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Intercity passenger-rail ridership is on the rise in Ohio, according to recent Amtrak ridership figures and a review conducted by the Ohio Department of Transportation (ODOT) and Ohio Rail Development Commission. During fiscal-year 2010, which ended Sept. 30, 147,000 Ohioans rode Amtrak trains, a 14 percent hike compared with FY2009’s 128,174 riders.

Amtrak currently provides limited long-distance service in Ohio, with seven station stops. The biggest gains were posted in Toledo, where 65,667 people got on or off trains at Toledo Union Station — 21 percent more than in FY2009 — and in Elyria, where ridership spiked nearly 30 percent. In Cleveland, ridership rose 12 percent to 44,075.

However, ridership in Cincinnati, through which Amtrak operates Cardinal service three times per week, slipped 3 percent.

The national intercity passenger railroad currently is considering service upgrades to the Chicago-Washington, D.C. Capitol Limited service, which stops in Bryan, Toledo, Sandusky, Elyria, Cleveland and Alliance. Amtrak also might begin offering daily Cardinal service through Cincinnati.