Amtrak Midwest

Amtrak Midwest is a brand name applied by Amtrak to its state-supported routes in the Midwest states of Illinois, Michigan, Wisconsin, and Missouri.^[1] As of 2024^[update], Amtrak Midwest consists of ten named trains:

• Illinois Service: Lincoln Service, Illinois Zephyr and Carl Sandburg, and Illini and Saluki
• Michigan Services: Blue Water, Wolverine, and Pere Marquette
• Hiawatha Service
• Missouri River Runner

Amtrak Midwest
Amtrak Midwest-branded Lincoln Service train at Springfield Station in 2019
Overview
Locale	Midwestern United States
Transit type	Inter-city rail
Number of lines	9
Website	Amtrak Midwest
Operation
Operator(s)	Amtrak
Technical
Track gauge	4 ft 8+1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge

The routes generally form a hub-and-spoke network around Chicago Union Station, with all trains terminating there except for one Missouri River Runner round trip.

An eleventh route, the Borealis between Chicago and St. Paul, is expected to start in 2024 and will add Minnesota to the Amtrak Midwest network. Other routes in development include the Quad Cities and Northern Lights Express.

Operations

Services

v t e Amtrak Midwest
Legend
Empire Builder     Pontiac Wolverine     Troy 2024 Saint Paul Borealis       Royal Oak 2024 Red Wing     Detroit   2024 Winona     Dearborn   Minnesota Wisconsin     Ann Arbor 2024 La Crosse     Jackson 2024 Tomah     Albion 2024 Wisconsin Dells       Port Huron Blue Water 2024 Portage       Lapeer 2024 Columbus       Flint       Durand   Milwaukee Hiawatha Service           East Lansing   Milwaukee Airport     Battle Creek Sturtevant     Kalamazoo Wisconsin Illinois     Dowagiac   Glenview     Niles     New Buffalo       Grand Rapids Pere Marquette       Holland       Bangor       St. Joseph           Michigan Indiana           Capitol Limited & Lake Shore Limited       Hammond–Whiting     Indiana Illinois     Chicago           Cardinal     La Grange Road               Naperville       Homewood     Plano       Kankakee   Mendota       Gilman Princeton       Rantoul         Champaign–Urbana   2024 Geneseo         Mattoon 2024 Moline Quad Cities         Effingham Extension to Iowa City         Centralia Kewanee       Du Quoin   Galesburg         Carbondale Illini & Saluki   California Zephyr             Macomb         City of New Orleans to New Orleans Quincy Illinois Zephyr       Summit     & Carl Sandburg       Joliet     Illinois Missouri       Dwight       Pontiac   Kansas City Missouri River Runner         Normal   Independence       Lincoln Lee's Summit       Springfield Warrensburg       Carlinville Sedalia       Alton Jefferson City       Illinois Missouri Hermann       Washington       St. Louis Lincoln Service &     Kirkwood       Missouri River Runner   Southwest Chief     Texas Eagle
Services
Amtrak Midwest   Long-distance Amtrak routes

As of May 2023^[update], Amtrak Midwest consists of ten named trains operating in nine service patterns. The Illinois Zephyr and Carl Sandburg share identical routes, as do the Illini and Saluki. The Lincoln Service and Missouri River Runner operate separately except for one daily round trip (trains 318 and 319) in which they are combined.^[2] There are 22 Amtrak Midwest round trips each weekday, with the Hiawatha Service running slightly different frequencies on Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays.^[3]

Route	Terminus	Via	Terminus	Weekday round trips	Supporting states
					WI	IL	MI	MO
Hiawatha Service	Milwaukee	Glenview	Chicago	7	●	●
Illinois Zephyr and Carl Sandburg	Quincy	Galesburg		2		●
Illini and Saluki	Carbondale	Champaign–Urbana		2		●
Wolverine	Pontiac	Detroit		3			●
Blue Water	Port Huron	Flint		1			●
Pere Marquette	Grand Rapids	Holland		1			●
Lincoln Service	St. Louis	Springfield		3		●
Lincoln Service / Missouri River Runner	Kansas City	St. Louis		1		●		●
Missouri River Runner	Kansas City	Jefferson City	St. Louis	1				●
Total				22

Indiana is not part of Amtrak Midwest as the state does not sponsor any Amtrak routes, although two Wolverine trips stop at Hammond–Whiting station. Indiana discontinued its only state-supported train, the Hoosier State, in 2019.

State-supported service in the Midwest is supplemented by a number of long-distance Amtrak routes, such as the California Zephyr and City of New Orleans. These are federally-funded, have separate equipment, and do not fall under the Amtrak Midwest brand.

Equipment

Amtrak Midwest routes generally share a pool of rolling stock, though certain equipment is exclusive to certain routes. In 2017, 33 Siemens Charger locomotives were delivered for Amtrak Midwest.^[4] Siemens Venture coaches debuted in 2022, and will continue to be deployed in the coming years.^[5][6]

History

The Amtrak Midwest logo and brand were unveiled in 2017 alongside the debut of Siemens Charger locomotives on the Hiawatha Service.^[7]

Partial restoration of Amtrak's Black Hawk between Chicago and Rockford, Illinois, was funded in 2019 and would have been part of the Amtrak Midwest network.^[8] In 2023, Metra was chosen as the operator instead of Amtrak. Metra service is expected to start in 2027.^[9] Restoration of the full Black Hawk beyond Rockford to Dubuque, Iowa, has yet to be determined.

