Amtrak Posptones Fare Increase

[AlanB]

September 15, 2005  Amtrak To Postpone September 20 Fare Increase  

WASHINGTON – Amtrak announced today that it has postponed its planned fare increases, originally scheduled to become effective on September 20. No new date for the fare action has been set. Amtrak postponed the action to conclude additional briefings with public officials and other interested groups.

On September 9, Amtrak announced a fare increase in part to recover escalating fuel costs. As part of the overall fare increase, Amtrak intends to standardize and reduce its discounts on monthly Smart Passes, which are currently as much as 70%.

An average of 1,989 monthly NEC Regional train Smart Passes and 178 monthly Empire Service Smart Passes are purchased each month.

The full press release can be found here.