AutoTrain may seem an unlikely candidate for Amtrak to make money. He operates one line in the Southeast, a region that is less dependent on rail. There are no actual stops on the nearly 900-mile journey, just pauses. refuel. There is only one flight per day and passengers must have a quota extra time To load luggage onto a vehicle ( include boarding and disembarking trains (cars, vans, SUVs, trucks, motorcycles, etc.).Amtrak suggests arriving at AutoTrain station at least 2 hours before departure time.
It also takes 17.5 hours and requires an overnight stay in the car, which is a less popular option in the United States.
So how does AutoTrain remain a bright spot for Amtrak even though most of its routes are in the red? To answer that question, we have to go back in time.
Railroads were once the driving force behind America’s expansion. In 1862, Pacific Railway Act Authorized construction of the transcontinental railroad. Four more were built by 1900.
After that, car ownership began to skyrocket. From 1919 to 1929, the number of passenger cars in the United States was increased The government increased investment in roads, increasing from 6.5 million to 23 million. 1956, President Dwight D. Eisenhower signed Laws creating the interstate highway system and car-centered suburban life became more popular. Air travel is more accessibletoo.
Nick Little, director of railroad education at Michigan State University, said railroads competed with automobiles for short-distance travel and airplanes for long-distance travel. “It was the advent of much cheaper air travel starting in the 1950s that caused the decline of intercity rail service,” he says.
At that time, private railways not only carried cargo, but also passengers.Then Railway Passenger Service Law The 1970 policy freed private railways from the costly responsibility of moving people. This spurred Congress to create Amtrak to Provide Passenger Rail Service Amtrak was incorporated in 1971 with a hybrid model. Amtrak was a for-profit company, but the federal government was the majority shareholder. Amtrak received equipment, funding, and certain rights, including the use of existing railroad tracks.
In the 1960s, the Department of Transport issued the following report: suggest It was an autoferry, but the effort was left to the private sector. Eugene K. Garfield, a former Department of Transportation employee, founded the Auto Train Corporation in 1971 to provide daily service between Lawton (approximately 32 miles from Washington) and Sanford (approximately 40 miles from Orlando). It started.
The AutoTrain was so popular that the company began service on a second line from Louisville to Sanford. However, the company faced serious financial problems despite two major derailments and a failed attempt to start an autotrain in Mexico. By 1981, Autotrain Corporation ceased operations.
Amtrak has received hundreds of requests to bring back the AutoTrain. 1983, Amtrak took the cloak It acquired major assets from AutoTrain, including land, stations, and a motor carrier. Amtrak began with biweekly service between Lawton and Sanford and expanded to daily service the following year. (Amtrak also dropped the hyphen in “Auto Train.”) Auto Train’s current profitability is due in part to its decision not to pursue expansion, which spelled doom for the former Auto Train Corporation. There may be.
Compared to Amtrak’s other profitable routes, AutoTrain’s transportation load is modest.Northeast Regional and Acela combined recorded more than 12 million cases customer travel in 2023. The number of autotrains was less than 300,000.
The Autotrain’s specific route has been key to its success for decades. Travelers can travel between his two popular tourist destinations: Washington DC and Orlando. The latter is popular year-round due to its easy access to Disney World, other theme parks, and beaches.
“Our largest customer base is snowbirds,” said Elliott Hamlisch, Amtrak’s vice president and chief commercial officer, referring to Northeastern residents who escape the winter by vacationing in the South. Another big demographic is families, who enjoy being able to use their own car seats and cars loaded with all of their children’s toys and gear at their destination.
But perhaps most importantly, AutoTrain parallels the vast stretch of Interstate 95. infrastructure It gets worse over the years and often makes the driving experience miserable. “There are a lot of highways that you don’t want to spend too much time on,” Hamlisch said. “I-95 is certainly one of his.”
Even back in 1970, the Railway Passenger Services Act said “Rail passenger service helps relieve congestion on highways and overcrowding on air routes and airports.”
“My understanding is that AutoTrain has become particularly popular on that route because of the tremendous amount of traffic that people face when traveling on I-95,” Little said. “A lot of people are willing to pay for the convenience.”
AutoTrain draws customers far from the terminal because its convenience is so appealing to some people. Little said she knows people who are so into train travel that they drive from Michigan to Lawton Station and then continue driving on the other side to Miami.
Auto Train fan Bobby Dempsey said he thinks driving conditions on I-95 are getting worse, citing construction, accidents, delays and texting while driving. . Dempsey, a content specialist based in Hazleton, Pennsylvania, estimates he has used AutoTrain 12 to 15 times. It takes her about a three-hour drive from Hazleton to Lawton, and she said she has met tourists who have driven in from as far as upstate New York and Canada.
The length of the AutoTrain trip is just right, Little said. Unlike his other long-distance routes like his Zephyr, which spans two nights through California’s famously scenic California, this route is only his one night. Many of Amtrak’s long-distance routes are operating loss.
Little said the AutoTrain also has other benefits compared to driving or flying the roughly 900 miles from Washington, D.C., to Orlando. Passengers can sleep and travel in relative comfort. You can also bring much more luggage in your car than you can on a plane. There is no need to rent a car when you arrive at your destination, which saves your vehicle from wear and tear compared to driving the entire trip.
Amtrak has long promoted itself, and AutoTrain in particular, as a solution to high gas prices. 1 posterAmtrak says it probably dates from the late 1970s, when gas prices were soaring to record levels, and it’s called “Gas Pain? Take Amtrak to the Rescue.” !”
Today, auto trains are generally a more expensive form of transportation than cars or planes, so many of their passengers are self-confessed rail enthusiasts rather than bargain hunters. Round-trip fares can cost nearly $200, or up to several thousand dollars for a private room, but tickets are available round-trip. Now on sale Just $19 at Coach. This does not include the cost of bringing your car. Regular cars start at $450 round trip.
By comparison, driving from Lawton to Sanford and back will cost about $200. gas buddy, plus the cost of a night or two in a hotel. Round-trip flights from DC to Orlando on low-cost airlines often range from $100 to $200.
Hamlisch said AutoTrain has become part of some people’s annual travel plans, but it continues to attract new customers, who account for a third of its ridership.
Jenna Rose Robbins, a Long Island native who lives in Los Angeles and has fond memories of old Amtrak, said there was something new about the AutoTrain. advertisement “There’s something magical about trains.” She estimates she’s ridden the Auto Train three to five times.
“Everyone who drives a car for the first time is very excited to see their car start,” Robbins said. “They take videos.”