All Aboard: Amtrak Will Add Passenger Train Service Between Chicago and Twin Cities
11/27/2023
Image Source: Wisconsin Department of Transportation
The Wisconsin Department of Transportation announced this week that the state will be the center of additional Amtrak service coming in 2024, connecting Chicago to the Twin Cities, with multiple stops in between. With more meetings back on the books in 2024, travel for midday meetings could get shorter and smoother.
With service expected to begin in spring 2024, the Twin Cities-Milwaukee-Chicago (TCMC) Intercity Passenger Rail Project will add a second daily round-trip passenger train on the 411-mile corridor between Chicago and the Twin Cities.
The new service, which would run through Wisconsin Dells and Portage and connect to Madison, complements the existing Empire Builder schedule and provides travel flexibility with both a morning and midday departure from Chicago and St. Paul, according to the WisDOT web site.
The $53-million project — a result of partnership among the Federal Railroad Administration, the state departments of transportation, host railroads and Amtrak — is projected to improve mobility between the Midwest hubs of St. Paul, La Crosse, Milwaukee and Chicago.
WisDOT explains that the additional daily round-trip also will provide more reliable service with better on-time performance, “especially important for business and student travel,” and more convenient travel times for shorter, regional trips.
More details, such as schedules and an official name, are expected once partnership agreements have been finalized.
