City of New Orleans (train)

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	233,876 (FY23) 50.3%[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 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	Lounge car
Baggage facilities	Overhead racks
Technical
Rolling stock	GE Genesis Siemens Charger 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 KY Ohio River 407 mi 655 km Fulton KY TN 442 mi 711 km Newbern 520 mi 837 km Memphis TN MS                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 LA 873 mi 1405 km Hammond Sunset Limited to Los Angeles Crescent to New York 926 mi 1490 km New Orleans = flag stop This diagram: view talk edit Show route diagram map

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]

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