Amtrak's New Customer Pledge

Amtrak officials have decided to put their money where their mouth is. The railway has unveiled a new satisfaction guarantee for riders and a new logo.

According to Amtrak officials, the initiative is the first and only national travel and transportation provider to give a "satisfaction guarantee."

The CEO of Amtrak George Warrington joined The Early Show from Union Station in Washington and said, "This is all about putting customers first. It's about guaranteeing service excellence, assuring that every trip on Amtrak will be a safe, comfortable and enjoyable trip. We're prepared to back that up with a guarantee, because we're very proud of our people, our employees. We're very proud of our products. We're proud of our service."

Under the guarantee, which began July 4, Amtrak promises if guests aren't satisfied with their service, they can bring their concerns to any Amtrak employee. And if they still aren't fully happy, they may call a toll free number, 1 (800) USA-RAIL for a Service Guarantee Certificate. But, they must keep their ticket stubs in order to get the certificate.

Warrington explained passengers can contact Amtrak for free equivalent travel in the future.

"We want you to try us again if you have a bad experience on Amtrak. This is about empowering our employees to solve problems. When a customer faces adversity, we have empowered all of our employees to engage in behaviors to fix those problems, to make sure that customers feel comfortable, satisfied and feel like Amtrak really does care about them, which we do," he said.

Amtrak has given training to all of its 25,000 employees and instituted measures to ensure all trains offer consistent levels of service and amenities.

The new service and brand are part of a broader Amtrak strategy to boost revenues and end federal operating assistance by 2003.