| San Francisco Chief | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 EMD F7s lead the San Francisco Chief west of Hercules, California, in April 1971, just prior to discontinuance. Note the mixture of single-level and Hi-Level equipment. | |||||
| Overview | |||||
| Service type | Inter-city rail | ||||
| Status | Discontinued | ||||
| Locale | Western United States | ||||
| Predecessor | California Limited, Scout | ||||
| First service | June 6, 1954 | ||||
| Last service | April 30, 1971 | ||||
| Former operator(s) | Atchison, Topeka, and Santa Fe Railway | ||||
| Route | |||||
| Termini | Chicago, Illinois Richmond, California (1965) Oakland, California (1954) | ||||
| Stops | 59 (westbound) 64 (eastbound) | ||||
| Average journey time | 48 hours, 45 minutes (westbound) 47 hours, 49 minutes (eastbound) | ||||
| Service frequency | Daily | ||||
| Train number(s) | 1 and 2 | ||||
| On-board services | |||||
| Seating arrangements | Hi-Level Chair Cars Chair Cars | ||||
| Sleeping arrangements | Roomettes Double Bedrooms Compartments | ||||
| Catering facilities | Lounge Diner | ||||
| Observation facilities | Big Dome Lounge Car | ||||
| Technical | |||||
| Rolling stock | Hi-Level | ||||
| Track gauge | 1,435 mm (4 ft 8+1⁄2 in) | ||||
| Operating speed | 52.0 mph (83.7 km/h) (westbound) 52.9 mph (85.1 km/h) (eastbound) | ||||
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The San Francisco Chief was a streamlined passenger train on the Atchison, Topeka, and Santa Fe Railway ("Santa Fe") between Chicago and the San Francisco Bay Area. It ran from 1954 until 1971. The San Francisco Chief was the last new streamliner introduced by the Santa Fe, its first full train between Chicago and the Bay, the only Chicago–Bay Area train running over just one railroad, and at 2,555 miles (4,112 km) the longest run in the country on one railroad. The San Francisco Chief was one of many trains discontinued when Amtrak began operations in 1971.