Amtrak Breaks Ridership Record in FY 2024

Amtrak saw its highest ridership in fiscal year 2024, reflecting, according to Amtrak Board Chair Tony Coscia, “not only the need for train travel in America but also the impact of strategic investments” in passenger rail. 

“With the help of massive funding from the 2021 infrastructure law, the railroad launched one new train service, expanded four other routes and invested billions in infrastructure upgrades last year,” explains Dan Zukowski in Smart Cities Dive. The agency recorded 32.8 million trips in FY 2024, a growth of 15 percent over FY 2023, and made $2.5 billion in ticket revenue, a growth of 7 percent over FY 2023. 

Unsurprisingly, Amtrak’s most successful routes are in the Northeast Corridor, where frequent service lets many commute long distances regularly by train. Amtrak is upgrading many of those trains to faster models that run at speeds of up to 125 miles per hour.