The state-supported Amtrak service is a terribly inefficient way to transport 200 people per day.
Amtrak is forlorn that its Heartland Flyer service between Oklahoma City and Fort Worth will not be able to continue unless the Texas Department of Transportation forks over more money. The Texas legislature has declined the department’s funding request for the service, and Oklahoma, which also funds the service, has said it won’t make up the difference. Good on the Texas legislature for cutting off funding.
“Reliable rail service provides a vital transportation option for residents and visitors alike, strengthening regional mobility, economic development, and tourism,” Amtrak President Roger Harris said in a statement online.
It appears Harris has different definitions of the terms “reliable” and “vital” than most people do. According to the Federal Railroad Administration, the Heartland Flyer’s on-time performance was 66 percent in the first quarter of this fiscal year. It was 58 percent in the fourth quarter of last fiscal year. In 2023, it was at times below 40 percent. I wouldn’t rely on it to get me anywhere on time.
And hardly anyone does. Amtrak said the Heartland Flyer served “over 80,000 customers in FY24,” which kind of sounds like a lot until you consider that it’s just over 200 people per day going between metropolitan areas with populations of about 1.5 million and 8 million, respectively. Amtrak wants Texas to spend $3.5 million per year to support the service. Combined with the $4.5 million Oklahoma spends per year, the governments would be spending $100 per passenger, in addition to what the passengers actually pay for their tickets.
If the service cannot run without $100 per passenger in government spending, it doesn’t need to run at all. Amtrak’s timetable has the service taking 4 hours and 2 minutes. Driving between Oklahoma City and Fort Worth on I-35 takes about 3 hours and 15 minutes. It’s hardly a surprise that most people wishing to make that trip use the faster option, which has the added benefit of continuing to provide transportation services once you arrive because your car belongs to you.
Amtrak’s statement goes on to make more ridiculous claims. It pats itself on the back for “reaching $2.2 million in ticket revenue” while asking the two states to fork over $8 million per year to keep the service running, which means the passengers who ride it aren’t coming anywhere close to covering the costs of the service. It says the service “alleviates congestion on one of Texas’s busiest highways” — even if all 200 daily riders drove separate cars, which they probably don’t, taking 200 cars per day off the road is negligible for traffic.
“Amtrak is also investing over $63 million in ADA station improvements at 16 stations in Texas, further bolstering the state’s passenger rail network,” Amtrak says. Remember, this same statement says passenger revenue on this supposedly vital line is barely raising 1/30th of that in a year. Accessibility for disabled people is important, but there’s no way to justify $63 million of spending on that, given the paltry amount of money the service is bringing in.
Amtrak says the Heartland Flyer “generates $5.3 million in direct economic benefits.” Put aside for a moment that these estimates of economic benefits from government spending are almost always exaggerated and based on hack work from consultants. It is saying that $8 million in combined spending between Oklahoma and Texas is generating $5.3 million in direct benefits. That’s a bad deal.
It goes on to say there’s “$23.7 million in overall economic activity,” which is again, almost certainly an exaggeration. But earlier in the statement it says Texas’s travel industry alone is worth $97.5 billion. So $23.7 million, even if correct, is basically meaningless. And it’s not as though it would entirely disappear in the absence of the service, since some of those 80,000 people per year who took the heavily subsidized train would just drive instead.
The mayor of Gainesville, Texas, Tommy Moore, is quoted as saying the service supports “almost 30 full-time jobs.” Almost 30! Let’s be generous and say it is 30: That’s $266,666 in Texas and Oklahoma government spending per job. Surely there must be more efficient ways to employ people.
Amtrak also points out that the Dallas-Fort Worth area will be hosting World Cup matches in 2026 and argues that the service would be “vital for transporting fans from Oklahoma and beyond.” It says, “Ending this service would weaken regional connectivity and hinder Texas’ ability to deliver a world-class experience.”
This might be the most laughable claim of all. First of all, soccer fans from Europe or Japan would not be impressed in the slightest by the Heartland Flyer, given what passenger trains are like in their home countries. Second, it’s a poor way to get to the matches anyhow. They’ll be played in the Dallas Cowboys’ stadium, which is 15 miles away from the train station in Fort Worth. Third, even if it were a good way to get to the World Cup matches, that still wouldn’t be a good reason to spend $8 million on it for the entire year.
If the government really wants to keep a non-car transportation option available, there is a much cheaper way to move 200 people per day between cities: buses. People can already take a Greyhound between Oklahoma City and Fort Worth if they want to. But since 95 percent of households in both Oklahoma and Texas own at least one vehicle, they already have access to the best way to get between Oklahoma City and Fort Worth: driving. They don’t need the government to spend their money to provide a redundant option that’s slower and absurdly expensive.
Texas Is Right to End the Heartland Flyer
Other People’s Money!