News

Amtrak posts record ridership

Posted October 23, 2007 11:00 pm

An increase in the number of Amtrak trains that travel across Illinois contributed to record ridership for the national passenger railroad.

Amtrak's entire system carried 25.8 million travelers in the fiscal year that ended Sept. 30, the railroad announced Tuesday. That is a 6 percent increase above the 24.3 million riders that Amtrak carried during the previous annual period.

Amtrak said it was the fifth consecutive yearly increase.

Helping to drive the uptick was the popularity of Amtrak's commuter service on the Northeast corridor, but Illinois also was a factor, officials said. Late last year, the Illinois Department of Transportation more than doubled the number of passenger trains it pays Amtrak to run on three downstate rail corridors to and from Chicago.

On the Chicago-to-St. Louis corridor that includes stops in Springfield, Lincoln and Carlinville, ridership rose to 477,888 - a 42 percent increase. That figure includes the new state-supported trains and Amtrak cross-country trains that continue to stop along the route.

On the Chicago-Galesburg-Quincy corridor, ridership increased 33 percent to 194,535. On the Chicago-to-Carbondale route, the number of passengers increased 46 percent to 263,809, Amtrak said.

Amtrak, which receives federal assistance, said total ticket revenue rose 11 percent to $1.5 billion during the last fiscal year.

Article Categories
News