Both Chicago-to-Quincy trains to be in service on Saturday

QUINCY — Quincy Mayor Mike Troup said late Thursday afternoon he has learned both roundtrips for Amtrak trains between Chicago and Quincy will be in service on Saturday.

Troup said he learned from the Amtrak government communications group and the staff of U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin about the restoration of service.

Amtrak announced July 29 that Carl Sandburg Train 381, from Chicago to Quincy in the morning, and Carl Sandburg Train 382, from Quincy to Chicago in the evening, would be canceled from July 30 to Aug. 6. The trains were replaced with chartered buses. Amtrak announced on its Twitter (or X) feed on Wednesday afternoon that the Carl Sandburg trains were canceled from Aug. 7 to Aug. 14.

A press release issued Thursday night by Amtrak Corporate Communications said a transfer of locomotives from within the Amtrak network will restore service to the twice-daily corridor between Quincy and Chicago.

Durbin said in a Wednesday letter to Amtrak CEO Stephen Gardner that he is frustrated and concerned with how the suspension of the Carl Sandburg train has been handled. He was happier in a statement made in the Amtrak release.

“While ensuring locomotives can receive proper, routine maintenance is essential, I’m relieved that Amtrak answered my call and is swiftly restoring full service for the Quincy-Chicago corridor,” said Durbin.

“We always appreciate the senator’s strong interest in the performance of all our services in Illinois,” Gardner said.

This temporary service suspension is the result of a shortage of available state-owned locomotives. Amtrak is working closely with the Illinois Department of Transportation and the manufacturer to encourage streamlining of the process for making repairs to bring more of that fleet back into service.

Illinois Zephyr Trains 380 and 383, which leave Quincy in the morning and Chicago in the early evening, have continued to operate. Other Illinois communities along this route are Macomb, Galesburg, Kewanee, Princeton, Mendota, Plano, Naperville and La Grange.