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Hoosier State Line Ridership Down

Ridership on the Hoosier State Rail Line dropped nearly 8 percent over the last year, while ticket revenues declined more than ten percent.

Ridership on Amtrak lines across the country rose in the last fiscal year, which ended in September.  But on the Hoosier State Line, which runs from Chicago to Indianapolis, ridership fell by nearly 3,000 people, down to just under 34,000.

And ticket revenues dropped nearly $100,000, settling at a little more than $800,000 last year.

Indiana is in the  midst of negotiations with a new company, Corridor Capital, to take over operations of the Hoosier State  Line from Amtrak next year. Amtrak recently made a push to retain control of the line, introducing WiFi  in an effort to improve service. 

Brandon Smith is excited to be working for public radio in Indiana. He has previously worked in public radio as a reporter and anchor in mid-Missouri for KBIA Radio out of Columbia. Prior to that, he worked for WSPY Radio in Plano, Illinois as a show host, reporter, producer and anchor. His first job in radio was in another state capitol, in Jefferson City, Missouri, as a reporter for three radio stations around Missouri. Brandon graduated from the University of Missouri-Columbia with a Bachelor of Journalism in 2010, with minors in political science and history. He was born and raised in Chicago.