2007 Image of the Year Award" from the National Association of Uniform Manufacturers and Distributors.

October 15 – Negotiates contracts with 18 states through 19 agencies to increase state control and funding of 28 passenger rail routes (750 miles or less) under the provisions of the Passenger Rail Investment and Improvement Act (PRIIA) of 2008.

In addition, Amtrak received some $1.3 billion for improvements to the system’s infrastructure as part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (2009).

The new service is part of a three-year pilot program that will also include new Washington-Richmond service starting in July 2010.

"Amtrak Connect" Wi-Fi equipment installed on more than 450 Amfleet cars; by the end of 2011, approximately 75 percent of all Amtrak passengers have access to free on-board Wi-Fi.

Commits to an aggressive program to install Positive Train Control technology on the Northeast Corridor and the Michigan Line by 2012.

2014), Amtrak carries 30.9 million passengers and earns $2.2 billion in ticket revenue.

2015), Amtrak carries 30.9 million passengers and earns $2.2 billion in ticket revenue.

2016: Amtrak and partners unveil the 30th Street Station District Plan.

2017), Amtrak carries 31.7 million customers and earns $2.24 billion in ticket revenue.

2018), Amtrak customers take 31.7 million trips.

2020), Amtrak customers take 16.8 million trips, a year-over-year decrease of 15.2 million passengers, owing to pandemic-related travel demand reductions.

December 1 – Metrolink, Southern California’s commuter rail service, awards Amtrak a four-and-a-half-year contract for commuter train operations services that will begin on January 1, 2021.