City of New Orleans (train)

Amtrak service between Chicago and New Orleans, US

City of New Orleans

The City of New Orleans at the Memphis Central Station in November 2022

Overview
Service type| Inter-city rail
Locale| Central United States
Predecessor| Panama Limited
First service| April 27, 1947 (1947-04-27)
Current operator(s)| Amtrak
Former operator(s)| Illinois Central
Annual ridership| 241,768 (FY 24) 3.4%[a][1]
Route
Termini| Chicago, Illinois
New Orleans, Louisiana
Stops| 17
Distance travelled| 934 miles (1,503 km)
Average journey time| 19 hours, 30 minutes[2]
Service frequency| Daily
Train number(s)| 58, 59
On-board services
Class(es)| Coach Class
First Class Sleeper Service
Disabled access| Train lower level, all stations
Sleeping arrangements|

* Roomette (2 beds)
* Bedroom (2 beds)
* Bedroom Suite (4 beds)
* Accessible Bedroom (2 beds)
* Family Bedroom (4 beds)

Catering facilities| Dining car, Café
Observation facilities| Sightseer lounge car
Baggage facilities| Overhead racks
Technical
Rolling stock| Superliner
Track gauge| 4 ft 8+1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge
Operating speed| 48 mph (77 km/h) (avg.)
79 mph (127 km/h) (top)
Track owner(s)| CN
| Route map

Show interactive map

Legend

|  |  |

|  |

| Empire Builder, Borealis, and

Hiawatha

|  |

| 0 mi

0 km

Chicago |

|  |

|  |

| Switchback at

21st Street interlocking

|  |

|  | Central Station

Closed 1972

|  |

| 25 mi

40 km

Homewood |

|  |

| 57 mi

92 km

Kankakee |

|  |

|  | Gilman

1986–1996

|  |

| 129 mi

208 km

Champaign–Urbana |

|  |

| 174 mi

280 km

Mattoon
|  |

| 201 mi

323 km

Effingham
|  |

|  |

| River Cities

to Kansas City

1984–1993

|  |

| 254 mi

409 km

Centralia
|  |

| 310 mi

499 km

Carbondale |

|  |

|  | Cairo

Closed 1987

|  |

|  |

| IL

Ohio River

|  |

| 407 mi

655 km

Fulton
|  |

|  |

| KY

|  |

| 442 mi

711 km

Newbern
|  |

| 520 mi

837 km

Memphis |

|  |

|  |

| TN

|  |  |  |

|  |

Route prior to 1995

|

|  |  |  |

|  |

Route prior to 1995

|

|  |

|  | Batesville
|  |

|  | Grenada
|  |

|  | Winona
|  |

|  | Durant
|  |

|  | Canton
|  |

| 589 mi

948 km

Marks
|  |

| 644 mi

1036 km

Greenwood
|  |

| 697 mi

1122 km

Yazoo City
|  |

|  |
|  |

| 741 mi

1193 km

Jackson |

|  |

| 777 mi

1250 km

Hazlehurst
|  |

| 797 mi

1283 km

Brookhaven
|  |

| 821 mi

1321 km

McComb
|  |

|  |

| MS

|  |

| 873 mi

1405 km

Hammond
|  |

|  |

Sunset Limited to Los Angeles

|  |

|  |

Crescent to New York

|  |

| 926 mi

1490 km

New Orleans |

= flag stop

|  |  |  |  |  |

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The City of New Orleans is a long-distance passenger train operated by Amtrak in the Central United States between Chicago and New Orleans. The overnight train takes about 191⁄2 hours to complete its 934-mile (1,503 km) route, making major stops in Champaign–Urbana, Carbondale, Memphis, and Jackson as well as in other small towns.

The City of New Orleans was first initiated by the Illinois Central Railroad in 1947 as the daytime complement to the Panama Limited, a night train dating back to 1911. In 1971 both routes were conveyed to Amtrak, which retained only the Panama Limited. In 1981 Amtrak revived the City of New Orleans name for the train, still on an overnight schedule, on the heels of the popular song of the same name by Steve Goodman.

Additional corridor service on the northern segment of the route is provided by the Illini and Saluki between Chicago and Carbondale, Illinois. The City of New Orleans is the only Amtrak train to serve Tennessee.

During fiscal year 2023, the train carried 233,876 passengers, an increase of 50.3% from FY2022.[3] In FY2016, the last year that route-specific revenue data was given, the train had a total revenue of $18,706,915, a 3.7% decrease from FY2015.[4]

## History

[edit]

### Illinois Central

[edit]

See also: Panama Limited

IC #4017, an EMD E7, leads the City of New Orleans at Kankakee, Illinois in August 1964.

