Gribblenation

North Carolina continues to see growth in their passenger rail service.  ( I'm now one of them .)  2024 was another record year - over 720,000 passengers took to the rails in the Tar Heel State, 12% more than the year before.  Meanwhile, feasibility studies on two additional corridors point the way to further expansion. 2024 Ridership Gains: For the third consecutive year, North Carolina's Rail Division has seen a record number of passengers.  The over 720,000 passenger ridership is also up 55% from pre-COVID levels.   NC's Rail Division is also being creative to attract passengers.  In addition to additional stops for key events - the North Carolina State Fair and the Lexington Barbecue Festival - special train runs, for example, the 2024 U.S. Open in Pinehurst, drove growth.  Limited edition runs for special events continued in 2025 with the " Rockingham Special ," a one-day round-trip service to Rockingham for the NASCAR race at Rockingham Spe...

Finally, I took the train here in North Carolina. After many years of following developments and writing about them, I boarded the #74 Piedmont train in Kannapolis on my way to Durham. My experience made me wonder why I hadn't taken the train more often, yet it also made me see where there are even more opportunities for the service to reach its full potential. The Ride: My wife and kids dropped me off at the Kannapolis station about an hour before departure.  The station is one block from the heart of Downtown Kannapolis, including Atrium Health Ballpark (Home of the Kannapolis Cannon Ballers), the recently restored Gem Theatre, and a thriving social district. Kannapolis's Train Station is both quaint and modern. Unfortunately, the rain prevented me from strolling through Kannapolis (fortunately, we visit here often).  The Kannapolis Train Station has plenty of parking, shares space with meeting rooms (I have early voted here a few times), and is within walking dist...

North Carolina's passenger rail system had a record year in 2022.  Quickly bouncing back from the drastic drop in ridership during the Covid-19 pandemic, the Raleigh-to-Charlotte service saw a record of over 522,000 riders in 2022.  The four-times daily route (three on the Piedmont service and one on the Carolinian that continues to New York City) also had a record-breaking month of 55,493 travelers in October.  The overall ridership numbers within the state do not include passengers that utilized stations on other intercity lines that run through the state. (Silver Star, Crescent, Palmetto, and Silver Meteor) A Southbound Piedmont Train approaches the Durham Train Station.  More riders used the NCDOT-sponsored Piedmont service in 2022 than any other year prior. NC by Train celebrated the completion of the first phase of Charlotte's Gateway Station.  The first test runs to the Uptown Charlotte station occurred in November.  The new station will not be ready...