The Borealis, a mid-day Amtrak train from the downtown St. Paul Union Depot to Chicago, launched in late May following decades of advocacy by rail fans eager to see a second train roll out daily after the storied, but often delayed, Empire Builder. The Twin Cities-Milwaukee-Chicago corridor has proven popular, with preliminary figures showing more than 18,500 riders hopping aboard in the first month alone.

That’s an average of about 300 daily passengers in each direction, which Amtrak officials called a promising showing given that peak summer travel season is still to come. Nationally, Amtrak is on track, so to speak, to set a new all-time passenger record, with more travelers embracing rail in the post-pandemic era.

“With strong college and university markets on this route, we are confident Borealis will continue to perform well when students and staff travel in greater numbers this fall,” said Ray Lang, vice president with Amtrak State Supported Service, in a written statement.

Shorter trips

Ramsey County Commissioner Rafael Ortega, the longstanding chair of the county’s Regional Railroad Authority, said Monday that he’s received interest from far afield in copying the initial success of the Borealis with additional rail lines, though he would not disclose from where.

“People are already interested in coming into the Union Depot from different parts of the country,” Ortega said. “I think we’re going to get a third train after a while. They called me. I’ve already attended a meeting. It’s so preliminary, it’s just kind of talk now, but it’s good talk.”

As for ridership on the Borealis, “based on the very first day’s numbers, I’m not surprised,” Ortega said. “I think it’s going to go higher. A lot of people are taking these shorter trips to see family or a jazz festival in Red Wing and LaCrosse, (Wis.).”

A 39-route vision

In May 2021, Amtrak issued a 13-page “corridor vision” report that called for introducing new stations in over half of all U.S. states within 10 to 15 years. The report called for increasing rail service to 47 out of the country’s top 50 metropolitan areas and improving 25 existing routes, while adding 39 new routes. In addition to the Borealis, rail fans have advocated for the Northern Lights Express (NLX), a proposed higher-than-normal speed passenger rail project that would connect Minneapolis and Duluth, though Duluth would be a much smaller population site than Chicago.

Passengers have expressed excitement about the long-awaited Borealis, which leaves St. Paul at 11:50 a.m. and arrives in the Windy City around 7:15 p.m., with tickets starting at $41 one-way. A return trip from Chicago drops passengers in St. Paul at 6:30 p.m.

That said, rail fans have noted that the corridor skips a key destination — Madison, Wis.

Built in the late 1980s, the state-leased Horizon trains require stairway boarding and offer limited business seating and no baggage car, so bicycles are not yet allowed. Minnesota officials have called the possibility of leasing or buying newer train cars a strong possibility as service matures.

It is unclear what percentage of Borealis ridership travels between Chicago and Milwaukee, where the Borealis has replaced one of the Hiawatha’s daily round-trips, as opposed to the St. Paul-to-Milwaukee segment, where the Borealis mirrors the route of the Empire Builder.

Some rail fans have speculated that Borealis ridership may get the occasional boost heading eastbound due to the frequent lateness of the Empire Builder, which is scheduled to depart from the St. Paul Union Depot at 8:50 a.m. daily but has been known to roll out as many as five hours late due to congestion on freight tracks.

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