Amtrak's Food Fight: Congress Is Trying to Decide Whether Your Next Meal on Amtrak Will Look... Like This... Or This ...

This article looks at Amtrak operations and how the prospect of losing its food service is one of the political battles it is facing. A report issued in summer 2005 by the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) and titled Analysis of Cost Savings on Amtrak's Long Distance Trains suggested the elimination of dining cars, lounges, sleeping cars, and checked baggage service on long-distance trains could save Amtrak anywhere from $375 million to $790 million in operating savings and $395 million in avoidable planned capital expenditures over 5 years. A series of critical reports by the U.S. General Accountability Office also have also put Amtrak's food service and the operation of its 14 overnight trains in jeopardy. The article gives an historical overview of this debate, followed by an outline of a 5-Phase Food Service Redesign Action Plan which Amtrak hopes will help retain service while controlling the costs. Included in the article is a timeline of Amtrak food service beginning in 1971 and concluding with the cost-cutting recommendations by the GAO and DOT inspector general.