Measuring the Benefits of Intercity Passenger Rail: A Study

Gender
Table 5-22 reports passenger gender. Females comprised at least 60 percent of the
Heartland Flyer passengers in each study period.
Table 5-22: Passenger Gender, Percent of All Trips
Gender April (427) July (570)
Male 39 35
Female 61 65
Note: Sample size shown in parenthesis.
Columns may not sum to 100 percent due to rounding.
Age Group
Table 5-23 reports the age distribution of Heartland Flyer passengers. In general, the
distribution of passenger ages was fairly uniform with a slight skew toward passengers in older
age groups. The distribution of passenger ages in July appeared to be slightly younger than in
April. This was reflected in the median passenger age of 51 in April and 48 in July.
Table 5-23: Passenger Age Group, Percent of All Trips
Age Group April (426) July (569)
18-24 Years 10 12
25-34 Years 11 14
35-44 Years 13 16
45-54 Years 23 20
55-64 Years 19 20
65 Years or Older 23 18
Note: Sample size shown in parenthesis.
Columns may not sum to 100 percent due to rounding.
Employment Status
Table 5-24 displays employment status as reported by Heartland Flyer passengers. A
majority of Heartland Flyer passengers were employed on a full-time basis, with approximately
half of the survey respondents reporting full-time employment. Approximately one-quarter of
the passengers were retired. Homemaker was also cited on a somewhat frequent basis, possibly
indicating the presence of families among the passengers. University or college students
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