Amtrak Long-Distance Trains
Performance for December 2025
Forty-nine percent of Amtrak's named long-distance trains arrived at their scheduled final destination on time or earlier in December 2025... The remaining trains, on average, arrived one hour and 13 minutes late.
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This Month's Performance of Individual Trains . . . .
Auto Train .
California Zephyr .
Cardinal .
Carolinian .
City of New Orleans .
Coast Starlight .
Crescent .
Empire Builder .
Floridian
Lake Shore Limited .
Maple Leaf .
Palmetto .
Silver Meteor .
Southwest Chief .
Sunset Limited .
Texas Eagle .
Vermonter .
COMPOSITE - (Long-DistanceTrains, December 2025)
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Ten-Year Monthly Comparison for December . . .
10-year comparison
Pct on-time arrival
Overall avg arrival
Ave arrival if late
December 2016 35 %
54 mins late
1 hour, 23 mins late
December 2017 35 %
1 hour late
1 hour, 32 mins late
December 2018 37 %
59 mins late
1 hour, 33 mins late
.December 2019 43 %
39 mins late
1 hour, 9 mins late
December 2020 64 %
25 mins late
1 hour, 10 mins late
December 2021 37 %
1 hour late
1 hour, 34 mins late
December 2022 48 %
52 mins late
1 hour, 39 mins late
December 2023 56 %
27 mins late
1 hour late
December 2024 46 %
40 mins late
1 hour, 14 mins late
December 2025 49 %
37 mins late
1 hour, 13 mins late
10-year composit average 45 %
45 mins late
1 hour, 21 mins late
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2025 Full Year Standings - Percentage On-Time Arrival
Train |
Pct on time arrival |
| City of New Orleans | 69.1 % |
| Sunset Limited | 65.9 % |
| Crescent | 61.4 % |
| Coast Starlight | 56.4 % |
| Lake Shore Limited | 53.1 % |
| Auto Train | 50.3 % |
| California Zephyr | 50.1 % |
| Empire Builder | 48.9 % |
| Texas Eagle | 45.8 % |
| Palmetto | 40.4 % |
| Carolinian | 38.2 % |
| Silver Meteor | 34.9 % |
| Vermonter | 30.2 % |
| .Southwest Chief | 28.6 % |
| Maple Leaf | 20.0 % |
| Cardinal | 19.7 % |
| Floridian | 19.6 % |
2025 Full Year Standings - Overall Average Arrival
Train |
Overall Average Arrival |
| Lake Shore Limited | 20 mins late |
| Vermonter | 23 mins late |
| Crescent | 23 mins late |
| City of New Orleans | 25 mins late |
| Carolinian | 26 mins late |
| Palmetto | 26 mins late |
| Maple Leaf | 30 mins late |
| Coast Starlight | 39 mins late |
| Sunset Limited | 41 mins late |
| Auto Train | 44 mins late |
| Silver Meteor | 44 mins late |
| Texas Eagle | 55 mins late |
| Cardinal | 1 hour, 1 min late |
| Empire Builder | 1 hour, 8 mins late |
| California Zephyr | 1 hour, 11 mins late |
| Southwest Chief | 1 hour, 38 mins late |
| Floridian | 1 hour, 45 mins late |
2025 Full Year Standings - Average Arrival When Late
Train
Average Arrival When Late
Vermonter 32 mins late
Maple Leaf 38 mins late
Carolinian 42 mins late
Lake Shore Limited 43 mins late
Palmetto 44 mins late
Crescent 59 mins late
Silver Meteor 1 hour, 8 mins late
Cardinal 1 hour, 16 mins late
City of New Orleans 1 hour, 22 mins late
Auto Train 1 hour, 28 mins late
Coast Starlight 1 hour, 30 mins late
Texas Eagle 1 hour, 42 mins late
Sunset Limited 2 hours late
Floridian 2 hours, 11 mins late
Empire Builder 2 hours, 12 mins late
Southwest Chief 2 hours, 18 mins late
California Zephyr 2 hours, 23 mins late
ABOUT THESE REPORTS:
The Bull Sheet calculates arrival performance at final destination of Amtrak's named long-distance trains. The data are based upon the reported arrival times of each of the affected trains, and there is no grace allowance for minimal lateness. If a train arrives at its final terminal behind schedule, even by a minute, it is considered 'late.' The Bull Sheet considers that long-distance Amtrak trains have sufficient padding in their schedule to offset typical en route delays, and it is not necessary to adopt a grace allowance on top of that padding to bolster on-time reporting. Accordingly, these reports offer a more realistic analysis than what is typically reported by Amtrak. Moreover, no consideration is given to the impact of late departures from originating points impacting subsequent late arrivals at destination, or for any time advanced during that run. Again, calculations refer solely to arrival at final terminal.
Data apply only to final destination, not to intermediate stops. Moreover, it does not identify causes for delay, or statistically apply responsibility to any of the host carriers involved en route.
Trains that are truncated, annulled, originated or terminated en route, or reported with incomplete or ambiguous data are excluded from the survey.
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