Passenger Trains > Amtrak expands discounts for Federal business travel

As Amtrak cuts its various discounts to civilian passengers, Federal
Government employees on business travel get an expanded program of fare
reductions, and liberal waivers of change and cancellation fees:

====================================================

Federal Government Business Travel Just Got Easier With a Better Deal —
Nationwide

> Amtrak offers federal government employees discounted fares on rail
> travel within the Northeast Corridor and we offer federal government
> employees traveling on business discounts on Coach fares nationwide.
> Federal government discounts may not be booked on Amtrak.com. For
> more information please contact: AmtrakGovernmentTravel@Amtrak.com.

> In the Northeast Corridor
>
> You can travel between 70+ stations using the Northeast Regional and
> Keystone Service. Amtrak will also continue to offer discounted
> federal government fares on select Acela Express trains in the
> Northeast Corridor.

> No More Refund Worries
>
> We've removed the refund rules from our federal government fares, so
> your reservation (when booked through approved channels) is now fully
> refundable if cancelled prior to departure.
>
> Book your business travel via your self-serve booking tool, or your
> TMC.

> When your reservation contains a federal government fare, it's free
> of our normal refund rules. Your trip is 100% refundable when you
> travel with a federal government fare and you cancel prior to
> departure.

> If needed, you can cancel your reservation through Amtrak.com, our
> mobile apps, by calling us, or with an Amtrak Station Agent.
> Cancellations made prior to departure will be refunded 100% to the
> original form of payment.

> No-shows/no-cancellation will be forfeited.
>
> Government Business Travel Just Got Bigger
>
> Scheduled Program Enhancements and Expansion
>
> Northeast Corridor Regional Service — select city pairs* will see a
> bigger discount:
>
> New York, NY (NYP) - Washington, DC (WAS)
> Philadelphia, PA (PHL) - Washington, DC (WAS)
> Newark, NJ (NWK) - Washington, DC (WAS)
> Baltimore - Thurgood Marshall Airport, MD (BWI) - New York, NY (NYP)
> Metropark-Iselin, NJ (MET) - Washington, DC (WAS)
> Washington, DC (WAS) - Wilmington, DE (WIL)
> Trenton, NJ (TRE) - Washington, DC (WAS)
> New York, NY (NYP) - Philadelphia, PA (PHL)
> Baltimore - Penn Station, MD (BAL) - New York (NYP)
> New Carrollton, MD (NCR) - New York (NYP)
> New York, NY (NYP) - North Philadelphia, PA (PHN)
> New York, NY (NYP) - Newark, NJ (NWK)
> New York, NY (NYP) - Metropark-Iselin, NJ (MET)
> New York, NY (NYP) - Trenton, NJ (TRE)
> New York, NY (NYP) - Philadelphia, PA (PHL)
> New York, NY (NYP) - Wilmington, DE (WIL)
>
> *Pricing and city pairs included in this program are subject to
> change.

> *Other Northeast Corridor city pairs will remain at the current
> discount levels.

> Nationwide Availability
>
> Amtrak Federal Discount Program will extend to our National Service
> and most State Supported services. Federal government travelers will
> find discounted fares available across the country on coach fares.

> Business Class, Sleepers, or other upgrades are not included as part
> of the Amtrak Federal Discount Program but are available to book as
> upgrades, refund rules for those upgrades will apply.

> No change to Acela Express city pairs or current Acela program.

> The Canadian Maple Leaf service offers the Federal Discount through
> Niagara Falls, NY.

> Increased discounts are offered on all dedicated Amtrak Thruway bus
> services. Dedicated means Thruway services contracted by or operated
> by Amtrak. Where non-dedicated Thruway busses are made available
> (i.e. Greyhound), the discount will not apply.

> Some agencies allow booking fares that are not included in the Amtrak
> Federal Discount Program. If selecting a non-government fare, the
> refund rules and penalties for that selected fare will apply, i.e.,
> Saver Fares.

> To obtain federal discount fares, Amtrak reservations must be made
> through an approved booking channel: either Travel Management
> Company, CWT E2 Solution or ConcurGov. Cancellations can be made to a
> reservation by any Amtrak touchpoint.

> Passengers must cancel trips prior to departure as no-shows will
> result in forfeiture. When you select a fare included in the Amtrak
> Federal Discount Program, you are eligible to receive a full refund
> up to time of departure in the event you need to cancel.
>
> Benefits to Amtrak Rail Travel

> Get to Your Destination Faster
> Amtrak trains offer city center to city center service.
> Accomplish More
> Complementary Wi-Fi and electrical outlets allow you to continue to work while traveling.
> Take Advantage of Flexible Scheduling
> Mix and match coach and Acela schedules while traveling within the Northeast Corridor.
> Ride Comfortably
> Enjoy more seat and leg room, the ability to move around, access to Lounge Cars.
>
> New to Rail Travel? Check the FAQs
>
> What's different in the new program?
>
> Amtrak is providing a discount to federal government business
> travelers for the Northeast Corridor Regional train service. Amtrak
> will offer this while continuing to provide federal government fares
> on select Acela routes in the Northeast Corridor. This expansion now
> includes more than 70 stations on Acela, Northeast Regional and
> Amtrak Keystone services. We have also added discounts for federal
> government business travel on most National Service and State
> trains.

> How do I book travel to get this discount?
>
> Your agency's authorized Travel Management Company (TMC) are provided
> a corporate account number that is used to activate the discounted
> federal government travel fare. The corporate account number can only
> be applied by TMCs, or via your agencies booking tool provided
> through CWTSato or Concur. Contact your travel office for details.
> Discounted federal government fares are not available through the
> Amtrak Contact Center, Amtrak.com, Amtrak Mobile, Quik-Trak or Amtrak
> Ticket Offices. How do Amtrak fares work?
>
> GSA does not set Amtrak fares. Using the approved government booking
> channels (CWTSato, Concur, or your TMC) the corporate ID number will
> be applied to your reservation inquiry. This guarantees that the
> federal government rate or better will be returned to you. Amtrak may
> offer special fares from time to time that are lower than federal
> government fare plans. If that is the case our system will always
> return to you the lowest available fare based on the rules your
> agency has set for refunds and other conditions.

> What if I have to make a change while traveling?
>
> Changes to travel within an existing reservation created via an
> approved channel are available via Amtrak Contact Center
> 1-800-USA-RAIL and Amtrak Ticket Offices. New reservations must be
> made via the approved booking channels. Changes that result in
> additional charges must be approved per your agency policy.

> What if my trip gets canceled? Can I get a refund?

> Tickets sold as a federal
> government travel fare are fully refundable. If ticket is not
> canceled before the scheduled departure resulting in a "no show," the
> entire amount is forfeited and cannot be applied toward future
> travel.

https://www.amtrak.com/government-discount?utm_source=federalnewsradio.com&utm_medium=display



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 03/11/18 22:36 by GenePoon.

I once tried to book Amtrak for a government trip and was first quoted the typical consumer grade fare, which was about half as much as air travel to a city in Flordia. When I called back to actually book the ticket, the Travel Management Company realized it needed to book a fully refundable ticket and the price pretty much doubled. This was back when Amtrak had a much more liberal consumer grade cancellation policy as well. Glad to see they are trying to rectify the situation.