BOSTON -- If you're tired of the aggravation of the airport, you're not alone.

Amtrak's latest statistics show that more passengers are opting for the rails, with more business travelers in particular turning to Amtrak to get where they need to go, WCVB-TV in Boston.

New Amtrak statistics show ridership is up 6 percent this year, the biggest jump since the late 1970s, according to a Wall Street Journal report.

On the high-speed Acela Express between Boston, New York and Washington, D.C., ridership was up 20 percent in the last 10 months.

One major reason behind the increased numbers is reliability, the company said. In June, the Acela was running on schedule 90 percent of the time.

Since Amtrak introduced higher-speed Acela trains in 2000, the railroad's share of the 10,000 daily plane or train passengers traveling between Washington and New York has grown to 54 percent from 45 percent, the Journal reported.

Many travelers in the Eastern corridor have found that with airline delays and security hassles, it takes less time to get from Boston to New York on the train than on a plane, and it costs less as well.

Train popularity has risen in other areas as well, according to the Journal, which reported that ridership is also up sharply on some improved state-supported corridors, including Chicago-St. Louis, which was up 53 percent in the 10 months through July.

It's a turnaround for a company that for years was dogged by a reputation for poor service. However, it appears to have made significant improvements, providing better service that has earned good marks from passengers.

All of this is being watched closely by U.S. lawmakers.

Amtrak has long been criticized by some federal officials because of poor ridership in spite of the billions of dollars in U.S. government subsidies it receives.

The House recently passed a fiscal 2008 funding bill with $1.4 billion for Amtrak, plus $50 million to match state funding of capital projects, the Journal reported.

The U.S. Senate currently is considering a nearly $1.5 billion Amtrak funding bill, and supporters of rail service are pointing to the recent positive numbers to bolster their chances of getting funding approval.