Richmond, Virginia — Amtrak released their FY 2013 Ridership Report which showed solid growth for all of Virginia’s Amtrak trains. During FY 2013, 1,607,271 trips were taken on Amtrak, making the Commonwealth the 8th largest state by passenger volume. Richmond’s Staples Mill Station was the 20th most used station on the east coast, and the largest by passenger volume in the South.
Total ridership growth in Virginia from FY 2012 (1,466,965) to FY 2013 (1,607,271) was 9.56 percent. This was mainly fueled by Virginia’s Amtrak Regional trains which grew 10.34 percent between FY 2012 (808,771) and FY 2013 (892,430). Since 2009, the Commonwealth’s state supported Amtrak Regional trains have seen their ridership grow by 99.83 percent. Dedicated funding for Virginia’s Amtrak Regional trains was included in Governor Bob McDonnell’s 2013 transportation package, HB 2313.
“These great ridership numbers only prove the point that when given an alternative to the Commonwealth’s congested roadways, Virginians will take it” stated Danny Plaugher, executive director of Virginians for High Speed Rail, “As other states are fighting to keep their intercity trains, Virginia is poised to continue to expand our rail network to provide Virginians with fast, frequent, and reliable rail service thanks to the strong bi-partisan efforts of Governor McDonnell and the Virginia General Assembly.”
Amtrak’s FY 2013 Ridership Report: http://www.amtrak.com/ccurl/730/658/FY13-Record- Ridership-ATK-13-122.pdf