Future

Amtrak Midwest is slated for expansion in the coming years, with several new routes and frequencies in various stages of development. In December 2023, the Federal Railroad Administration accepted a number of Midwest routes into its Corridor Identification and Development Program. Each route in the program is granted $500,000 for service studies and is prioritized for future federal funding.^[10][11]

Planned and proposed services

Route	Terminus	Via	Terminus	Weekday round trips	Corridor ID Program	Status
Borealis	Saint Paul	Milwaukee	Chicago	1	●	One round trip is fully funded and expected to start in 2024. Will supplement the Empire Builder. Additional frequency is proposed.
Quad Cities	Moline	Naperville		2^[12]	●	Service is funded and expected to start in 2024.
Prairie Marksman successor	Peoria	Joliet		5	●	Feasibility study complete.^[13]^[14]
Hiawatha Service extension	Green Bay	Milwaukee		3^[15]	●	Planning phase
Varsity successor	Madison	Milwaukee		4^[16]	●	Planning phase
		Janesville		TBD		Proposed, unfunded
Twin Cities 400 successor	Saint Paul	Eau Claire		2^[17]	●	Planning phase
Illinois Zephyr and Carl Sandburg extension	Hannibal	Quincy		2	●	Planning phase
Kentucky Cardinal	Louisville	Indianapolis		4^[18]		Unfunded
Cardinal supplement	Cincinnati	Indianapolis		4^[18]		Unfunded
Indianapolis–Chicago trunk	Indianapolis	Lafayette		8 (combined)^[18]	●	Planning phase
Twin Zephyr successor	Saint Paul	Naperville		TBD		Proposed
Cleveland-Chicago trunk	Cleveland	Elkhart		TBD		Proposed, would supplement the Lake Shore Limited.
Northern Lights Express	Minneapolis	Superior	Duluth	4	●	Local funding met, awaiting federal funding.
Alexandrian successor	Fargo	St. Cloud	Saint Paul	1		Feasibility study is funded. Would supplement the Empire Builder.^[19]
Wolverine extension	Detroit	Chicago	Milwaukee	TBD		Proposed
Illinois Zephyr and Carl Sandburg - Hiawatha Service combined	Quincy	Chicago	Milwaukee	TBD		Proposed
Total				32

Additional frequencies

Route	New weekday round trips	Corridor ID Program	Status
Hiawatha Service	3	●	Planning phase
Borealis	1	●
Wolverine	3	●
Blue Water	1	●
Pere Marquette	2	●
Lincoln Service	1	●
Illini and Saluki	1	●
Total	12

See also

• Chicago Hub Network

References

1. "Book Midwest Train Travel". www.amtrak.com. Amtrak. Retrieved 28 May 2023.
2. (PDF). Rail Passengers Association. 4 March 2023. Archived from the original (PDF) on 31 May 2023. Retrieved 28 May 2023.
3. "Hiawatha Timetable" (PDF). Rail Passengers Association. 4 March 2023. Retrieved 28 May 2023.
4. "Amtrak unveils Siemens Midwest Charger". Railway Age. 28 August 2017. Retrieved 28 May 2023.
5. Johnston, Bob (8 February 2022). "First look: Siemens Venture coaches debut for Amtrak (updated)". Trains. Retrieved 28 May 2023.
6. Corselli, Andrew (28 August 2019). "Two Grants Aim to Improve Amtrak Midwest Network". Railway Age. Retrieved 28 May 2023.
7. Magliari, Marc (28 August 2017). . media.amtrak.com. Amtrak. Archived from the original on 21 October 2017. Retrieved 28 May 2023.
8. "Chicago-Rockford". Amtrak Connects US. Amtrak. Retrieved 1 June 2023.
9. Ingalls, William (July 6, 2023). "Metra chosen as passenger rail service provider from Rockford/Belvidere to Chicago". wrex.com. Retrieved 6 July 2023.
10. Jannene, Jeramey (6 December 2023). "Wisconsin Wins Grants To Study Five New or Expanded Rail Routes". Urban Milwaukee. Retrieved 7 December 2023.
11. "Durbin, Duckworth Announce Funding for 12 Rail Corridors in Illinois". www.durbin.senate.gov. U.S. Senator Dick Durbin of Illinois. 7 December 2023. Retrieved 7 December 2023.
12. "Chicago-Moline-Iowa City". Amtrak Connects US. Amtrak. Retrieved 1 June 2023.
13. Shelley, Tim (21 July 2022). "A Peoria-to-Chicago passenger rail route could cost upwards of $2.5 billion. Here's why leaders are optimistic it'll happen". WCBU Peoria. Retrieved 1 June 2023.
14. Patrick Engineering, Inc. (July 2022). (PDF). City of Peoria. Archived from the original (PDF) on 21 July 2022. Retrieved 1 June 2023.
15. "Chicago-Milwaukee-Green Bay". Amtrak Connects US. Amtrak. Retrieved 1 June 2023.
16. "Chicago-Milwaukee-Madison". Amtrak Connects US. Amtrak. Retrieved 1 June 2023. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |rowspan= ignored (help)
17. "Twin Cities – Milwaukee – Chicago". Amtrak Connects US. Amtrak. Retrieved 1 June 2023.
18. "Chicago-Indianapolis-Cincinnati and Louisville". Amtrak Connects US. Amtrak. Retrieved 1 June 2023.
19. Teigen, Danielle A.; Porter, Barbie (7 June 2023). "Commuter train from Fargo to St. Paul would include additional stops in Detroit Lakes, Staples". Detroit Lakes Tribune. Retrieved 12 June 2023.