Amtrak president urges travelers to book holiday trains 'as soon as' they can

As Americans statesman their Thanksgiving travels, Amtrak has acceptable a caller record.

The institution provided 34.5 cardinal lawsuit trips successful fiscal twelvemonth 2025, up 6% twelvemonth implicit year.

"There's a genuine involvement successful rider obstruction question passim the country," said Roger Harris, Amtrak's president, successful an interrogation with Fox News Digital. 

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"We're moving truly hard to enactment a amended merchandise retired determination each day, summation capableness and get schedules that are much convenient for customers to take," helium besides noted. 

Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said successful a caller property merchandise that there's a agleam aboriginal up for proscription and trains.

Amtrak broke ridership records with 34.5 cardinal trips successful fiscal 2025. The institution is advising Americans to publication promptly for Thanksgiving travel.  (Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images)

"Faster trains, much affordable work and extended routes are opening up a caller epoch of American rail," said Duffy.

Amtrak volition beryllium introducing its caller Airo trains successful 2026, which volition supply modern seating, bigger restrooms and a "contemporary nutrient work experience."

Harris said, "The Airo work that comes retired adjacent twelvemonth is going to beryllium replacing trains that are 50 years old."

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With Thanksgiving astir here, Harris said the all-time grounds they're seeing embraces vacation question arsenic well.

"It's the busiest clip of twelvemonth present astatine Amtrak," said Harris. "We inquire customers to effort to battalion light, due to the fact that the trains are going to beryllium truly full."

"We're precise flexible successful presumption of our ticketing," said Roger Harris, Amtrak's president. "You're besides capable to alteration your tickets connected the app successful lawsuit thing comes up astatine the past minute." (Karl Merton Ferron/Baltimore Sun/Tribune News Service via Getty Images)

Passengers should retrieve that trains adjacent 2 minutes earlier departure, helium said. "You don't privation to permission it till the precise past infinitesimal to get connected the train."

Harris said bid question is not arsenic hectic arsenic flying — there's nary need, for example, to amusement up 2 hours earlier departure. However, travelers should "plan connected being determination successful clip and getting connected the bid earlier we leave."

Nearly 82 cardinal radical are expected to question implicit Thanksgiving, according to AAA.

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Harris said that radical should publication "as soon as" they cognize their vacation plans. 

"The bully happening astir Amtrak is that we're precise flexible successful presumption of our ticketing," helium said. "You're besides capable to alteration your tickets connected the app successful lawsuit thing comes up astatine the past minute."

Nearly 82 cardinal radical are expected to question implicit Thanksgiving this season. Union Station successful Washington, D.C., is shown above.  (Bill Clark/Roll Call/Getty Images)

So acold this month, determination has been grounds acold upwind successful the East, lake-effect snowfall astir the Great Lakes and unsettled upwind crossed the West, according to FOX Weather.

Harris said Amtrak takes galore measures to guarantee wintertime question is arsenic harmless and convenient arsenic possible.

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"We bash things similar winterize the trains beforehand to marque definite that they don't frost up," helium said. "That tin beryllium a occupation successful these utmost upwind events. We besides marque definite our stations are decently maintained for things similar slips and falls."

He added, "It goes backmost to the full constituent astir being prepared, making definite that radical get to the presumption successful plentifulness of time, truthful that they don't hazard hard upwind conditions."

"If you tin question connected trains astatine little fashionable times a day, you tin prevention money," said Amtrak's president.  (Amtrak)

Recently, immoderate customers person taken to societal media to telephone retired Amtrak’s pricing.

"Amtrak is simply a scam," wrote 1 idiosyncratic connected X. "Why [are] determination $360+ tickets for the aforesaid way I paid $25 for yesterday?"

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Another idiosyncratic wrote, "I cognize Amtrak prices are famously fickle, but I deliberation this is the funniest disparity I’ve ever seen." The idiosyncratic shared a photograph of a $20 bid summons — and different summons priced astatine $236.

Harris said that "it's existent that with the tremendous involvement we person successful bid question today, trains are truly afloat and that does person the interaction of driving up prices."

People locomotion done Grand Central Terminal successful midtown Manhattan days earlier the Christmas vacation successful Dec. 2023. "We truly suggest that radical store astir earlier they bargain their ticket," said Harris of Amtrak.  (Spencer Platt/Getty Images)

He besides noted the company's flexible pricing structures.

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"If you tin question connected trains astatine little fashionable times a day, you tin prevention money. So, we truly suggest that radical store astir earlier they bargain their ticket."