(The following report appeared on the Siskiyou Daily News website on January 22.)
SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Ridership on the state-supported Amtrak California trains continued an upward trend during the final quarter of 2007, with an increase of 7.7 percent, a recent press release announced.
A total of 1,266,751 passengers used inter-city trains, compared to 1,183,150 during the same three-month period in 2006.
Quarterly ridership gains for Capitol Corridor trains were 11.5 percent, 4.6 percent for Pacific Surfliner trains and 7.1 percent for the San Joaquins.
Of particular note, the release said, is the growth on the Amtrak San Joaquins, posting monthly increases of 13.1 percent and 11.3 percent in November and December respectively.
Ridership on the three state-supported routes during Amtrak’s 2007 Fiscal Year was 4.9 million passengers – a record for the three state routes.
In the first six months of the state fiscal year, July through December 2007, each of the three corridors set monthly ridership records.
Capitol Corridor set records in each of the first six months with a gain of 13.4 percent over the same six-month period in 2006; San Joaquins set records in five of the first six months for an increase of 7.3 percent; and the Pacific Surfliner set records in five of the first six months, finishing with a 3.7 percent ridership increase.
California’s three intercity passenger rail lines are the second (Pacific Surfliner), third (Capitol Corridor) and sixth (San Joaquins) busiest in the nation, the release said.