National rail provider launches bold advertising campaign modeling luxury car commercials to attract travelers and shift perception of passenger rail.
Amtrak is taking a new marketing approach by borrowing aesthetic elements from the car commercials genre to encourage the use of passenger trains throughout America. In its latest advertisement, the country’s rail operator borrows elements from luxury cars' advertisements, using slick images and positive messaging about the advanced engineering of the Acela train and its electrifying speed. According to Eliot Hamlisch, the head of commercial operations at Amtrak, the firm is deliberately emulating the car commercials approach to enable Americans to see passenger rail as a better mode than road, flight, or regular transit systems.
The new approach comes amid changes in consumer behavior, following uncertainties in air travel. With government funding of $26.7 billion for rail transit over six years, Amtrak recorded its highest-ever number of passengers, 34.4 million, in 2025. Despite spending only $36 million annually in marketing compared to other industries like airlines and automobile manufacturers, Amtrak's car commercials approach works effectively within competitive markets. The firm leads in the New York-New Jersey-Washington corridor, holding 80 percent market share and 65 percent in NYC-Boston routes.
"'You’re not sitting in traffic on the I-95; you’re not in the middle seat when you’re flying around above Reagan Airport,' said Hamlisch to Business Insider. We're doing something pretty bold and pretty confident to help us bring out the features that set this train apart from cars and airplanes."
The innovative evolution of Amtrak marketing includes monster truck campaigns and the current campaign "Retrain Travel," which proves that innovative marketing is key for industry success. Business Honor notes that as Amtrak pursues its ambitious target of 66 million annual trips by 2040, innovative advertising campaigns continue to reshape America’s transportation landscape and challenge traditional car-first travel mindsets.
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