The Illinois Central Railroad introduced the original City of New Orleans on April 27, 1947. It was a daytime, all-coach companion to the overnight Panama Limited, which had been all-Pullman for most of its run. EMD E7 diesel locomotives pulled new lightweight Pullman Company coaches. The 921-mile (1,482 km) route, which the City of New Orleans covered in 15 hours 55 minutes, was the longest daytime schedule in the United States.[5][6] The City of New Orleans exchanged St. Louis--New Orleans through cars at Carbondale, Illinois and Louisville--New Orleans cars at Fulton, Kentucky. The average speed of the new train was nearly 60 mph (97 km/h) with a maximum of 100 mph (160 km/h); a result of the largely flat route of the Illinois Central along the Mississippi River.[7][8] By October 25, 1959, the timetable had lengthened to 16 hours 30 minutes.[9] The train remained popular throughout the 1960s and gained ex-Missouri Pacific Railroad dome coaches in 1967.[7]

### Amtrak

[edit]

City of New Orleans, October 2005

When Amtrak assumed operation of U.S. passenger train service on May 1, 1971, it dropped the Panama Limited in favor of retaining the City of New Orleans on the traditional daytime schedule. At that time the City of New Orleans was one of four trains that called at Chicago's Central Station, which was originally Illinois Central's terminal in Chicago. All Amtrak trains were consolidated to Union Station by March 1972.[10] Inauspiciously, the City of New Orleans was involved in Amtrak's first fatal derailment on June 10, near Salem, Illinois. Because this train made no connections with other trains at either New Orleans or Chicago, Amtrak moved the train to an overnight schedule on November 14, 1971, and renamed it the Panama Limited.[11]

In February 1981, Amtrak restored the City of New Orleans name while retaining the overnight schedule; Amtrak hoped to capitalize on the popularity of the song written by Steve Goodman and recorded in 1972 by Arlo Guthrie.[12] A Kansas City section, the River Cities, began operation on April 29, 1984. It separated from the City of New Orleans at Centralia, Illinois (later Carbondale) and ran to Kansas City via St. Louis. This section ended on November 4, 1994.[13] The northbound City of New Orleans began stopping at Gilman, Illinois, on October 26, 1986. Gilman had last seen service in 1971; the Illini stopped there as well. Service to Cairo, Illinois, south of Carbondale, ended on October 25, 1987.[14]

Amtrak operated the City of New Orleans reliably through the 1980s and into the 1990s; in 1992, the City of New Orleans had the highest on-time performance rate of all Amtrak services at 87%.[15] Nevertheless, on-board service had declined; Trains magazine editor J. David Ingles called the train "Amtrak's least-glamorous long-distance train".[16] On March 3, 1994, new Superliner cars replaced the single-level cars. Real dining service[vague] returned; by the early 1990s an Amfleet dinette had doubled with the lounge car.[17]

In 1995 the City of New Orleans shifted from the Grenada District (blue) to the Yazoo District (red) in northern Mississippi.

On September 10, 1995, the train was rerouted between Memphis and Jackson due to the Illinois Central's desire to abandon the original route (the Grenada District) in favor of the newer and flatter Yazoo District. Five towns in the Mississippi Delta lost service–Batesville, Grenada, Winona, Durant, and Canton.[18]

On March 15, 1999, the City of New Orleans collided with a flatbed semi-trailer near Bourbonnais. Of the 217 people aboard the train, eleven people were killed in the Bourbonnais train accident. The fourth car, where the fatalities occurred, was engulfed in flames following the collision at the crossing.[19]

Because of damage in Mississippi and Louisiana due to Hurricane Katrina, Amtrak was forced in late August 2005 to truncate the City of New Orleans at Memphis, Tennessee. Service was first restored as far south as Hammond, Louisiana, and on October 8, 2005, Amtrak resumed service to New Orleans.[20] In December 2005 Arlo Guthrie, who helped popularize the song "City of New Orleans", led a fundraiser aboard the City of New Orleans and at several stops along the train's route to help in the hurricane recovery efforts.[21][22]

The train began stopping at Marks, Mississippi, on April 4, 2018, following the completion of a new station.[23]

Starting October 1, 2019, traditional dining car services were removed and replaced with a reduced menu of 'Flexible Dining' options.[24]

From October 1, 2020, to May 31, 2021, daily service was reduced to three trains per week due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[25][26]

#### Proposed expansion

[edit]

In 2016, Amtrak released a study on bringing passenger rail to the Gulf Coast that recommended extending the City of New Orleans to Orlando, Florida along trackage once traversed by the Sunset Limited but unserved since Hurricane Katrina.[27]

The Chicago Region Environmental and Transportation Efficiency Program (CREATE) is in the preliminary design phase for the Grand Crossing Project. This project will reroute the Illini, Saluki, and City of New Orleans trains from CN's tracks to Norfolk Southern's Chicago Line in the Greater Grand Crossing neighborhood in Chicago. This will eliminate a time-consuming switchback on the St. Charles Air Line into Chicago Union Station.[28]

