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Frailey "hacking" Amtrak's Guest Rewards

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I found Frailey's article on Amtrak's Guest Rewards Program to be interesting. In the spirit of full disclosure, I am a Guest Rewards member and have used my rewards points for a trip from Portland, Oregon to Seattle, Washington. In FY12 Amtrak lost more than $1,2 billion. The loss was or is being made up by the taxpayers. The loss works out to an average system subsidy of $39.67 per passenger or approximately 18 cents per passenger mile.   I asked Amtrak's management this question in a snail mail letter:  Do you have any hard data to show that the Guest Rewards program attracts customers who otherwise would not ride Amtrak or prevents the erosion of existing customers?  I suspect that I will have to wait a long time for an answer. The other question is whether the incremental revenues generated because of the Guest Reward Program offsets the cost of the program.  I did not ask this question; it just popped into my mind. If the Guest Reward Program does not generate increment revenues that Amtrak would not otherwise realize, it is a give away from a taxpayer supported railway whose customers already enjoy a substantial subsidy.  On the other hand, if the program generates revenues that would not otherwise be realized, that cover the cost of the program and reduce the annual losses, it is a prudent marketing strategy.
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