Amtrak
“Robust ridership demand” for the state-sponsored Borealis trains between St. Paul and Chicago “continues to exceed expectations in its first full year of service,” according to Amtrak. Operated daily by Amtrak under contracts with Minnesota, Wisconsin, and Illinois, Borealis ridership for the 11 months ending April 30 was more than 205,800.
Total Amtrak ridership for the new St. Paul-Chicago corridor, which includes the Borealis and the Amtrak Empire Builder trains daily, was more than 293,000, up 227% from May 2024 through April 2025 when compared with May 2023 through April 2024.
“Amtrak is proud to celebrate a successful first year of the Borealis – and it’s only going to improve next year and beyond,” said Amtrak President Roger Harris. “Thanks to strong collaboration with our partners, we have exceeded expectations and provided a reliable, efficient, and safe way to travel between the Twin Cities and Chicago via Milwaukee.”
The figures below exclude Amtrak Hiawatha Service trains and are preliminary, as ridership is typically reported at the end of the succeeding month. Eleven-month and comparison ridership by station is also shown. Previously, only Hiawatha trains served the Wisconsin stops at Milwaukee Airport and Sturtevant.
Borealis trains originate from St. Paul at midday and Chicago in the late morning with Amtrak everyday discounts for children ages 2-12, students, seniors, veterans, military personnel and families, groups, and others. The trains offer a café car featuring regional items. Customers enjoy wide reclining seats with ample legroom, no middle seats, and views of the Mississippi River between St. Paul and La Crosse, Wisc., in both directions.
Amtrak Virginia, the Commonwealth’s state-supported passenger rail service, set another ridership record during the month of April. With 129,670 passengers traveling, it was the highest ridership recorded for the month of April since the state launched its service in 2009, according to the Virgina Passenger Rail Authority (VPRA).
All four Amtrak Virginia corridors saw increases year-over-year during the month with Roanoke seeing the largest increase at 11.8%. The Norfolk route carried the most passengers in April with 49,246. With Easter falling in April this year, the spring break travel season extended through the month, adding to the increases.
April ridership was also the third highest monthly ridership ever recorded on Amtrak Virginia following a strong March, which is also in the top five.
“Seeing increases along all four of our corridors shows that the popularity of rail travel is growing all across Virginia,” said DJ Stadtler, Executive Director of VPRA. “We see the need and are working to expand service through our Transforming Rail in Virginia initiative as soon as possible.”
VPRA says its efforts to expand its Amtrak Virginia service have begun with numerous Transforming Rail in Virginia (TRV) infrastructure projects throughout the state. Just last month, VPRA broke ground on the New River Valley Project, which will extend passenger rail service from Roanoke to Christiansburg and bring passenger rail back to the New River Valley for the first time since 1979.
In addition, work continues on the Long Bridge Project, which will connect Arlington, Va., with Washington, DC, via a new two-track railroad bridge, dedicated solely to passenger rail. The project is scheduled for completion in 2030 and is necessary to increase the number of passenger trains serving communities in the Commonwealth.
TRV will allow VPRA to increase the number of daily Amtrak Virginia roundtrips from the current eight to 13. Current service includes three roundtrips between Norfolk and Washington, DC, two between both Roanoke and Washington, and Newport News and Washington, and one between Richmond and the nation’s capital. The service offers a one-seat ride from Virginia to Philadelphia, New York, and Boston as well as intermediate stops on Amtrak’s Northeast Corridor.
Zephyr Rail
Zephyr Rail has been awarded a contract by the LOSSAN Rail Corridor Agency to provide preliminary engineering and design services for the Ortega Siding project in Carpinteria, Calif.
This project, Zephyr Rail says, will help increase track capacity to support the growing demand for passenger rail service and improve reliability along the LOSSAN Corridor. Zephyr Rail will lead project management, civil and track design, and UAV mapping services.
“We are honored to support LOSSAN in this important initiative,” said Jackie Patterson, CEO. “Expanding capacity and improving infrastructure will make a real impact on rail service in the region.”
“This project is a significant step toward more efficient and reliable service,” added Marc Cañas, COO and Project Manager. “We’re proud to contribute our expertise.”
The Ortega Siding project, the company says, “reflects Zephyr Rail’s commitment to delivering innovative, cost-effective engineering solutions that strengthen transportation networks and serve communities.”
Metrolinx
The Ontario government and Metrolinx on May 21 announced that an RFP has been issued for the first major Hamilton LRT contract.
The RFP follows the Request for Qualifications (RFQ) process, during which submissions from prospective teams were received.
Four teams have been shortlisted to submit proposals in response to the RFP for the Hamilton LRT Package 1 Civil and Utilities Work.
Once proposals from each of the teams above are evaluated, a contract will be awarded to enter an Alliance development phase.
Throughout the development phase, the successful team will work collaboratively with Metrolinx and its key stakeholders to progress designs and a schedule. Through this phase, construction timing and phasing will be determined. Select enabling work to prepare for further construction will also advance during this phase.
