SW Chief passenger numbers increase in 2019

HUTCHINSON, Kan. — After two years of decline, Amtrak’s SW Chief increased its passenger boardings by more than 2% from 2018.

Amtrak’s SW Chief makes a stop in Newton.

According to figures released by the railroad Tuesday, 338,180 passengers boarded the Chief in the last fiscal year compared with 331,239 in 2018. On average, roughly 50,000 of those boardings happen in Kansas. Last year, 4,415 passengers boarded the Chief in Hutchinson. Boardings for the six Amtrak stations in Kansas for this year were not yet available.

Overall long-distance passenger numbers did increase, but only by 1%. Nationwide, Amtrak’s total ridership set an all-time record at 32.5 million passengers compared with 31.7 million last year.