Illinois Zephyr and Carl Sandburg
The eastbound Illinois Zephyr arriving at Princeton in 2017
Overview
Service typeInter-city rail
StatusPartially operating
LocaleIllinois
PredecessorAmerican Royal Zephyr
Kansas City Zephyr
First service
  • November 14, 1971 (1971-11-14) (Illinois Zephyr)
  • October 30, 2006 (2006-10-30) (Carl Sandburg)
Current operator(s)Amtrak
Annual ridership114,521 (FY23) Decrease -14.7%[lower-alpha 1][1]
Route
TerminiChicago, Illinois
Quincy, Illinois
Stops8
Distance travelled258 miles (415 km)
Average journey time4 hours, 21 minutes[2]
Service frequencyTwo daily round trips
Train number(s)380-383
On-board services
Class(es)Reserved Coach and Business Class
Seating arrangementsAirline-style coach seating
Catering facilitiesOn-board café
Technical
Track gauge4 ft 8+1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge
Track owner(s)BNSF
Route map
0 mi
 Chicago
Metra
14 mi
23 km
 La Grange
Metra
28 mi
45 km
 Naperville
Metra
DuPage River
38 mi
61 km
 Aurora
Bypassed 1983
Metra
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
Bus interchange
California Zephyr to Emeryville
Southwest Chief to Los Angeles
202 mi
325 km
 Macomb
258 mi
415 km
 Quincy
Illinois
Missouri
Mississippi River
 West Quincy
Closed 1994

The Illinois Zephyr and Carl Sandburg are a pair of passenger trains operated by Amtrak on a 258-mile (415 km) route between Chicago and Quincy, Illinois. As Illinois Service trains, they are partially funded by the Illinois Department of Transportation. Between Chicago and Galesburg, Illinois, the trains share their route with the California Zephyr and Southwest Chief; the remainder of the route (Galesburg–Quincy) is served exclusively by the Illinois Zephyr/Carl Sandburg.

The Illinois Zephyr is the longest continuously operated state-sponsored train, having started in November 1971.[3]: 241  The Carl Sandburg was added as the route's second daily round trip in 2006.

During fiscal year 2021, the Illinois Zephyr and Carl Sandburg carried a combined 78,200 passengers, a 22% decrease over fiscal year 2020.[4] The two trains had a total revenue of $10.5 million in fiscal year 2021, a 9.5% decrease over fiscal year 2014.[4]

History

Postcards of the Kansas City Zephyr and American Royal Zephyr, predecessors to the Illinois Zephyr

The initial train route between Quincy and Chicago first opened as a part of three independent railroads in 1855. The portion of track between Quincy and Galesburg was owned by the Northern Cross Railroad, led by Nehemiah Bushnell, and was completed in 1854. This connected with the Central Military Tract Road between Galesburg and Mendota, Illinois. At Mendota, it connected with the Chicago and Aurora Railroad to complete the route to Chicago.[5] These three railroads eventually merged into the Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad.

The Illinois Zephyr is a descendant of the Kansas City Zephyr and American Royal Zephyr passenger train routes operated by the Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad from 1953 until 1968 and 1971, respectively. The state of Illinois intervened in 1971 at the request of Quincy College (now Quincy University), Western Illinois University, and residents of western Illinois. This became part of the "Illinois Service" initiative in 1971 and is partially funded by the Illinois Department of Transportation.[3]: 242  Service on the Illinois Zephyr began on November 14, 1971, between Chicago and West Quincy, Missouri. The name "Zephyr" is preserved in the current name of the line. Today the Illinois Zephyr enjoys strong support from the communities it passes through, and is one of the most successful Amtrak routes.[6]

Service to Plano began on April 30, 1972. Service to Quincy proper began on April 24, 1983, in response to the West Quincy station being frequently cut off by flooding. The suburban stop at Aurora, was discontinued on April 28, 1985, in favor of Naperville.[3]: 251–252  Passenger service was cut back to Quincy on May 1, 1994, after a major flood in 1993 destroyed the original station at West Quincy. The Illinois Zephyr and the Carl Sandburg trainsets continue to cross the Mississippi River to layover at the BNSF West Quincy railyard for servicing between runs.

On October 30, 2006, a second round trip, the Carl Sandburg was added as part of the Midwest Regional Rail Initiative. The train's name honors the famed and Pulitzer-winning writer Carl Sandburg, whose birthplace in Galesburg, Illinois lies just a few hundred feet from this train's route. The morning westbound/evening eastbound schedule complements the opposite morning eastbound/evening westbound schedule of the Illinois Zephyr.

