Passenger-kilometers by rail in United States
United States: Passenger-kilometers by rail was 12.46 billion million passenger-km in 2020. ▲ Rising
Passenger-kilometers by rail in United States, 1995–2020
Source: International Union of Railways (UIC) and OECD, via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in million passenger-km.
Analysis
In 2020, passenger-kilometers by rail in United States stood at 12.46 billion million passenger-km. That is the lowest value across all 26 years on record.
The figure is down 61.6% on the previous year and down 60.9% over ten years.
Over the whole period, passenger-kilometers by rail in United States peaked at 36.39 billion million passenger-km in 2014 and was at its lowest, 12.46 billion million passenger-km, in 2020.
That places United States 17th out of 101 countries with data for 2020, putting it in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 26 years of available data.
Passenger-kilometers by rail in United States, year by year
| Year | million passenger-km | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1995 | 22.08 billion million passenger-km | — |
| 1996 | 21.87 billion million passenger-km | -1.0% |
| 1997 | 22.75 billion million passenger-km | +4.0% |
| 1998 | 23.49 billion million passenger-km | +3.3% |
| 1999 | 23.91 billion million passenger-km | +1.8% |
| 2000 | 25.98 billion million passenger-km | +8.6% |
| 2001 | 25.20 billion million passenger-km | -3.0% |
| 2002 | 24.41 billion million passenger-km | -3.1% |
| 2003 | 25.04 billion million passenger-km | +2.6% |
| 2004 | 24.78 billion million passenger-km | -1.1% |
| 2005 | 25.39 billion million passenger-km | +2.5% |
| 2006 | 27.30 billion million passenger-km | +7.5% |
| 2007 | 30.36 billion million passenger-km | +11.2% |
| 2008 | 32.14 billion million passenger-km | +5.9% |
| 2009 | 30.91 billion million passenger-km | -3.8% |
| 2010 | 31.87 billion million passenger-km | +3.1% |
| 2011 | 32.58 billion million passenger-km | +2.2% |
| 2012 | 34.13 billion million passenger-km | +4.7% |
| 2013 | 36.05 billion million passenger-km | +5.6% |
| 2014 | 36.39 billion million passenger-km | +1.0% |
| 2015 | 36.04 billion million passenger-km | -1.0% |
| 2016 | 35.89 billion million passenger-km | -0.4% |
| 2017 | 33.26 billion million passenger-km | -7.3% |
| 2018 | 31.96 billion million passenger-km | -3.9% |
| 2019 | 32.48 billion million passenger-km | +1.6% |
| 2020 | 12.46 billion million passenger-km | -61.6% |
United States compared with similar countries
- United States's 12.46 billion million passenger-km is above the median for high income countries, which is 5.44 billion million passenger-km, 2.3× the median. (39 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Passenger-kilometers by rail in United States changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | -61.6% | 32.48 billion million passenger-km | 12.46 billion million passenger-km |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 22.82 billion million passenger-km | 21.87 billion million passenger-km | 23.91 billion million passenger-km | 5 |
| 2000s | 27.15 billion million passenger-km | 24.41 billion million passenger-km | 32.14 billion million passenger-km | 10 |
| 2010s | 34.07 billion million passenger-km | 31.87 billion million passenger-km | 36.39 billion million passenger-km | 10 |
| 2020s | 12.46 billion million passenger-km | 12.46 billion million passenger-km | 12.46 billion million passenger-km | 1 |
Countries ranked near United States
- 14 Brazil 16.49 billion million passenger-km compare
- 15 Poland 15.84 billion million passenger-km compare
- 16 Switzerland 14.31 billion million passenger-km compare
- 18 Iran 11.23 billion million passenger-km compare
- 19 Netherlands 10.90 billion million passenger-km compare
- 20 Ukraine 10.70 billion million passenger-km compare
More reference data data for United States
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 19.34 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 24.55 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 119.42 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 20.7 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Agricultural Soils 119.42 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 64.85 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure Management 52.14 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 133.45 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 589.96 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 112.69 (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is passenger-kilometers by rail in United States?
- Passenger-kilometers by rail in United States was 12.46 billion million passenger-km in 2020, according to International Union of Railways (UIC) and OECD, via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest passenger-kilometers by rail recorded in United States?
- The highest recorded value was 36.39 billion million passenger-km in 2014.
- What is the lowest passenger-kilometers by rail recorded in United States?
- The lowest recorded value was 12.46 billion million passenger-km in 2020.
- How does United States rank for passenger-kilometers by rail?
- United States ranks 17th out of 101 countries with data for 2020.
- Is passenger-kilometers by rail rising or falling in United States?
- Over the last ten years it is down 60.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this United States data come from?
- The figures come from International Union of Railways (UIC) and OECD, via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Passenger-kilometers by rail. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 26 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
The number of passengers transported by rail, multiplied by the kilometers traveled. This is measured in passenger-kilometers.