River Cities (train)

River Cities

Overview
Service type	Inter-city rail
Status	Discontinued
Locale	Midwestern United States
First service	April 29, 1984
Last service	November 4, 1993
Former operator(s)	Amtrak
Route
Start	Kansas City, Missouri
Stops	25
End	New Orleans, Louisiana
Distance travelled	1,014 miles (1,632 km)
Average journey time	22 hours
Service frequency	Daily
Train number(s)	358, 359
On-board services
Class(es)	Reserved coach
Catering facilities	On-board cafe (Kansas City—St. Louis) Diner-lounge (Carbondale—New Orleans)
Observation facilities	Dome lounge (Carbondale—New Orleans)
Technical
Track gauge	4 ft 8 ^1⁄2 in (1,435 mm)
Route map Legend continued as Kansas City Mule 0 mi St. Louis 12 mi 19 km Belleville City of New Orleans to Chicago 61 mi 98 km Centralia 81 mi 130 km Du Quoin 117 mi 188 km Carbondale continued as City of New Orleans

The River Cities was a passenger train operated by Amtrak between Kansas City, Missouri, and New Orleans, Louisiana, via St. Louis, Missouri. The train was combined with the City of New Orleans as far north as Carbondale, Illinois, where its cars were uncoupled. A locomotive was coupled and the train would proceed 117 miles (188 km) to St. Louis, where additional cars were attached to form the westbound Kansas City Mule. For southbound trains the procedure was reversed.

Amtrak ended the service on November 4, 1993, as part of national cost-cutting measures, and instituted Thruway Motorcoach service between St. Louis and Centralia, Illinois. The only city to permanently lose service was Belleville, Illinois.^[1][2]

References

1. "Amtrak to Cut Back Service On 3 Lines to Save $10 Million". New York Times. October 22, 1993. Retrieved October 25, 2009.
2. "NARP: November 1993 Hotlines". National Association of Railroad Passengers. Retrieved October 25, 2009.

External links

• 1993 timetable