Amtrak summer travel: Delays rise with demand as season booms

Travel chaos has become the norm in recent months after two summers of pandemic-induced confinement. While flyers have taken the biggest hit, rail passengers, too, are getting their share of misery — from an increase in delays and cancellations to long waits in customer service lines.

“It’s travel hell for everybody,” said Jim Mathews, president and chief executive of the Rail Passengers Association. “The airlines are terrible right now. Gas prices are crushing budgets. Hotels are a mess. Everything is crowded. And, yeah, Amtrak is not immune.”

Disruptions to intercity train operations are on the rise, and more are likely this summer as uncertainties linger amid staffing shortages and increased demand. Amtrak trips also are being hampered this summer by heat-related speed restrictions and worsening problems on freight rail lines, which often share tracks with Amtrak trains.

More than one-quarter of Amtrak customers encountered delays in June, according to on-time performance data, with an average delay of 76 minutes. The share of delayed customers is trending up, Amtrak data shows, and delays are getting longer. The disruptions are more pronounced for travelers on long-distance routes — which are late more than half the time — and in parts of the country outside the Northeast Corridor.

Cancellations also have risen, although they are rare. From Memorial Day weekend to mid-July this year, just over 1 percent of trains across the passenger rail network were canceled, according to Amtrak.

The rising challenges come as demand for train service has rebounded to near pre-pandemic levels. Railroad officials say Amtrak service levels are at about 80 percent of 2019 numbers, while the carrier has said it’s constrained to increase capacity because it doesn’t have enough workers to staff trains.

The battle that will determine the future of American passenger rail

Disruptions across multiple modes of transportation have been widespread this season at a time when carriers are facing capacity and labor challenges. The effects for train passengers haven’t been as severe as those facing air travelers, but they haven’t been unavoidable.

Amtrak’s problems have been more controlled, partly because it tends not to overschedule, as has been a practice for airlines. The company generally has added trains as demand rises, having flexibility that comes with travelers buying tickets closer to their travel date.

“We’re facing the same challenges as other travel segments,” Amtrak president Roger Harris said in an interview. “We know it’s a tough summer … We certainly expected delays and cancellations, but we tried to get…