When it comes to communications, Amtrak? is sufficient in some areas yet lacking in others. With the current state of communications technology, patrons expect information to come as instantly and directly as possibly ? i.e., a delay alert being sent as a text message. With this in mind, Amtrak?s various Twitter accounts can be useful tools. For one, there is Amtrak?s official Twitter, @Amtrak. When visiting this page, it is obvious that the manager of the account, Will, replies directly to riders, responding to their questions and concerns. He also re-tweets from other Amtrak accounts such as @AmtrakNEC (the Northeast Corridor service), @Amtrak_CA (California), @AmtrakVermonter, or @Amtrak_Cascades. These accounts for specific Amtrak services give timely updates, such as ?Service?Philadelphia, PA (PHL)?to?Harrisburg, PA (HAR)?restored after weather-related problems. Residual delays expected.? tweeted by @AmtrakNEC on October 14th. With a smartphone, alerts like these can be sent as a text message instantly after they are tweeted. There are also accounts such as @AmtrakVacations which advertise deals, specials, packages, etc. on Amtrak travel for leisure and fun. As useful as this may seem, there should be a universal system to alert travelers about delays and cancellations via text message, not necessarily requiring Twitter or a smartphone. As a frequent flyer between Northern and Southern California, I like the convenience of Southwest Airlines sending me a text if there is a delay or cancellation, especially during the holidays or bad weather. It is a simple system ? when booking your flight on their website, you give them your cell number if you wish to receive these alerts. There is no reason why Amtrak cannot work to do the same. While Amtrak has a very diverse, informative set of Twitter accounts, its alert system should be more universal (not separated into different Twitter accounts) and accessible (not broadcast only via Twitter).
Another pertinent Amtrak communications issue is wi-fi availability on their trains. It is available on some ? for example, in an effort to gain ridership, the highly popular Acela Express trains now offer it for free. But before Amtrak works towards having wi-fi available on all of their trains, they should at least notify passengers whether it will be available on a particular train before having to book it. Once again, comparing to the airline industry ? many airlines do this and it is very convenient. Riders could better decide which train to book if this is an important consideration. Another improvement Amtrak and its riders could benefit from is the development of a smartphone app allowing people to book, cancel, or change trips anywhere from their mobile phones. Many airlines ? Amtrak?s main competitors ? already have these. To summarize where Amtrak currently stands in communications technology, if they want to keep or increase ridership and compete with the airline industry, they need more smartphone implementation, better passenger notifications on alerts and wi-fi availability, and ultimately more trains with wi-fi access.
By Elana Lathrop
Posted in Amtrak??????Source: http://www.railroad.net/communications-amtrak%E2%80%99s-strengths-and-weaknesses.html
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