(The following story appeared on the Bloomington Pantagraph website on November 3.)
CHICAGO — Ridership on Amtrak totaled more than 24 million passengers in fiscal 2003, which ended Sept. 30. It was the highest annual ridership experienced by the nation’s intercity passenger rail service in its 32-year history.
It topped the previous record of 23.5 million passengers set in 2001 and was 2.7 percent better than last year’s result of 23.4 million, according to figures released by Amtrak.
Ridership along the Chicago-St. Louis corridor, which stops in Bloomington-Normal, was up 13 percent in 2003. According to Amtrak, ridership went from 225,629 on the route in 2002 to 254,946 in 2003.
Three trains a day pass through Bloomington-Normal, said Amtrak spokesman Marc Magliari: the Statehouse, which runs from St. Louis to Chicago; the Ann Rutledge, which runs from Chicago to St. Louis to Kansas City; and the Texas Eagle, which runs from Chicago to San Antonio, Texas, and then on to Los Angeles. The Statehouse and Ann Rutledge trains accounted for the Chicago-St. Louis increase, Magliari said.
The largest percentage increase in ridership on an overnight train was on the Texas Eagle, from 129,208 to 155,003 for a 20 percent gain. The New York-Miami Silver Meteor showed an increase of more than 15 percent.
“We think an improving economy, fare promotions and improved on-time performance for the Texas Eagle accounted for the ridership increase,” Magliari said.
Company-wide, long-distance ridership is up by more than 5 percent, versus about 2 percent for short-distance trains. The system-wide total for fiscal 2003 is 24,028,119, an overall increase of nearly three percent.
Among other increases, the Chicago-New Orleans City of New Orleans was up by more than 14 percent and Chicago-Seattle/Portland Empire Builder ridership was up by nearly 13 percent.
Short-distance trains based in Chicago also showed an increase in ridership, including an improvement of more than 22 percent for the Chicago-Grand Rapids Pere Marquette.
Other Chicago-based trains with double-digit ridership increases include the Chicago-Carbondale Illini, with an increase of more than 11 percent and the Chicago-Quincy Illinois Zephyr, with a 10 percent gain.
The Chicago-Milwaukee Hiawatha Service trains posted an increase of more than 3 percent and had the best-in-company on-time performance of more than 95 percent, including 99.3 percent in September.
Improvements in service introduced during the year included new menus on the long-distance trains so that passengers traveling more than one night would have more dining options.