RALEIGH – NC By Train’s Carolinian and Piedmont passenger rail services continue to experience record-breaking ridership.
In October, the two services garnered the highest ridership ever for one month, carrying 65,980 travelers.
“We’re pleased that more people are riding the NC By Train service,” said Jason Orthner, the Rail Division director at the N.C. Department of Transportation. “This trend shows just how important train travel is in North Carolina and supports DOT’s vision of a multimodal transportation network that works for everyone.”
NC By Train has served a total of 449,898 passengers during the first three quarters of 2023, which is 23% higher than the total of 366,685 passengers for the same time during 2022, which was the previous record year for the state’s intercity passenger rail service. On its own, the third quarter of 2023, NC By Train served 163,623 customers making it the best quarter in its 33-year history.
With the introduction of a fifth round trip frequency between Raleigh and Charlotte in July and applications for federal funding for projects like the S-Line and the Corridor Identification and Development (CID) Program, NC By Train is poised to continue increasing and improving services while further expanding the network across North Carolina and beyond.
NCDOT encourages people to take advantage of the comfortable convenient transportation available on NC By Train with its large seats, charging outlets at each seat and free WiFi. NC By Train offers a variety of everyday discounts for children, students, active military personnel, veterans and seniors and Share Fare, which allows groups of up to eight people to save money with each additional ticket purchased. With concerts, sports and now holiday events in full swing, passengers can skip the traffic and hassles of parking and take the train to a variety of North Carolina events.
Visit NC By Train for more information, to plan a trip and to buy tickets.