© 2025 Connecticut Public

FCC Public Inspection Files:
WEDH · WEDN · WEDW · WEDY
WEDW-FM · WNPR · WPKT · WRLI-FM
Public Files Contact · ATSC 3.0 FAQ
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations

Downeaster sells out of seats for some trains over holiday weekend

FILE- In this Dec. 8, 2011 file photo, the Amtrak Downeaster travels through Portland, Maine.
Robert F. Bukaty
/
Associated Press
FILE- In this Dec. 8, 2011 file photo, the Amtrak Downeaster travels through Portland, Maine.

The Downeaster is selling out several of its trips over the holiday weekend, as travelers choose to ride the rails rather than drive.

Patricia Quinn, executive director of the Northern New England Passenger Rail Authority, says reservations are advised.

"Several of our trains were sold out yesterday, several sold out today. We are running four round trips on Thanksgiving Day with hundreds of people already booked on those so we expect it to be a very busy weekend as well," she says. "We're exceeding pre-pandemic levels of ridership. For the last four months, we've had record breaking ridership and revenue months."

Quinn says some travelers are pushing their return home to Monday and Tuesday so that is spreading demand.

AAA projects rail, bus and ship ridership will increase 6.8% this weekend, and plane travel to be up 6.2%. Overall, AAA says 2.5 million New Englanders will travel this weekend.

Federal funding is gone.

Congress has eliminated all funding for public media.

That means $2.1 million per year that Connecticut Public relied on to deliver you news, information, and entertainment programs you enjoyed is gone.

The future of public media is in your hands.

All donations are appreciated, but we ask in this moment you consider starting a monthly gift as a Sustainer to help replace what’s been lost.

SOMOS CONNECTICUT is an initiative from Connecticut Public, the state’s local NPR and PBS station, to elevate Latino stories and expand programming that uplifts and informs our Latino communities. Visit CTPublic.org/latino for more stories and resources. For updates, sign up for the SOMOS CONNECTICUT newsletter at ctpublic.org/newsletters.

SOMOS CONNECTICUT es una iniciativa de Connecticut Public, la emisora local de NPR y PBS del estado, que busca elevar nuestras historias latinas y expandir programación que alza y informa nuestras comunidades latinas locales. Visita CTPublic.org/latino para más reportajes y recursos. Para noticias, suscríbase a nuestro boletín informativo en ctpublic.org/newsletters.

Federal funding is gone.

Congress has eliminated all funding for public media.

That means $2.1 million per year that Connecticut Public relied on to deliver you news, information, and entertainment programs you enjoyed is gone.

The future of public media is in your hands.

All donations are appreciated, but we ask in this moment you consider starting a monthly gift as a Sustainer to help replace what’s been lost.

Related Content