New Amtrak Ad Campaign Promotes Re-launch of Northeast Regional Service

Campaign Includes New Logo and Integrated Media Plan

WASHINGTON - In support of Amtrak’s re-launch of its Northeast Corridor Regional service as Northeast Regional, the corporation has introduced a new advertising campaign in states along the Northeast Corridor from Virginia to Massachusetts. The goal of the campaign, scheduled to run from July 13th through September 7th, is to inspire customers who may not be regular Northeast Corridor passengers to try the new Northeast Regional service themselves.

The new Northeast Regional service will feature a number of enhancements for passengers including refurbished Café cars with new menus. In addition, these new Café cars will now be positioned in the middle of each train to improve access for coach passengers who account for more than 90 percent of all riders. Other improvements include refurbished Business class seats and interiors. En-route cleaning will help keep the trains clean and fresh.

The new Northeast Regional logo was chosen from among 10 designs tested. Research showed that the logo is a striking, memorable graphic that is modern and up-to-date. It also conveys a good travel experience. The track imagery also easily connects it to the existing Amtrak brand.

“Introducing a strong logo to represent the revitalized service was key as the Northeast Regional service is Amtrak’s busiest, transporting more than 6.8 million passengers last fiscal year alone” said Emmett Fremaux, Amtrak’s Vice President, Marketing & Product Management.

The integrated media plan for the new Northeast Regional re-launch includes newspapers and business journals, radio ads, outdoor gas station and bus placements, and online display ads and search. Messaging focuses on the key elements that draw customers to the convenience and comfort of rail travel — mostly notably, freedom from traffic congestion, city to city-center trip time, and more recently, higher gas prices.

The entire campaign, budgeted at $2.1 million, is expected to attract an additional 136,000 passengers to the service, valued at $8.9 million in ticket revenue annually. The creative was developed by Amtrak’s agency of record, Arnold Worldwide in McLean, Va.