AMTRAK TO NOTIFY NORTHEAST CORRIDOR PASSENGERS OF MAJOR SERVICE DISRUPTIONS VIA TWITTER
Pilot program for @AmtrakNEC handle starts now
WILMINGTON, Del. -- Amtrak is responding to customer requests to be notified directly of major Northeast Corridor service disruptions using Twitter and a new @AmtrakNEC handle in a pilot program effective today, March 29.
Twitter users who choose to follow @AmtrakNEC will be notified of major service disruptions resulting in extreme delays or stoppage of all rail traffic, whether the issue is the result of commuter, freight or Amtrak rail equipment, severe weather, police activity, and track or other infrastructure matters.
Followers of @AmtrakNEC on Twitter will then be notified when the corridor is significantly disrupted for Acela Express and Northeast Regional and other Amtrak trains between Washington, D.C., and Boston, Keystone Service trains between Harrisburg, Pa., and New York City, via Philadelphia and Shuttle trains between Springfield, Mass., and New Haven, Conn. Notifications of disruptions that affect a single Amtrak train will continue to be made aboard that train -- and at stations -- and will not result in a tweet.
There will be a link to these tweets from Amtrak.com and they will be relayed to the news media along with the more detailed Amtrak Service Alerts already being produced and posted on Amtrak.com. Train status information will continue to be available through the tools on both the standard and mobile versions of Amtrak.com, calls to 800-USA-RAIL and on information display systems at stations.
Amtrak will continue to engage our Twitter followers using our @Amtrak primary account, on Facebook and through other means. The @AmtrakNEC handle will be "push" only.
Amtrak will review the number of followers and the re-tweets of these messages to determine if the pilot program should be modified, made permanent and/or expanded to additional corridors.
A similar service is already provided to Amtrak corridor passengers in California.
Posts: 2236 | From: Evanston, Ill. and Ontonagon, Mich. | Registered: Feb 2007
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I signed up for a Twitter account about a year ago, and I have yet to figure out. I have "followers", but I don't know what they're following. The whole service is a mystery to me.
Posts: 2355 | From: Pleasanton, CA | Registered: Apr 2007
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I was on it for a while, too, Smitty, but it just didn't suit me, either. I much prefer Facebook for keeping in touch with friends, family and old colleagues.
Posts: 2236 | From: Evanston, Ill. and Ontonagon, Mich. | Registered: Feb 2007
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Twitter works well for the Surfliner route, lets you know which trains are late or if something such as an accident is causing delays/transfers/trains not to run.
It also is very helpful for our local metrorail. They are constantly working on the new additions to the rail system with occasional bus segments required. Tells me if I need to drive to the basketball game some weekends.
I was looking for a similar thing for Amtrak in general. Now I see that the NEC will be adding it just when I am going to travel the NEC - great!
-------------------- Vicki in usually sunny Southern California Posts: 951 | From: Redondo Beach, CA | Registered: Aug 2006
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I am one of the few people I know who does NOT have a Twitter or Facebook account, but both my wife and her daughter (plus most of our friends and aquaintances) are on Facebook. I have no need for such a service!! I don't really understand how it works anyway -- if someone has something to tell me, they can use good old fashioned e-mail, or this other antiquated thing we still have called a "telephone."
Posts: 2428 | From: Grayling, MI | Registered: Mar 2002
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