Push to have Amtrak Post the Lynchburg Flyer on its Website

Efforts continue to have the Lynchburg Flyer posted on Amtrak's website, "www.Amtrak.com".

1. The VA Dep of Rail & Public Transportation (VDRPT) will ask Amtrak about the oversight.
2. I am awaiting a response to my recent Certified Mail letter request to post the Flyer.
3. A Manager at Union Station has also made a request to have the Flyer posted.

Hopefully, the flyer will be posted soon. It costs Amtrak nothing and reaches the world.

Status of Flyers at Stations: DC to Lynchburg

Since the start of the new Amtrak Service to Lynchburg on October 1, 2009, my brother, Richard, and I, have worked tirelessly to insure that the colorful Flyer promoting the new train is displayed at all stations. Many stations were either not receiving an adequate supply of flyers or were not displaying them.

Now I can report that all Stations between DC and Lynchburg currently display the flyers:

Union Station, Alexandria, Manassas, Culpeper, Charlottesville, and Lynchburg.

Until recently, Amtrak was slow to send flyers when requested. At Manassas and Culpeper, they waited weeks. To bridge the gap, Richard and I begged flyers from another station and provided them in person (Manassas) or by mail (Culpeper).

Today, I interviewed the Station Manager at Union Station. He recognized that this new service is very popular. The Local Lynchburg paper is reporting that the ridership for the 1st month of operation (October 2009) was double the projected number. The Station Manager promised:

1. to ask station under his control to stock the flyer at all times,
2. to request that Amtrak post a downloadable version of the Flyer on its website,
3. to request the posting of monthly ridership figures on its website and/or that of DRPT, and
4. to investigate the possibility of sending the flyers to Visitor Centers in the train corridor, especially Lexington and Staunton.

The Station Manager seems to be committed to making the new service more widely known. As I pointed out to , this train is the first new one in the Corridor in at least 30 years and the first one in 170 years to run directly to Boston. People are literally discovering, for the first time, the available of inexpensive, reliable, and safe trains, with more stops (like BWI Airport) than the Cardinal and The Crescent. It's a heady time for rail advocates!

Display of Flyers at Charlottesville and Lynchburg Stations Confirmed Personally

Last week I sent a Survey to the Station Managers of these two stations to determine 1) if they were receiving adequate numbers of the Lynchburg Flyer, a major vehicle for promoting the new Lynchburg to Boston/Springfield Service and 2) if they were displaying these flyers at their stations.

I sent these surveys because of past reports that the Charlottesville Station, at one time, was not displaying the Flyer and because I had not been able to visit either station personally.

Last week, I talked to one individual waiting for the new train in the Manassas Station Waiting room who thought that she had seen the Flyer displayed at the Charlottesville Station and had talked to one conductor who reported seeing the Flyer displayed at the Lynchburg Station.

On Tuesday, December 15, 2009, Richard Peacock, Secretary of the Virginia Association of Railway Passengers (VARP) personally visited both stations and reported that both currently had adequate supplies of the Flyer and were displaying them.

Bottomline:

At present, all stations, both staffed and non-staffed, except Washington DC’s Union Station, the 2nd busiest station in the US, display the flyers.

Next Steps:

On Thursday, Richard Peacock and I will visit Union Station to request the Station Manager to display the Flyer where the Station displays other Amtrak flyers.