A US$16m project to upgrade the Philadelphia - Harrisburg Keystone line is moving ahead rapidly this summer. The work, part of which was carried out last year, includes replacing life-expired wood sleepers and upgrading the station at Lancaster. As the work is completed and track conditions improved, speeds on some segments have been raised by 50%, from 96 km/h to 145 km/h. Completion is scheduled for late autumn.
Ridership and on-time performance on the Keystone Line is also greatly improved. Boardings for the October-April period rose from 342000 in 1996-97 to 456000 this year. Amtrak attributes the 33% increase to additional service and better performance: since October on-time arrivals have averaged 94·7%. o
