Pets Can Ride Amtrak in Illinois Test Project

Pets can now ride Amtrak trains in Illinois as part of a pilot program being conducted in cooperation with the Illinois Department of Transportation

Dogs and cats will be permitted aboard the Illinois Zephyr and Carl Sandburg, which both operate between Chicago and Quincy, Ill.

Animals cannot weight more than 20 pounds each, advance registration is required and there will be a $25 handling fee will be charged.

“Amtrak is supportive of accommodating pets on trains, and through direct collaboration with the Illinois Department of Transportation and a working group led by U.S. Rep. Jeff Denham of California, we are optimistic a plan can be reached to address the needs and concerns of all our passengers,” said Amtrak President and CEO Joe Boardman.

The pilot will run between May 5 and Nov. 2.

Amtrak Dome Car to Operate on Illinois Zephyr

Amtrak’s great dome car will operate on the Illinois Zephyr  from Nov. 5-22.

No. 10031 is the only dome car left in Amtrak’s fleet. It will operate eastbound from Quincy on No. 380, which departs at 6:12 a.m., and westbound on No. 383, which departs Chicago at 5:55 p.m.
There will be no additional charge to ride in the car and seating is unreserved.

The great dome was built by the Budd Co. in 1955 as Great Northern No. 1391, one of six full-length domes used on the Chicago-Seattle/Portland Empire Builder operated by GN in partnership with the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy and Spokane, Portland & Seattle Railway.

This November the car will traverse the original route of the Empire Builder from Chicago to Aurora.

“The car features an upper level with windows on all sides to provide passengers with panoramic views of the changing colors of the trees, farmers in their fields and the picturesque communities along the route, including LaGrange, Naperville, Plano, Mendota, Princeton, Kewanee, Galesburg and Macomb,” Amtrak said in a news release.

Acquired by Amtrak in 1971, the car once carried the name Ocean View.

Amtrak said the Illinois Zephyr and its counterpart, the Carl Sandburg (Nos. 381 & 382) carried more than 261,000 passengers in fiscal year 2013, which ended on Sept. 30.