May 2011 - Amtrak
May 2011 - Amtrak
May 2011 - Amtrak
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2 | <strong>May</strong> <strong>2011</strong> <strong>Amtrak</strong> Ink<br />
Train of Thought<br />
Happy anniversary, <strong>Amtrak</strong>! When <strong>Amtrak</strong> began operations<br />
40 years ago, there were doubters who said it<br />
wouldn’t last. Today, we are a strong company that<br />
manages a network of long-distance, corridor and high-speed rail<br />
service that connects communities and modes of transportation,<br />
and sets ridership records.<br />
In times of crisis in our nation, <strong>Amtrak</strong> has been there to<br />
provide the mobility and the connectivity our country needed,<br />
whether it was gas crises, hurricanes or 9/11. In times of economic<br />
prosperity, we’ve helped drive local economies; in times of<br />
fiscal constraint, we’ve connected communities so that people<br />
who had to commute farther to stay employed had options.<br />
We’ve delivered for our nation and we will continue to do so.<br />
I know a lot of CEOs say this, but our employees are truly the<br />
backbone of our operation. It’s your expertise, your love of the<br />
mission, your dedication and your hard work that give shape to<br />
what <strong>Amtrak</strong> is today, and what it can be in the future. I want to<br />
thank you for your service and to let you know that I appreciate<br />
the role you play — because every one of us plays a role — in<br />
making <strong>Amtrak</strong> successful.<br />
In addition to having a dedicated workforce, we continue to<br />
build the support of our customers, as well as our freight, state<br />
and commuter partners. While they have been key to the development<br />
of the first 40 years, they will be even more so in the<br />
coming decades, as our nation’s leadership prepares to make<br />
unprecedented investments in passenger rail.<br />
There are still cynics out there who maintain uninformed and<br />
outdated perceptions of <strong>Amtrak</strong>. Despite growing support for<br />
passenger rail, securing federal funding support in a tight budget<br />
Corrections: The item<br />
“40-Days Travel Promo for the<br />
40th” in the April issue of<br />
<strong>Amtrak</strong> Ink misstated the<br />
terms of the promotion. The<br />
discount is available for one<br />
child per paying adult (not<br />
three). Also, the third column<br />
for the schedule for the 40th<br />
Anniversary Exhibit Train<br />
should have been labeled<br />
“July.” We regret the errors.<br />
<strong>Amtrak</strong> Employee and Customer Communications<br />
Joe McHugh, Vice President Margaret Sherry, Sr. Director Jennifer Moore, Editor<br />
Govt. Affairs & Corp. Comms. Employee & Customer Comms. <strong>Amtrak</strong> Ink<br />
Erika Cotton Julia Quinn, Coordinator Doug Riddell<br />
Manager Digital and Social Media Photographer<br />
Marlon Sharpe Collin King Sharon Slaton<br />
Principal Graphic Designer Graphic Specialist Manager<br />
<strong>Amtrak</strong> Headquarters • 60 Massachusetts Ave, NE, Washington, DC 20002 • Ecom@<strong>Amtrak</strong>.com<br />
<strong>Amtrak</strong> – Chicago Office • 525 West Van Buren Street Chicago, IL 60605<br />
<strong>Amtrak</strong> Ink is a monthly employee publication of <strong>Amtrak</strong>, the National Railroad Passenger Corporation.<br />
® AMTRAK is a registered service mark of the National Railroad Passenger Corporation © <strong>2011</strong> National Railroad Passenger Corporation<br />
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climate will continue to be<br />
challenging. But we are<br />
resilient, and we will continue<br />
to forge on with our<br />
mission of being<br />
America’s railroad.<br />
We have weathered 40<br />
years pretty well. And not<br />
only are we still standing,<br />
but we have earned many<br />
more friends and supporters<br />
and have plans for the<br />
future that we’re putting<br />
into action already with<br />
Joseph H. Boardman<br />
new equipment purchases<br />
and plans for 220 mph high-speed rail.<br />
Our anniversary celebration will last all year, with the Exhibit<br />
Train traveling to locations all over the country. I hope you’ll<br />
have the opportunity to visit the train, because it was designed<br />
for you. I also want to express my gratitude to the 40th<br />
Anniversary Team (comprising members of the Government<br />
Affairs and Corporate Communications, Marketing and Product<br />
Development, Mechanical — and its Rolling Stock Engineering<br />
group — and Transportation departments), the employees at<br />
Bear and Beech Grove, and others who put in long hours and<br />
took on extra duties to create the 40th anniversary exhibit train<br />
for our workforce.<br />
Happy 40th and thank you for your support. ■