Amtrak Revenue Falls with Ridership
October 12, 2009 by Mark Ellis
Filed under Business
According to Amtrak, the only long-haul passenger railroad in the United States, ridership has fallen by more than 5 percent, or 1.5 million passengers, in the most recently completed fiscal year. While the recession’s impact on businesses could be partially blamed on such a figure, Amtrak has placed blame specifically on reduced business travel throughout the last fiscal year.
The news ends something of a winning streak for Amtrak, which had posted a string of annual increases since 2002 and a record number of 28.7 million passengers last year as high fuel prices forced many Americans to seek alternative forms of transportation. However, Amtrak has stated that the numbers come as no surprise to the company and that such figures are wholly consistent with a weak economy and smaller travel demand across the board.
Ticket revenue fell 7.8 percent for Amtrak overall, with the crucial Northeast region’s ticket sales slipping 11 percent. While Amtrak has succeeded in becoming a viable business travel alternative for travelers between Boston, New York, and Washington that do not want to travel by air, the company has plenty of room for improvement.
Image: Flickr
