When Amtrak asked us to start thinking about how to introduce their new high-speed acela train, it took us only a few days to and the thought – life on acela.

We set out not to fight the car – the American holy cow. Nor did we want to take on the airlines directly. Instead we wanted to find our own space, away from any other transportation alternative. Whatever we would do, we would not only have to cut through the clutter of travel ads, but also through the cynicism among most travelers towards public transportation. We began by interviewing city hoppers at La Guardia Airport and train riders at stations in New York, Philly, Boston and DC. When asked what a new faster train would mean to them, the frequent flyers were especially ready for a better experience in travelling. Amtrak riders were skeptical; after all, we were toying with their train. Days after the campaign was launched, Amtrak announced a delay in the arrival of the new train which ended up arriving almost a year later. Even though the train is frequented by over three million passengers today, oil politics keep it from becoming a real success. Still, the campaign itself was very successful. The anticipation and expectation level of their customers went way up, something Amtrak had not seen in a very long time.