Amtrak officials said demand for the state-sponsored Borealis trains between St. Paul and Chicago continues to exceed expectations in its first full year of service.
Operated daily by Amtrak under contracts with Minnesota, Wisconsin, and Illinois, Borealis ridership for the 11 months ending April 30 was more than 205,800.
Total Amtrak ridership for the new St. Paul-Chicago corridor, which includes the Borealis and the Amtrak Empire Builder trains daily, was more than 293,000, up 227 percent from May 2024 through April 2025 when compared with May 2023 through April 2024.
“Amtrak is proud to celebrate a successful first year of the Borealis – and it’s only going to improve next year and beyond,” said Amtrak President Roger Harris. “Thanks to strong collaboration with our partners, we have exceeded expectations and provided a reliable, efficient, and safe way to travel between the Twin Cities and Chicago via Milwaukee.”
