Celebrations are underway at the Texas State Railroad, after a new record was set for holiday ridership.
The railroad has just concluded its 10th annual The Polar Express™ Train Ride event.
In 2016, 59,431 people rode The Polar Express… up 2,817 from last year… a 4.7% increase. That number also beat the previous record set in 2014 by 1,247 riders.
The licensed event, which is based on the book written by Chris Van Allsburg and the popular movie starring Tom Hanks, operates from the railroad’s Palestine Depot.
The event caps off a banner year in which the pre-Polar season also set a new record. Ridership for the regular season hit 23,059… an increase of 3,038 riders or 15.1% over the previous record, which was set in 2014.
Two special events in the fall contributed to the growth. The first was the annual Pumpkin Patch Express event which departs from the Rusk Depot and takes guests to a pumpkin patch in Maydelle. Ridership for that event this year was 5,954, an increase of 2,353 or 153% over last year.
The other event that saw big growth was the fourth annual Fall Foliage Brunch Train. That event went from 180 riders in 2015 to 441 this year… an increase of 145%.
The railroad’s best known train ride, The Piney Woods Excursion, also saw growth this year. In September PWE set a new record with 2,879 riders, an increase of 1,479 or 105.7% over the same month the previous year. In October the trend continued with 1,650 riders, an increase of 921 or 55.8% over October 2015.
Polar Express is the railroad’s largest special event of the year, bringing in two thirds of the railroad’s annual ridership. Texas State Railroad goes from roughly 40 year-round employees to nearly 200 during this time, once seasonal staff is brought on board to work the event.
“We put together a fantastic team that allowed us to successfully run the best season ever at the Texas State Railroad,” said Greg Udolph, Texas State Railroad General Manager. “I could not be more proud of this team and I am honored that I get to work with them.”
“As with past years, many guests wore their jammies. There were many large, extended family groups. Some people celebrated birthdays and anniversaries and there was even one engagement on the train with Santa himself delivering the ring!,” said Janet Gregg, Marketing and Special Events Manager. “There were also celebrity riders who chose to remain anonymous and some families came to make memories to last a lifetime because one member of their party suffered from terminal cancer. We do our best to ensure every guest has the best possible experience they can have here. Polar Express is truly magical.”
