Carl Sandburg (train)

Carl Sandburg

The Carl Sandburg on the BNSF Chicago Subdivision.
Overview
Service type Inter-city rail
Locale Illinois
First service October 30, 2006
Current operator(s) Amtrak
Route
Start Chicago, Illinois
Stops 8
End Quincy, Illinois
Distance travelled 258 miles (415 km)
Average journey time 4 hours 28 minutes
Service frequency Daily
Train number(s) 381, 382
Technical
Track gauge 4 ft 8 1⁄2 in (1,435 mm)
Track owner(s) BNSF
Route map
Legend
 Dist. Station
0 mi 
0 km 
 Chicago
14 mi 
23 km 
 La Grange
28 mi 
45 km 
 Naperville
DuPage River
Fox River
52 mi 
84 km 
 Plano
83 mi 
134 km 
 Mendota
104 mi 
167 km 
 Princeton
Hennepin Canal
131 mi 
211 km 
 Kewanee
162 mi 
261 km 
 Galesburg
202 mi 
325 km 
 Macomb
258 mi 
415 km 
 Quincy
BNSF

The Carl Sandburg is a 258-mile (415 km) passenger train route operated by Amtrak that runs between Chicago and Quincy, Illinois. This train began operation on October 30, 2006 and is an addition to the existing Illinois Service rail network created in 1971 and partially funded by the Illinois Department of Transportation. Between Chicago and Galesburg, this train service uses the same triple track (old CB&Q) as three other Amtrak routes: the California Zephyr, the Southwest Chief and the Illinois Zephyr. The Galesburg to Quincy route (old CB&Q Quincy/Hannibal main line via Macomb) is served by the Carl Sandburg and the Illinois Zephyr.

During fiscal year 2011, both the Illinois Zephyr and Carl Sandburg carried a combined 225,000 passengers, a 6.9% increase over fiscal year 2010.[1] The two trains had a total revenue of $5,580,227 in fiscal year 2011, a 10.6% increase over fiscal year 2010.[1]

Overview

The Carl Sandburg is an outgrowth of the Illinois Zephyr, which, along with the rest of the Illinois Service trains, posted record ridership levels in the 2005-2006 fiscal year. There was also strong support from the communities through which the Illinois Zephyr runs.

The Carl Sandburg traces its heritage to the Kansas City Zephyr and American Royal Zephyr, passenger train routes between Kansas City and Chicago along these routes which were operated by the Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad from 1953 until 1968 and 1971 respectively. The Chicago to Quincy route is part of the Midwest Regional Rail Initiative, which calls for an eventual upgrade of service from the former one daily round trip to four or more daily round trips.[2] The addition of the Carl Sandburg was the first step in this Midwest Regional Rail Initiative service upgrade. With its addition, the train service schedule from western Illinois to Chicago has now been restored to CB&Q's 1968 levels.

The train's name honors Carl Sandburg, whose birthplace in Galesburg, Illinois lies just a few hundred feet from this train's route. The scheduled travel time from Chicago to Quincy via the Carl Sandburg is approximately 4 hours, 15 minutes.

During 2010, Amtrak contacted officials from communities in northeastern Missouri and western Illinois regarding the feasibility of extending the Illinois Zephyr and Carl Sandburg southwards to Hannibal and St. Louis, Missouri. While a study for the expansion was not conducted, the project could be funded with a mix of federal and state money.[3]

Amtrak Carl Sandburg (interactive map)

Station stops

State Town/City Station Connections
IllinoisChicagoChicago Union StationAmtrak: Blue Water, Capitol Limited, Cardinal, California Zephyr, City of New Orleans, Empire Builder, Hiawatha Service, Hoosier State, Illini, Illinois Zephyr, Lake Shore Limited, Lincoln Service, Pere Marquette, Saluki, Southwest Chief, Texas Eagle, Wolverine, Thruway Motorcoach
CTA Buses: 1, 7, 14, 19, 20, X20, X28, 56, 60, 120, 121, 122, 123, 124, 125, 126, 128, 129, 130, 151, 156, 157, 192
Megabus: M1, M2, M3, M4, M5, M6, M7
Metra: North Central Service, Milwaukee District/North Line, Milwaukee District/West Line, BNSF Railway Line, Heritage Corridor, SouthWest Service
La GrangeLa GrangeAmtrak: Illinois Zephyr
Metra: BNSF Railway Line
Pace: 302, 304, 330
NapervilleNapervilleAmtrak: California Zephyr, Illinois Zephyr, Southwest Chief
Metra: BNSF Railway Line
Pace: 530, 676, 677, 678, 680, 681, 682, 683, 684, 685, 686, 687, 688, 689, 714, 781
PlanoPlanoAmtrak: Illinois Zephyr
MendotaMendotaAmtrak: Illinois Zephyr, Southwest Chief
PrincetonPrincetonAmtrak: California Zephyr, Illinois Zephyr, Southwest Chief
KewaneeKewaneeAmtrak: Illinois Zephyr
GalesburgGalesburgAmtrak: California Zephyr, Illinois Zephyr, Southwest Chief
Burlington Trailways
Galesburg Bus Transit: Route 2.
MacombMacombAmtrak: Illinois Zephyr
Go West Transit: 5, 10, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19
QuincyQuincyAmtrak: Illinois Zephyr
Quincy Transit Lines: Route 4

Consist

Today, a normal Amtrak Carl Sandburg consists of:[4]

References

Route map: Bing / Google

  1. 1 2 "Amtrak Ridership Rolls Up Best-Ever Records" (PDF). Amtrak. 13 October 2011. Retrieved 7 February 2012.
  2. ↑ "Our Proposal: Link The Entire State By 2015". Midwest High Speed Rail Association. 2007. Archived from the original on 2007-05-24. Retrieved 2007-07-09.
  3. ↑ "Hannibal rails for Amtrak". ConnectTristates.com. 18 October 2010. Retrieved 19 October 2010.
  4. ↑ "ILLINOIS ZEPHYR CARL SANDBURG". TrainWeb. Retrieved 19 October 2010.

External links

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