Editing Amtrak (section)

===Selection of initial routes===
[[File:Amtrak logo (1971–2000).svg|thumb|"Headless Arrow" Amtrak Logo used from 1971 to 2000]]
The Rail Passenger Service Act gave the Secretary of Transportation, at that time [[John A. Volpe]], thirty days to produce an initial draft of the endpoints of the routes the NRPC would be required by law to serve for four years. On November 24 Volpe presented his initial draft consisting of 27 routes to Nixon, which he believed would make a $24 million profit by 1975. The [[Office of Management and Budget]], however, believed Volpe and the DOT's analysis was far too optimistic, with director [[George Shultz]] arguing to cut the number of routes by around half. Nixon agreed with Shultz, and the public draft presented by Volpe on November 30 consisted of only 16 routes.<ref name="enoamtrak50-2">{{cite web |last1=David |first1=Jeff |title=Amtrak at 50: Defining the "Basic System" of Service Routes |url=https://enotrans.org/article/amtrak-at-50-defining-the-basic-system-of-service-routes/ |publisher=Eno Center for Transportation |access-date=May 19, 2024}}</ref>

The initial reaction to this heavily-cut-back proposed system from the public, the press, and congressmen was strongly negative. It made front-page headlines across the country and it was quickly leaked that the DOT had wanted a far larger system than the White House would approve of. The ICC produced its own report on December 29, criticising the proposed draft and arguing for the inclusion of 15 additional routes, giving further ammunition to the congressmen who wanted an expanded system. Further wrangling between the DOT and the White House produced the final list of routes on January 28, 1971, adding 5 additional routes to the November 30 draft.<ref name="enoamtrak50-2" />

These required routes only had their endpoints specified; the selection of the actual routes to be taken between the endpoints was left to the NRPC, which had just three months to decide them before it was due to start service. Consultants from [[McKinsey & Company]] were hired to perform this task, and their results were publicly announced on March 22.<ref name="enoamtrak50-3">{{cite web |last1=David |first1=Jeff |title=Amtrak at 50: How McKinsey Designed A National Railroad |url=https://enotrans.org/article/amtrak-at-50-how-mckinsey-designed-a-national-railroad/ |publisher=Eno Center for Transportation |access-date=May 19, 2024 |archive-date=May 19, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240519161623/https://enotrans.org/article/amtrak-at-50-how-mckinsey-designed-a-national-railroad/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

At the same time, the NRPC had hired [[Lippincott (brand consultancy)|Lippincott & Margulies]] to create a brand for it and replace its original working [[brand name]] of Railpax. On March 30, L&M's work was presented to the NRPC's board of incorporators, who unanimously agreed on the "headless arrow" logo and on the new brand name "Amtrak", a [[portmanteau]] of the words ''America'' and ''trak'', the latter itself a [[sensational spelling]] of ''track''.<ref name="enoamtrak50-3" /> The name change was publicly announced less than two weeks before operations began.<ref name="FY18 profile" /><ref>{{Cite news |date=April 20, 1971 |title=Railpax, er, AMTRAK Eyes Loss |page=21 |work=Fort Worth Star-Telegram |agency=Associated Press}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |date=April 20, 1971 |title=Delay Asked In Rail Plan |page=1 |work=Fort Worth Star-Telegram |agency=Associated Press}}</ref><ref>{{Harvnb|Thoms|1973|p=51}}</ref>

{{anchor|Rainbow Era}}