Vermont’s passenger trains are seeing a slightly positive trend in ridership despite the economic downturn.
The number of passengers taking the Ethan Allen between Rutland to New York City increased by just a hair – .3 percent – in the 12 months ending Sept. 30, but jumped 3.3 percent in October. Ridership on the Vermonter, which operates from St. Albans across the state and south, grew 1.9 percent for the year and the same percentage last month.
The Vermont Rail Action Network, an advocacy group, kicked off a marketing campaign Friday to sell Vermonters on the importance of passenger and freight trains. They plan to recruit volunteers to beautify train stations, distribute timetables at public events and organize vanpools to get college students to trains.