The track… After years on the quiet car, American rail is picking up steam. Ridership for rail biggie Amtrak is up 20% on the year, hitting a record last month and on track to break its annual ridership record of 32M. Brightline, the US’s only private passenger railroad, is cutting into Amtrak’s market dominance: it reported a nearly 50% jump in ridership in April for its Florida passenger system and doubled its revenue YoY.
Rail work… Despite bright spots in passenger rail, freight rail cos like Norfolk Southern, Union Pacific, BNSF, and CSX are still on a bumpy track. The industry’s faced regulatory scrutiny following Norfolk’s toxic derailment in Ohio last year (cleanup cost: $1.1B+). In April, federal officials announced new rules that would require two-person crews on freight lines to boost safety. Railroads oppose the rule, scheduled to take effect this month, and have asked a federal court to toss it. Over the past decade, freight has both significantly shrunk its workforce and lengthened its trains under a strategy called Precision Scheduled Railroading.
Long train: A study published last month found that replacing two 50-car trains with one 100-car train increased the risk of derailment by 11%. From 2013 to 2022, Norfolk’s accident rate jumped 80%, 3X the industry average.
Full steam ahead… Next up for US rail: fast trains. Six high-speed rail projects are planned or already in construction. Brightline broke ground on a $12B Vegas to LA high-speed project in April, and Amtrak recently resurrected a Dallas to Houston plan. Both projects could help the US catch up to the 26 countries that already have high-speed rail. But some congressional Republicans have pushed back on lofty price tags, threatening to derail high-speed plans.