Stephen Gardner, CEO of Amtrak, the US passenger rail operator, has stepped down effective 19 March 2025, ending a four-year stint at the helm. Announced via an Amtrak media statement, his resignation came swiftly, with Gardner citing a desire to “ensure that Amtrak continues to enjoy the full faith and confidence of this administration.” The move, confirmed by Reuters, CNN, and Fox Business, follows reports that the White House, under President Donald Trump, pressed for his departure—a claim Amtrak has not directly addressed.
Gardner’s exit caps 16 years with the company, where he rose from an intern in the 1990s to its 13th CEO in 2022. In his parting words, he expressed pride in Amtrak’s strides: “We did a lot together to make Amtrak safer, more modern and a better travel experience for all our customers.” The Amtrak board thanked him for his service, adding, “We look forward to working with President Trump and Secretary Duffy as we build the world-class passenger rail system this country deserves.”
Stephen Gardner’s abrupt resignation
The resignation lands amid swirling speculation about Amtrak’s future. Reuters reported that Trump, who took office in January 2025, had sought leadership changes, a stance echoing his first term’s repeated bids to slash Amtrak’s USD 2.4 billion annual federal funding. Congress, however, approved USD 2.42 billion for fiscal 2025 last week, a sum Gardner welcomed on 14 March as vital for “services and maintenance work.” Yet his departure, just days later, hints at deeper tensions.
Elon Musk, tapped to head the Department of Government Efficiency, has fuelled the debate, recently calling for Amtrak’s privatisation—a notion Gardner’s team had pushed back against in a March memo. CNN noted Musk’s comments came weeks before the resignation, spotlighting Amtrak’s USD 635 million operating loss in fiscal 2024, despite record ridership of 32.8 million trips and USD 2.5 billion in ticket revenue. The memo argued profitability isn’t Amtrak’s mission, pointing to congressional mandates for rural routes and decades of underfunding.
Gardner’s tenure saw Amtrak rebound from a pandemic low of 16.5 million trips in 2020 to surpass pre-COVID levels in 2024. Fox Business highlighted his focus on modernisation—new trains, better stations, and a safety overhaul—amid setbacks like November’s power outage between New York and Washington. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy, in a statement, urged Amtrak to “clean up Union Station” in Washington, hinting at new priorities ahead.
No successor has been named, leaving Amtrak’s 23,000-strong workforce and 21,400-mile network in limbo as the Trump administration takes shape. With ridership up 15% in 2024 and mega-projects like the Northeast Corridor upgrades ongoing, the next CEO faces a balancing act—delivering service while navigating political crosswinds. For now, Gardner’s exit marks a pivot point for America’s rails.
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