NEWS




National Railroad Passenger Corporation
Amtrak Intercity
210 South Canal Street
Chicago, Illinois 60606



FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE				           ATK-96-24
February 6, 1996							Contact: Debbie Hare or Marc Magliari
									312 655-2390 or 312 655-1338


AMTRAK BOARD APPROVES $3 MILLION COACH CONVERSION PROJECT AT BEECH GROVE

	BEECH GROVE, Ind. -- At its meeting here today, the Amtrak Board of Directors approved the corporation's fiscal year 1996 capital program,  including a $3 million project to convert retired passenger coaches into mail cars.
	 A growing number of business opportunities and a decreasing number of available mail cars led the Board to approve the conversion.         
	The project, to be completed at Amtrak's Beech Grove Maintenance Facility, will convert 20 stainless steel coaches that had been withdrawn from passenger service last year.  Windows will be removed and the openings covered in stainless steel, while seating and most other interior fixtures will be salvaged.  Steel doors are then installed on the sides of the cars and the undercarriages are overhauled prior to the application of new Amtrak lettering and striping. 
	In October 1996, the Amtrak Board of Directors approved $3.2 million to convert 20 passenger coaches to mail cars.  This will bring the total number of passenger cars to be converted to 40. 
	The coaches were built almost 40 years ago primarily for the Santa Fe railroad and were inherited when Amtrak took over passenger train operations in 1971.  The coaches were completely rebuilt at Beech Grove for continued passenger use in Amtrak's Heritage Fleet.   
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	The Beech Grove shops can simultaneously accommodate five such coach conversions with each coach requiring nearly four weeks to complete.  A small number of furloughed employees will be recalled for the project.
	Amtrak provides transportation of mail and packages for the U.S. Postal Service and major express shippers, in addition to offering its own Amtrak Express service.  An average of 202 mail cars are in use every day throughout the Amtrak system, but attrition is projected to reduce the number of available cars to as few as 166 in the next four years.
	At the same time, the Amtrak Mail and Express product line has been discussing ventures with major drop shippers to utilize Amtrak trains.  This project, and a previous decision by the Board to convert other passenger coaches into mail cars, is designed to meet current equipment needs while allowing for new revenue production.  
	When the project is complete in December, 40 former passenger coaches will be placed back into service and continue to earn revenue by carrying mail and express shipments throughout the Amtrak system. 

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