Resources & Links

The Museum of Railway Timetables has electronic images of every page of every Amtrak system timetable published since Amtrak began service in May 1971.

Information about the release of the annual ORNL study that shows good fuel efficiency for passenger trains.

Knowing the history of U.S. railroading, including the railroads’ use of intercity passenger rail to attract and keep big freight shippers rather than as a profit center, can be helpful in understanding the current situation and debating future policy.  Most of the following was compiled in October, 2003, by NARP Executive Director Ross B. Capon, but we continue to add important historical facts as time permits.  The books and reports quoted are excellent factual sources, whether or not you agree with their spin on every point.  They are listed at the end, with numbers corresponding to the footnotes in the text below.

From various Amtrak annual reports, covering years since 1988

Regarding air-quality impact of rail improvements relative to other modes

Some demographic information from Amtrak

Mini-profiles of long-distance passengers

Information from the June 1997 newsletter (and since updated) about the historic relationship between government highway spending and passenger rail traffic trends

Some critics say Amtrak didn’t perform well after the September 2001 attacks, but a comparison to airline traffic shows otherwise