Amtrak’s board of directors was told this month that ridership for fiscal year 2026 is running 6.8% ahead of the same period last year and slightly ahead of the railroad’s own internal plan, according to figures presented at Amtrak’s August board meeting. July alone came in 9.5% above last July, a signal that the growth accelerated heading into fall.
The railroad has now logged records in seven of the last nine months and nine of the last twelve, and ridership overall has climbed 20% since 2019, per figures from the same board presentation reported by Railway Age. June brought Amtrak’s single best month of revenue on record, at $280 million, and the company’s internal forecast now points to roughly $3 billion in annual revenue — about 30% above pre-pandemic levels.
Key Points
- FY2026 ridership is up 6.8% year-over-year through the third quarter and 0.7% ahead of plan, with July trending 9.5% above last year
- Amtrak set ridership records in seven of the past nine months and nine of the past twelve
- June 2026 brought a record $280 million in monthly revenue; annual revenue is forecast near $3 billion, up roughly 30% from pre-pandemic levels
- Fiscal 2025 closed with 34.5 million total trips, a 5.1% jump over the prior year, according to Amtrak’s own “Year of Records” release
- Regional routes are driving a lot of the growth: the Adirondack (New York-Montreal) rose 21.4% and the Borealis (Twin Cities-Chicago) more than doubled its ridership in its first full year, per AOL’s route-by-route breakdown
- The gains haven’t come with perfect reliability — long-distance on-time performance hit a record 59% but still landed 11 points short of Amtrak’s own target
Some of that growth is happening on routes that barely existed a few years ago. The new Mardi Gras service between Mobile and New Orleans pulled in roughly 18,000 riders in its first month, and the Borealis, which only launched in 2024 between the Twin Cities and Chicago, jumped from 88,444 riders to 212,909 — a 140.7% increase — in its first full year of operation, according to AOL. The Northeast Corridor alone carried more than 15 million passengers in fiscal 2025.
It isn’t all upside. The board presentation covered by Railway Age also showed customer on-time performance sliding to 50% by the third quarter, down 13 points from the prior quarter, and net operating results came in $28.5 million unfavorable to budget even as they improved year-over-year. Only four long-distance routes — the Palmetto, City of New Orleans, Lake Shore Limited and Crescent — hit Amtrak’s 70% on-time target.
Still, the trend line is hard to miss. Amtrak has invested $5.5 billion in capital projects this fiscal year, a 24% increase from last year, money going toward new trainsets, station upgrades and track work meant to keep pace with demand that shows no sign of slowing as travelers look for alternatives to airport lines and highway traffic.
