Amtrak's Long-Distance Train Performance
Full Year 2017
For the year 2017, the Bull Sheet has calculated that 30 percent of Amtrak's named long-distance trains arrived at their final destination on time or earlier.
The average arrival of all long-distance trains in the survey period was one hour late.
The average arrival of the 70 percent of trains that were behind schedule was one hour and 27 minutes late.
The train with the best on-time percentage was the Empire Builder (with 53 percent), and the train with the worst on-time percentage was the Crescent (with 11 percent). The Crescent, also, had the worst overall average arrival at final destination, one hour and 39 minutes late, and the Southwest Chief had the worst average arrival of just those trains that arrived late, two hours and 18 minutes behind schedule. The train with the best overall average arrival was Maple Leaf, 21 minutes late, which shared the honor of best average arrival of late-arriving trains with Vermonter, 35 minutes behind schedule (see chart below).
A train is considered late whenever it arrives at its final destination behind schedule, even if only by a minute. Sufficient padding is incorporated into long-distance train schedules to eliminate the need for grace allowances in showing a train arriving on time when it is actually nominally late.
Trains arriving ahead of schedule are shown 'on time,' with no extra credit given to offset other arrivals that are late. Trains that are canceled, truncated or presented by Amtrak as being 'service disrupted' are typically excluded from the data.
This survey was compiled by the Bull Sheet's statistical department comprehending actual performance as reported for each affected train on Amtrak's website.
Individual train performance over the course of 2017 was as follows:
Train
Pct on-time arrival
Overall avg arrival
Avg arrival if late
Auto Train 50 %
49 mins late
1 hour, 38 mins late
California Zephyr 29 %
1 hour, 32 mins late
2 hours, 10 mins late
Capitol Limited 21 %
58 mins late
1 hour, 14 mins late
Cardinal 34 %
1 hour, 4 mins late
1 hour, 37 mins late
Carolinian 23 %
48 mins late
1 hour, 2 mins late
City of New Orleans 38 %
37 mins late
59 mins late
Coast Starlight 40 %
1 hour, 7 mins late
1 hour, 52 mins late
Crescent 11 %
1 hour, 39 mins late
1 hour, 51 mins late
Empire Builder 53 %
53 mins late
1 hour, 53 mins late
Lake Shore Limited 16 %
1 hour, 10 mins late
1 hour, 23 mins late
Maple Leaf 40 %
21 mins late
35 mins late
Palmetto 12 %
48 mins late
54 mins late
Silver Meteor 20 %
1 hour, 13 mins late
1 hour, 30 mins late
Silver Star 14 %
1 hour, 28 mins late
1 hour, 42 mins late
Southwest Chief 39 %
1 hour, 25 mins late
2 hours, 18 mins late
Sunset Limited 51 %
39 mins late
1 hour, 20 mins late
Texas Eagle 38 %
1 hour, 5 mins late
1 hour, 44 mins late
Vermonter 21 %
28 mins late
35 mins late
RECAP - the year 2017 . . . . .
Month
Pct on-time arrival
Overall avg arrival
Avg arrival if late
January 2017 39 %
59 mins late
1 hour, 37 mins late
February 2017 40 %
50 mins late
1 hour, 24 mins late
March 2017 26 %
1 hour, 9 mins late
1 hour, 33 mins late
April 2017 31 %
52 mins late
1 hour, 16 mins late
May 2017 28 %
1 hour, 6 mins late
1 hour, 31 mins late
June 2017 20 %
1 hour, 13 mins late
1 hour, 32 mins late
July 2017 22 %
1 hour, 19 mins late
1 hour, 41 mins late
August 2017 26 %
1 hour, 2 mins late
1 hour, 24 mins late
September 2017 34 %
49 mins late
1 hour, 14 mins late
October 2017 31 %
55 mins late
1 hour, 20 mins late
November 2017 33 %
48 mins late
1 hour, 12 mins late
December 2017 35 %
1 hour late
1 hour, 32 mins late
Composite for 2017 30 %
1 hour late
1 hour, 27 mins late
Composite for 2016 40 %
45 mins late
1 hour, 14 mins late
Also, half-year figures for 2017 have been calculated for:
January-June and July-December
.