Amtrack reports record revenue

NEWARK, N.J. — Amtrak on Friday reported record ridership and revenue figures for the fiscal year that ended Sept. 30, leading officials to predict the heavily subsidized railroad could eliminate operating losses as soon as next year.

The government-owned passenger railroad said it provided 32.5 million passenger trips, an increase of about 800,000 over the previous fiscal year. Ridership numbers were affected the last two years by repair work at New York’s Penn Station that forced service cutbacks.

Total operating revenue rose more than 3 percent to $3.3 billion with an operating loss of just under $30 million. That’s Amtrak’s smallest loss in its 48-year history. Amtrak reported an operating loss of about $170 million in 2018.

Officials said they expect to break even by the end of the next fiscal year, which would mark a first in Amtrak’s history. Last year, they had projected eliminating operating losses by 2021.

Ridership increased most on Amtrak’s Acela service between Boston and Washington, D.C., which showed a 4.3 percent increase, and its Northeast Regional service, which gained by 2.9 percent. Amtrak made a record $1.6 billion in capital investments, 9 percent more than in 2018, and spent more than $700 million to repair and replace aging infrastructure.