![Amtrak 427 is eastbound at Battle Creek. 2006 [Dale Berry photo]](/images/MIRR/AmtrakWolverine(427)EBAtBattleCreekMI042106-7[DaleBerry].jpg "Amtrak 427 is eastbound at Battle Creek. 2006 [Dale Berry photo]")
Amtrak - The National Railroad Passenger Corporation
Amtrak is a federally owned railroad which provides national passenger train service in the United States. Amtrak was created in 1971 to relieve most railroads from being required to continue to provide passenger service. In return, the railroads agreed to allow Amtrak to use its tracks.
In Michigan, Amtrak provides passenger service on three lines. It operates three round trips each day between Pontiac via Detroit to Chicago, Illinois (CN/Conrail/Amtrak/NS). The second route has a single round trip each day between Port Huron and Chicago, via Battle Creek (CN/Amtrak/NS). The third route has a single round trip each day between Grand Rapids and Chicago via Porter, Indiana (CSX/NS).
Amtrak operates on two sections of track which are not owned by freight railroads. Amtrak itself purchased former Conrail trackage between Kalamazoo and Porter, Indiana. In 2013, the State of Michigan purchased former Norfolk Southern trackage between Dearborn and Kalamazoo. The first line offered trains that exceed 80 m.p.h. in a section which uses advanced positive train control. High speed operation is also planned for the Dearborn to Kalamazoo route as well. Norfolk Southern continues to provide freight service on both of these lines through trackage rights.
Amtrak has stations in Albion, Ann Arbor, Battle Creek, Benton Harbor/St. Joseph, Birmingham, Dearborn, Detroit, Dowagiac, Durand, Flint, Grand Rapids, Holland, Jackson, Kalamazoo, Lansing, Lapeer, Michigan City, Niles, and Pontiac in Michigan.
Website: Amtrak
Photo: Amtrak 427 is eastbound at the Battle Creek station. 2006 [Dale Berry photo]
News Feed from Google: Amtrak
News Feed - Amtrak
16 May 2025
- Washington Legislature Greenlights Framework for Amtrak Improvements - The Urbanist
- How to Use the Amtrak Rail Pass to Plan the Ultimate Summer Train Trip - Condé Nast Traveler
- Construction underway on Amtrak's $300 million Seattle rail yard project - The Business Journals
- NS and Justice Department remain in settlement talks over Amtrak Crescent case - trains.com
- Amtrak, Texas rail line to lease unused Northstar train engines and passenger cars - Star Tribune
- Amtrak makes case for shutting down East River tunnel for repairs - Newsday
- LIRR president warns riders as Amtrak's East River Tunnel shutdown approaches - CBS News
- Inside look at the 3-year Amtrak East River tunnel repair project to fix heavily damaged by Superstorm Sandy - ABC7 New York
- Elon Musk’s Boring Company Is in Talks With Government Over Amtrak Project - The New York Times
- Faster Amtrak trains are coming to Seattle after big construction project - Axios
- Western Mass. Amtrak Expansions Are Flush With Funding, But New Routes Won't Debut 'Til 2030s - Streetsblog Massachusetts
- Looking back at the Amtrak crash that killed 8 people at Frankford Junction, 10 years later - Inquirer.com
- Senate Holds Hearing for FRA and Amtrak Nominees - The Eno Center for Transportation
- Minnesota officials approve lease of commuter rail equipment to Amtrak, DART - trains.com
- Amtrak Advances Upgrades and Repairs at Lancaster Station - Amtrak Media
