Amtrak
Headquarters: 60 Massachusetts Avenue, NE
Washington, DC 20002
Phone: 202-906-3000
Employees: 20,000
President and CEO: Joseph Boardman
Website: http://www.amtrak.com
Career Page
Officially known as the National Railroad Passenger Corporation, Amtrak is a government-owned company that operates the nation's passenger rail system, providing train service to more than 500 destinations in 46 states on a 21,000-mile network of routes.
Amtrak operates over 300 trains a day at speeds of up to 150 miles per hour. More than half of trains operate at speeds of over 100 mph or greater.
Amtrak earned approximately $3.2 billion in revenue and incurred approximately $4.28 billion in expenses in fiscal 2014. The train service has never been profitable and needs federal funding to make up for losses and fund track and station repairs. Amtrak also receives money from some states outside of the Northeast Corridor.
Amtrak served nearly 31 million passengers in fiscal 2014.
NY's Penn Station is the busiest train station served by Amtrak with 9.5 million passengers in fiscal 2013. Amtrak's highest ridership region is in the busy Northeast Corridor.
Amtrak also operates Acela Express, a high-speed train service between Boston, NY and Washington D.C.
Amtrak is a made-for-profit corporation, but receives subsidies from the federal government to keep it operating. Amtrak's preferred stock is owned by the federal government and members of Amtrak's board of directors are appointed by the President of the United States himself.
Created on May 1, 1971, the company was formally established as the National Railroad Passenger Corporation. Amtrak stands for America, travel, and track.
The week of Thanksgiving -- Tuesday to Monday -- is typically Amtrak's busiest travel period of the year.
In 2012, Amtrak conductors began carrying iPhones to scan tickets and track passengers. Customers no longer need to carry printed tickets and can instead show conductors codes sent to them via e-mail on their smartphones.
In February, Amtrak introduced the first of 70 new advanced Siemens-built electric locomotives to its fleet which will improve reliability and efficiency.
Updated November 27, 2014
