(The following story by Paul Edward Parker appeared on the Providence Journal website on June 7.)
PROVIDENCE, R.I. — Amtrak notches a 12.9-percent gain in ticket revenue as travelers opt for trains over airlines, which have boosted fares and cut service.
As the airline industry has run into turbulence prompted by high fuel costs, Amtrak and its Northeast Corridor service that connects Providence, Boston, New York and Washington have kept chugging along.
Amtrak said increases in ridership and ticket revenues resulted from increasing gasoline prices, competitive advantages over the airlines and improved service on trains.
Recently released figures for the month of March show the national passenger railroad had an overall 12.9-percent increase in ticket revenues over last year, beating the company’s budget by 10.5 percent. Ticket revenues totaled $143 million in March.
The Northeast Corridor’s gains for the same period were 10.2 percent over last year and 10.6 percent ahead of budget. Ticket revenues in March for the corridor were $80.4 million.
Ridership for the month saw an 11.5-percent increase over last year for Amtrak as a whole, rising to 2.42 million passengers. Northeast Corridor ridership rose 7.0 percent to 933,000.
Fiscal-year-to-date figures, from Oct. 1 through March 31, showed a 14.5-percent increase over last year in ticket revenue for the entire system, reaching $815.5 million. For the Northeast Corridor, the increase was 17.3 percent, to $470.5 million.
Overall year-to-date ridership rose 11.7 percent to 13.5 million, while the Northeast Corridor rose 11.9 percent to 5.4 million.
Amtrak said some of its Northeast corridor service will be disrupted for four days in New England this month while it renovates an aging Connecticut drawbridge and does maintenance work.
Amtrak will replace the span of the 90-year-old Thames River Bridge between New London and Groton from June 14 to 17. The work marks the final stage of a multi-year, $83-million improvement project on the bridge. The bridge handles 36 passenger trains and two freight trains every weekday.
The railroad says it will also do maintenance over the same four days between New Haven and Boston. That work will result in cancellations of Acela Express service between New York and Boston and regional trains between Boston and New Haven. Amtrak is urging passengers traveling between Boston and New Haven to make arrangements with commercial bus lines Peter Pan and Greyhound.