Amtrak had a record year, with 32.8 million riders. It’ll double that by 2040
Did you take an Amtrak trip this past year? Maybe you tried out the new Amtrak Borealis line connecting Chicago to Minneapolis-St. Paul, or perhaps you opted for the train instead of driving to get to the Great New York State Fair. If so, you were one of 32.8 million customers who rode on Amtrak between October 2023 and September 2024—an all-time record for the rail service.
Amtrak announced its ridership numbers for its 2024 fiscal year this week, a historic level that hints at America’s growing interest in rail. (Last year, Amtrak saw more than 28 million customers take a rail trip nationwide; its previous record was in 2019, when it saw 32 million passengers.) Along with the ridership growth, Amtrak also announced that it invested $4.5 billion into infrastructure and fleet projects over the past year. That accounted for “the largest boom in rail construction in Amtrak’s history,” per the company.
One such investment was the Borealis line, which launched in May and connected Chicago to the Twin Cities. In its first full month of service, that line had more than 18,500 riders—a number that exceeded Amtrak’s own “very optimistic” forecasts. “What that really means,” Ray Lang, vice president of Amtrak State Supported Service, told Fast Company at the time, “is that there’s a strong demand for short-distance corridor trains in the United States to provide that transportation option for travelers that don’t want to drive or fly.”
Other investments this past year expanded service, like the two new daily trips that were added along the Amtrak Cascades route, which goes north through Washington and Oregon. Amtrak also reduced some trip times through upgrades. In September, it announced a new temporary long-distance route that offers round trips between Chicago and Miami.
Amtrak’s rail service is divided into three main categories: federally funded long-distance overnight trains; its Northeast Corridor, which gets separate federal funds; and those short-distance, state-supported routes that don’t travel overnight.
Its long-distance route ridership grew 8% compared to last year, to 4.2 million riders. The Northeast Corridor, Amtrak’s most popular route, saw a more than 9% increase on Acela and 18% on Northeast Regional services. Amtrak didn’t provide specific ridership increases along its state-supported services, but did point to signs of demand like the doubled daily service between Chicago and Saint Paul, and the special train service it provided in partnership with North Carolina’s Department of Transportation to the U.S. Open.
Rail options across the United States are notoriously lacking, especially compared to European countries. But U.S. rail is having somewhat of a renaissance, from both Amtrak and other rail services like Brightline, which is building high-speed rail.
Amtrak has a goal to double its ridership by 2040, to 66 million riders. Doing so won’t just require infrastructure investments, but also station upgrades; digital integrations like with Google to help people pick rail over driving or flying; and improved on-train dining experiences—all areas that Amtrak says it made improvements on recently. It has plans for more growth, too, including new corridors and even new trains.
“Breaking our ridership record is just the beginning,” said Amtrak CEO Stephen Gardner in a statement. “Through bold investments, strong partnerships with states and host railroads, and dedicated planning, we are doubling down on our vision to connect more people and communities like never before.”
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