On October 31, 2017, passenger rail service returned to Roanoke for the first time since 1979. Over the past five years, more than 879,000 passengers have traveled the corridor between Roanoke and Washington, DC and points beyond. Today the Virginia Passenger Rail Authority (VPRA) and Amtrak mark the 5th Anniversary by celebrating the service’s ridership growth.

The popularity of the Roanoke service was immediate with strong ridership numbers from the start, and 2019 saw record ridership of 220,000 on the corridor. That number led the Commonwealth to negotiate an agreement with Norfolk Southern to add a second roundtrip between Roanoke and Washington, DC. The record-setting ridership continued into the spring of 2022 leading up to the launch of the second roundtrip this past July.

“Norfolk Southern joins the Virginia Passenger Rail Authority and Amtrak in celebrating the expansion of passenger rail options to and from the Commonwealth of Virginia,” said Mike McClellan, Senior Vice President and Chief Strategy Officer for Norfolk Southern. “The Roanoke, Norfolk, and Christiansburg services demonstrate how thoughtful collaboration and deliberate investment can lead to a reliable and sustainable passenger service, even as that service enhances the State’s economic base. Virginia’s efforts demonstrate that a strong partnership between the State and freight rail carriers can result in a win-win for everyone.”

Read the full press release from VPRA here.