IBM to manage Amtrak's reservation system

WASHINGTON - Amtrak says it will save $85 million over seven years by turning over to IBM its reservation system and other information technology work.<br> <br> Amtrak&#39;s passengers and 24,000 employees will benefit from improved service quality because of the arrangement, according to IBM Global Services.<br> <br> Amtrak will pay IBM $229 million over the course of the seven-year deal announced Monday.<br> <br> IBM will manage Amtrak&#39;s voice and data networks including the systems at its three reservation call centers in Philadelphia, Chicago, and Riverside, California.<br> <br> IBM also will operate and maintain Amtrak&#39;s reservation system, Arrow, as well as the corporation&#39;s computer network from a data center in Manassas, Va. It will provide support services for 7,500 Amtrak work stations and help Amtrak plan for, and operate in, an emergency.<br> <br> The two companies plan to market the Arrow reservation system - which processes up to 3,300 transactions per minute - to other transportation companies.<br> <br> Congress is to vote this year on the future of Amtrak, which registered an operating loss of $1.1 billion in 2001. <br> <br>