Amtrak says they need an additional $1.475 billion in funding for fiscal year 2021 in order to, “operate minimum service levels across the passenger rail network and continue capital investments for the future.”
This is in addition to Amtrak’s $2.04 billion annual grant request submitted to congress earlier this year.
The funds would also support Amtrak’s 17 state partners on the National Network and 9 commuter and state partners on the Northeast corridor.
Even if the funding request is approved, Amtrak says they are planning on shifting long-distance routes to less-than-daily service to match capacity more closely with demand.
This includes the Empire Builder line which runs through the Hi-Line. The letter to congress states that service is at risk for this line if the funding request is not approved. It adds that even if it is approved, there will be reduced service in fiscal year 2021.
However, Amtrak says once demand returns to pre-COVID levels, they could return to daily service on lines including the Empire Builder as long as funding is available.
Amtrak says they have seen a dramatic decline in demand for service since the pandemic, and that they are expecting ridership to only return to approximately 50 percent in fiscal year 2021.
Fiscal year 2021 for Amtrak begins in October 2020.
