Amtrak ridership up for 15th straight month
Written by William C. Vantuono, Editor-in-ChiefAmidst moves by House GOP leaders to slash Amtrak funding for the remainder of this fiscal year and for FY12, Amtrak released ridership figures showing continuing growth and marking 15 straight month of passenger increases.
Amtrak said last month was “the best January on record with 2,126,429 passengers. This strong performance is part of a long-term trend” that has seen Amtrak set annual ridership records “in seven of the last eight fiscal years, including more than 28.7 million passengers in FY 2010.” Only the recessionary fiscal year 2009 saw a decline.
“The steady rise in ridership demonstrates a growing demand and the ongoing need for a national intercity passenger rail system,” said Amtrak President and CEO Joe Boardman (pictured at left). “With oil approaching $100 a barrel, we expect to continue to post strong ridership numbers as more and more people choose Amtrak to meet their transportation needs.”
Amtrak’s January ridership was up 4.6% compared with January 2010 levels, and ridership increases for the 15 months beginning November 2009 average out to a 6% growth rate, the company said.
