With ridership significantly lower than usual because of the pandemic, Amtrak continues to roll out deeply discounted fares.
Its 鈥淭rack Friday鈥� sale offers 50% off travel through early spring, though the discount does not apply to popular weekend travel dates.
The sale applies to tickets purchased until Nov. 30, and covers travel between Dec. 8 and April 30.
Sale fares include D.C. to Philadelphia for $28 one-way, or $57 on Acela; D.C. to New York for $35, or $79 on Acela; D.C. to Chicago for $53; and D.C. to Richmond for just $15 each way.
The discount does not cover travel on Fridays or Sundays on Northeast Regional or Acela trains. Blackout dates for the fare discounts are Dec. 23-24, Dec. 26-28, Jan. 3-4, Jan. 19-21, April 2 and April 5.
In addition to its East Coast network, the newest Amtrak sale also applies to most of its nationwide network.
This week, Amtrak touted its 鈥�new standard of travel,鈥� featuring improvements to sanitization and safety protocols it developed with Georgetown University’s Milken Institute School of Public Health.
Amtrak鈥檚 ridership remains at about 25% of pre-COVID levels, according to Bloomberg 海角社区app. It forecasts ridership and revenue will improve to about 37% of pre-pandemic levels by the end of fiscal 2021, which ends in September of next year.
