Amtrak has announced record ticket revenues and a continued growth in passenger numbers in the past year.
More than 30 million passengers used Amtrak trains between 2013/14, resulting in a 4 per cent increase in revenue to $2.2 billion despite what the company described as “unacceptable” delays caused by the poor condition of parts of the network.
Sending out a message to Washington, Amtrak said that continued passenger growth would be hampered unless there was a clear investment programme in place to replace ageing parts of the Northeast Corridor (NEC) and other intercity passenger rail corridors, which experienced a 4.5 per cent decline in passenger numbers.
Subsidised services also fell slightly in the past year, with 0.6 per cent fewer passengers.
Publishing its annual results, Amtrak was critical of the condition of tracks, owned by freight operators, that it shares with goods traffic.
Joseph Boardman, president and chief executive of Amtrak, said: “The freight railroads simply have to do a better job in moving Amtrak trains over their tracks.”
He added: “Amtrak is prepared to take all necessary steps with the freights to enforce our statutory, regulatory and contractual rights to meet the expectation of our passengers for improved on-time performance.”