In 2023, Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport began seeking federal funding for a people mover linking the airport to a new station serving the planned New Orleans–Baton Rouge passenger rail service, as well as the City of New Orleans.[29]

## Route details

[edit]

City of New Orleans route map

The City of New Orleans uses rail lines that were once part of the Illinois Central Railroad system, and are now owned by the Canadian National Railway (CN):

* St. Charles Air Line Railroad (IC), Chicago Union Station to the shore of Lake Michigan, now CN
* Illinois Central Railroad Chicago Branch and main line, Chicago to Cairo, Illinois, now CN
* Chicago, St. Louis and New Orleans Railroad (IC), Cairo to Fulton, Kentucky, now CN
* Chesapeake, Ohio and Southwestern Railroad (IC), Fulton to Memphis, Tennessee, now CN
* Yazoo and Mississippi Valley Railroad (IC), Memphis to Jackson, Mississippi, now CN
* Chicago, St. Louis and New Orleans Railroad (IC), Jackson to New Orleans, Louisiana, now CN

As of 2023[update], the southbound City of New Orleans leaves Chicago at 8 p.m.,[30] traveling overnight through southern Illinois and Kentucky for arrival at breakfast time the following morning in Memphis, lunchtime in Jackson, and mid-afternoon in New Orleans. Northbound trains leave New Orleans in early afternoon, arriving in Jackson in early evening, then traveling through Tennessee and southern Illinois overnight before arriving in Champaign-Urbana at breakfast time the following morning and Chicago just after rush hour.

The train is the sole Amtrak service in Tennessee, making stops at Memphis and Newbern.

In 2023, the City of New Orleans on-time performance was 75%.[31]

### Stations

[edit]

Amtrak City of New Orleans stations  State/Province  | City  | Station

|
|

Illinois | Chicago | Chicago Union
Homewood | Homewood
Kankakee | Kankakee
Champaign | Champaign–Urbana
Mattoon | Mattoon
Effingham | Effingham
Centralia | Centralia
Carbondale | Carbondale
Kentucky | Fulton | Fulton
Tennessee | Newbern | Newbern–Dyersburg
Memphis | Memphis Central
Mississippi | Marks | Marks
Greenwood | Greenwood
Yazoo City | Yazoo City
Jackson | Jackson
Hazlehurst | Hazlehurst
Brookhaven | Brookhaven
McComb | McComb
Louisiana | Hammond | Hammond
New Orleans | New Orleans

## Equipment

[edit]

A typical City of New Orleans consist includes:

* GE Genesis/Siemens ALC-42 locomotive[32]
* Viewliner Baggage car
* Superliner Transition-sleeper
* Superliner Sleeper
* Superliner Diner-Lounge
* Superliner Sightseer Lounge
* Superliner Coach
* Superliner Coach
* Superliner Coach-baggage

## Folk song

[edit]

Main article: City of New Orleans (song)

"City of New Orleans" is a folk song written and first performed by Steve Goodman in 1970 and subsequently recorded by Arlo Guthrie in 1972. Many other artists, notably Willie Nelson, Johnny Cash, John Denver (with slightly different lyrics), Judy Collins, and Jerry Reed have also recorded it. The song lyrics trace the trail of the train route in mourning the "...disappearin' railroad blues...."

Tom Rush performed and recorded a folk song (based on some Bukka White songs) about the Panama Limited, the overnight train along the same route as the City of New Orleans.

## See also

[edit]

* Passenger train service on the Illinois Central Railroad

## References

[edit]

