Ridership on Acela Express up 40 percent, Amtrak officials say

By Raphael Lewis, Globe Staff, 9/28/2001

With fear of flying at an all-time high and air shuttle schedules slashed
dramatically, ridership on Amtrak's high-speed Acela Express trains has
surged 40 percent since the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, with no sign of
leveling off, officials said yesterday.

Nationally, train ridership has risen 15 percent, and even days-long
cross-continental trains continue to sell out, said Michael S. Dukakis, the
former Massachusetts governor who is now the acting chairman of Amtrak's
board of directors.

The Acela Express, introduced in December to woo East Coast business
travelers with cushy seats, competitive fares, and downtown-to-downtown
service, was already taking a bite out of US Airways and Delta shuttles
prior to the hijackings. The change was most dramatic between Boston and New
York, where Amtrak electrified the entire corridor last year.

But now, as the airlines have cut schedules from 17 shuttle trips a day to
just four - and passengers are asked to show up two hours before flights -
the railroad is girding for a prolonged, perhaps permanent jump in
ridership.

Careful to avoid appearing gleeful in the wake of the attacks, Amtrak
officials say they are nevertheless delighted by their newfound popularity,
which arrives as Amtrak nears a 2003 deadline to reach fiscal independence
or risk dissolution by Congress.

Yet they said the railroad is ill-equipped to handle the new crowds, an
assertion that Amtrak's foes in Congress are eyeing with more than a little
skepticism.

This week, Amtrak asked Congress for $3.15 billion to ramp up security,
revamp aging train cars, and shore up disintegrating tunnels on its
Northeast Corridor. The measure has at least a dozen backers in the Senate,
including both senators from Massachusetts, but powerful politicians such as
Arizona Senator John McCain still stand in the way.

And the nation's major airlines, which have cut 100,000 jobs since Sept. 11,
have already won presidential guarantees of $15 billion as many teeter on
the brink of bankruptcy. Also, other industries, especially those tied to
general aviation, travel, and tourism, are mounting non-stop lobbying
efforts for their own bail-outs.

This story ran on page B2 of the Boston Globe on 9/28/2001.
© Copyright 2001 Globe Newspaper Company.
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