Amtrak Passengers Aren't Thrilled By New NextGen Acela Rebrand Proposal Less Than Two Months After Launching

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The Travel

Amtrak Passengers Aren't Thrilled By New NextGen Acela Rebrand Proposal Less Than Two Months After Launching


Credit: The Global Guy/Shutterstock.com

By Gia Marcos
2 days ago

Amtrak's NextGen Acela service launched on August 28, promising faster rides between cities along the Northeast Corridor, including Boston, New York, and Washington, D.C. But passengers already have complaints about its inability to reach top speed and the disappointing features in its only two classes: business class and first class. Private rail company, AmeriStarRail, is even proposing a more inclusive but luxurious rebrand of the new Acela—the Libertyliner 250—less than two months after its launch.

In addition to that, the Delaware-based company is offering to pay off Amtrak's massive debt over the NextGen Acela trains. These new trains have left Amtrak with a $2.4 billion debt under a Railroad Rehabilitation and Improvement Financing (RRIF) loan from the U.S. Department of Transportation.

AmeriStarRail plans to offer a more inclusive train service between Boston and New York, offering three classes, including coach. It could also make history as the U.S.'s first-ever high-speed coach train service. But passengers are not that optimistic about a NextGen Acela rebrand...

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[House of Roberts]

1. AmeriStarRail will overpromise and underdeliver.

Once they get the contract, the debt won't get paid unless the ticket prices go up substantially. Just another 'privatize the profits or subsidize the losses' scam by a private company with the option to take its ball and go home with a bankruptcy.