Blue Water (passenger train)

Blue Water

An Amtrak Blue Water train pulling into the East Lansing station.
Overview
Service type	Inter-city rail, higher-speed rail
Locale	Michigan
Predecessor	International
First service	April 25, 2004
Current operator(s)	Amtrak
Ridership	191,106 (FY13)
Route
Start	Chicago, Illinois
End	Port Huron, Michigan
Distance travelled	319 miles (513 km)
Service frequency	Daily
Train number(s)	364, 365
Technical
Track gauge	4 ft 8 1⁄2 in (1,435 mm)
Track owner(s)	CN/GTW, Amtrak, MDOT NS
Route map 0 mi 0 km Chicago IL IN IN MI 62 mi 100 km New Buffalo 89 mi 143 km Niles 102 mi 164 km Dowagiac 138 mi 222 km Kalamazoo 160 mi 257 km Battle Creek 208 mi 335 km East Lansing 238 mi 383 km Durand 256 mi 412 km Flint 274 mi 441 km Lapeer 319 mi 513 km Port Huron

Route map
0 mi 0 km Chicago IL IN IN MI 62 mi 100 km New Buffalo 89 mi 143 km Niles 102 mi 164 km Dowagiac 138 mi 222 km Kalamazoo 160 mi 257 km Battle Creek 208 mi 335 km East Lansing 238 mi 383 km Durand 256 mi 412 km Flint 274 mi 441 km Lapeer 319 mi 513 km Port Huron

The Blue Water is a higher-speed passenger train service operated by Amtrak as part of its Michigan Services. The 319-mile (513 km) line connects Port Huron, Michigan, and Chicago, Illinois, via East Lansing, Michigan.

The Lansing area, home of the Michigan state capitol and Michigan State University, was left out of Amtrak's original system. Beginning in 1973, Amtrak and the state discussed restoring service over the Grand Trunk Western Railway within the state, although the new route would join Amtrak's other Michigan trains on the Penn Central west of Battle Creek, Michigan, eschewing the Grand Trunk's traditional route to Chicago. New stations were built in Port Huron and East Lansing, and the state spent $1 million on track rehabilitation. Service began September 15, 1974, between Chicago and Port Huron, with the intention of eventually restoring the Port Huron–Toronto leg.

Amtrak renamed the train the Blue Water Limited on October 26, 1975, and re-equipped it with French-built Turboliner trainsets on May 20, 1976. The new Turboliners were capable of, but never reached, 125 mph (201 km/h) and ran with fixed five-car consists with an overall capacity of 292 passengers. The Turboliners were withdrawn on October 25, 1981, replaced by conventional locomotives pulling Amfleet coaches.

The long-discussed extension to Toronto finally occurred on October 31, 1982. The extended service received the name International Limited, the name of an old Canadian National/Grand Trunk Chicago–Detroit–Montreal train. Amtrak and Via Rail, the independent Canadian Crown corporation rail company, jointly operated the International Limited (later just International) until April 25, 2004, when cross-border service was discontinued. Massive border delays post-September 11 led to falling ridership; Amtrak and Michigan agreed to truncate service at Port Huron and bring back the old Blue Water. On the Canadian side service ends at Sarnia as part of the VIA Rail's Corridor route.