1. ^ "Amtrak Fiscal Year 2024 Ridership" (PDF). Amtrak. December 3, 2024.
2. ^ "Amtrak Timetable Results". www.amtrak.com. Retrieved December 20, 2021.
3. ^ "Amtrak FY23 Ridership" (PDF).
4. ^ "Amtrak FY16 Ridership & Revenue" (PDF).
5. ^ Murray 2006, p. 91
6. ^ Sanders 2006, p. 92
7. ^ a b Schafer & Welsh 2002, p. 117
8. ^ Murray 2006, p. 111
9. ^ Downey 2007, p. 35
10. ^ Kelly, John. "Amtrak's beginnings". Classic Trains. Kalmbach Publishing. Archived from the original on June 2, 2008. Retrieved July 11, 2007.
11. ^ Sanders 2006, p. 94
12. ^ Sanders 2006, p. 96
13. ^ Sanders 2006, pp. 96–97
14. ^ Sanders 2006, p. 105
15. ^ "NARP: December 1992 Hotlines". National Association of Rail Passengers. December 4, 1992. Archived from the original on September 28, 2007. Retrieved July 11, 2007.
16. ^ Sanders 2006, p. 97
17. ^ Sanders 2006, p. 98
18. ^ Sanders 2006, pp. 99, 105
19. ^ National Transportation Safety Board (February 5, 2002). "Railroad accident report: Collision of National Railroad Passenger Corporation (Amtrak) train 59 with a loaded truck-semitrailer combination at a highway/rail grade crossing in Bourbonnais, Illinois, March 15, 1999" (PDF). Retrieved January 27, 2005.
20. ^ "City of New Orleans rolls into Big Easy". NBC News. October 8, 2005. Archived from the original on October 20, 2014. Retrieved October 9, 2006.
21. ^ Marcus, Richard (September 21, 2005). "Arlo Guthrie's City of New Orleans Benefit". Archived from the original on April 10, 2007. Retrieved July 12, 2007.
22. ^ Lydersen, Kari (December 17, 2005). "Storied Train Used As Vehicle For Giving". The Washington Post. Retrieved July 12, 2007.
23. ^ "Mississippi Delta town welcomes new Amtrak train stop". WREG-TV. May 5, 2018. Retrieved May 6, 2018.
24. ^ "AMTRAK INTRODUCES ENHANCED MENU AND FLEXIBLE DINING EXPERIENCE ON FIVE ROUTES" (Press release). Amtrak. September 2019.
25. ^ Lazo, Luz (June 16, 2020). "Amtrak is ending daily service to hundreds of stations. Blame the coronavirus pandemic, the railroad says". Washington Post. Retrieved June 5, 2021.
26. ^ Jorgenson, Dawn (May 27, 2021). "Amtrak is resuming a dozen long-distance trips, all across the country". KSAT. Retrieved June 5, 2021.
27. ^ Group, Sinclair Broadcast (March 26, 2016). "Amtrak passenger service on track for rail service across Gulf Coast". WEAR. Retrieved March 30, 2016. `{{cite web}}`: `|last=` has generic name (help)
28. ^ "Grand Crossing Flyover". CREATE Program. Retrieved May 25, 2021.
29. ^ Johnston, Bob (September 12, 2023). "Gulf Coast service awaits Mobile station track, PTC gap closure". Trains. Retrieved September 18, 2023.
30. ^ "Amtrak Tickets, Schedules and Train Routes". www.amtrak.com. Retrieved July 18, 2022.
31. ^ Measuring On-Time Performance Across Our Network https://www.amtrak.com/on-time-performance
32. ^ Ruppert, Daniel P. (February 3, 2023). "Update on Acquisitions And Capital Programs" (PDF). PRIIA Section 305 Next Generation Corridor Equipment Pool Committee (NGEC) 13th Annual Meeting. Next Generation Corridor Equipment Pool Committee.

* Downey, Clifford J. (2007). Chicago and the Illinois Central Railroad. Images of rail. Charleston, South Carolina: Arcadia Publishing. ISBN 978-0-7385-5074-9.
* Johnston, Bob (January 1996). "Exiled to the Delta". Trains.
* Murray, Tom (2006). Illinois Central Railroad. Saint Paul, Minnesota: Voyageur Press. ISBN 978-0-7603-2254-3.
* Sanders, Craig (2006). Amtrak in the Heartland. Bloomington, Indiana: Indiana University Press. ISBN 978-0-253-34705-3.
* Schafer, Mike (June 1991). "Amtrak's atlas". Trains.
* Schafer, Mike; Welsh, Joe (2002). Streamliners: History of a Railroad Icon. Saint Paul, MN: MBI. ISBN 0-7603-1371-7. OCLC 51069308.

## Notes

[edit]

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

## External links

[edit]

* Media related to City of New Orleans at Wikimedia Commons
* City of New Orleans – Amtrak

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Amtrak routes

Long
distance|

| West|

* California Zephyr
* Coast Starlight
* Empire Builder
* Southwest Chief
* Sunset Limited
* Texas Eagle

|

East|

* Auto Train
* Cardinal
* City of New Orleans
* Crescent
* Floridian
* Lake Shore Limited
* Palmetto

| Silver Service|

* Silver Meteor

|

Corridor|

| West|

* Amtrak Cascades
* Heartland Flyer
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Amtrak California|

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Midwest|

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Illinois Service|

* Illini and Saluki
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Michigan Services|

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East|

* Downeaster
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| Northeast Corridor|

* Acela
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|

Knowledge Corridor|

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Keystone Corridor|

* Keystone Service
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NC By Train|

* Carolinian
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Named trains of the Illinois Central Railroad

* Chickasaw
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* City of New Orleans
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* Hawkeye
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* Panama Limited
* Planter
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* Southern Express
* Southwestern Limited

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