While the Trump Administration and billionaire advisor Elon Musk are talking about privatizing passenger rail here in the USA, in the UK, they’re going in the opposite direction. Next month, on May 25, the British will begin nationalizing passenger rail after decades of failed privatization, which began in 1994 (see write-up from the British House of Commons). Amtrak referenced the UK’s experiment with privatization in a March 2025 analysis explaining why privatization is a bad idea (see Amtrak FAQ here).
On this side of the Atlantic, Amtrak had its best year ever for ridership and revenue. Some of its ridership growth is due to an increasing number of long-haul commuters, especially commuters from Philadelphia to New York City.
Despite Amtrak’s success, the Trump administration is talking about quickly privatizing the passenger service and along with it, the United States Postal Service and possibly mortgage lender Fannie Mae.
Jim Mathews, President & CEO of the Rail Passengers Association, outlined five reasons why privatizing Amtrak won’t work. Click here to watch the video. Another reason opponents of privatization oppose the model is corruption. For example, rapid privatization in Russia led to the rise of oligarchs and rampant corruption.
Rail unions in the UK have hailed the renationalization of that country’s passenger rail as a return to public service. Mick Whelan, the general secretary of UK’s locomotive engineers’ union, ASLEF, said railways would now be “run as a public service, not for private profit.”
The House of Commons reported that among other cost-saving measures, renationalization would save the public about £680 million ($868 million) per year by removing shareholder dividend payments.
Amtrak photo: Cory Rusch, BLET Division 659