Starting November 16, 2022, Amtrak began substituting the morning runs of the Illinois Zephyr (train 380) and Carl Sandburg (train 381) with Amtrak Thruway buses due to staffing shortages at Amtrak's Quincy crew base. The suspension lasted until January 17, 2023.[7][8]

Proposed extension

During 2010, Amtrak contacted officials from communities in northeastern Missouri and western Illinois regarding the feasibility of extending the routes from Quincy to the Missouri cities of Hannibal and St. Louis. Without any funding, though, no formal planning or studies were done for the extension.[9]

Plans for a Hannibal extension were revived in late 2021, when a coalition of political, business, and transportation leaders was formed. A committee will investigate potential station locations in downtown Hannibal (including the Y Men’s Pavilion), discuss surrounding mobility issues (including parking, walkability, and flooding), and work to find funding for planning and studies. The committee, which will be soliciting input from the public, held its first meeting January 2022.[10]

The Quincy–Hannibal route appeared in the 2022 Missouri State Freight and Rail Plan as a potential long-term passenger corridor.[11] In 2023 the Missouri Department of Transportation applied for federal funding to study the route under the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act.[12]

Stops

Amtrak Illinois Zephyr / Carl Sandburg route (interactive map)

The entire route is in Illinois.

Town/City Station Connections
ChicagoChicago
Union Station
La GrangeLa Grange
NapervilleNaperville
PlanoPlanoBus interchange KAT (dial-a-ride)
MendotaMendota
PrincetonPrinceton
KewaneeKewaneeBus interchange Henry County Public Transportation (dial-a-ride)
GalesburgGalesburg
MacombMacombBus interchange Go West Transit
QuincyQuincyBus interchange Quincy Transit Lines

Ridership

Fiscal YearRidership%±
2012 232,592 —
2013 228,722 -1.7%
2014 214,951 -6%
2015 208,961 -2.8%
2016 202,407 -3.1%
2017 204,148 0.9%
2018 191,612 -6.1%
2019 187,231 -2.3%
2020 100,286 -46.4%
2021 78,179 -22%
2022 134,235 71.7%
Source: Amtrak[13]

Rolling stock

A typical Carl Sandburg in 2010

A normal Amtrak Illinois Zephyr or Carl Sandburg consists of:[14][15]

References

  1. ↑ "Amtrak Fiscal Year 2023 Ridership" (PDF). Amtrak. November 27, 2023. Retrieved November 30, 2023.
  2. ↑ "Amtrak Timetable Results". www.amtrak.com. Retrieved December 20, 2021.
  3. 1 2 3 Sanders, Craig (2006). Amtrak in the Heartland. Bloomington, Indiana: Indiana University Press. ISBN 978-0-253-34705-3.
  4. 1 2 "Amtrak FY15 Ridership & Revenue" (PDF). Amtrak. November 5, 2015. Retrieved November 30, 2016.
  5. ↑ "Plank Road Meeting at Clayton". The Quincy Whig. January 23, 1854. p. 1.
  6. ↑ Gray, Jessica (February 24, 2007). "More climb aboard". BCRNews.com. Retrieved July 17, 2007.
  7. ↑ "Amtrak cancels 2 Quincy trains". KHQA. November 16, 2022. Retrieved December 1, 2022.
  8. ↑ "Amtrak cancels morning Illinois Zephyr, Carl Sandburg". Trains. November 17, 2022. Retrieved December 1, 2022.
  9. ↑ "Hannibal rails for Amtrak". ConnectTristates.com. October 18, 2010. Retrieved October 19, 2010.
  10. ↑ Edlund, Clare (January 4, 2022). "Hannibal coalition works to attract downtown Amtrak station". WGEM. Retrieved January 24, 2022.
  11. ↑ "2022 Missouri State Freight and Rail Plan" (PDF). Missouri Department of Transportation. p. 58. Retrieved September 19, 2023.
  12. ↑ Collison, Kevin (September 18, 2023). "MoDOT Seeks New Amtrak Service from KC to Springfield, St. Joe, STL". CitySceneKC. Retrieved September 19, 2023.
  13. ↑
  14. ↑ "ILLINOIS ZEPHYR CARL SANDBURG". TrainWeb. Retrieved October 19, 2010.
  15. ↑ "Amtrak touts new locomotives for local passengers". The Whig. Retrieved November 14, 2017.

Notes

  1. ↑ Amtrak's Fiscal Year (FY) runs from October 1 of the prior year to September 30 of the named year.
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