Amtrak Wolverine: Kalamazoo to Chicago at 110 MPH 

Can't say enough that the Michigan line is one of the most unique Amtrak lines besides the NEC or Keystone. For 110 MPH, I'm impressed of Amtrak keeping up with the speed and along with their completion of expanding speedy service east of Kalamazoo. Still hyped when they'll finish the rest to Detroit over the coming years.

Eventually everything east of Kalamazoo will be 110mph speed up to Dearborn Michigan. Currently it’s Porter Indiana to Albion that allows for 110 in many spots.

Gotta love watching a video on the Wolverine while riding the Wolverine

So many times have I caught trains from that station.

This is cool. I got a friend who lives near Lansing, would wanna ride this train if I flew to Chicago from 🇬🇧 then back to 🇬🇧 from Detroit.

Dowagiac Mi is usually busy in the summer months eastbound. Many Chicago residents have summer homes around Sister Lakes,Diamond and Indian Lakes and they take the train to Dowagiac. This is the reason Amtrak keeps serving Dowagiac,Mi. It’s the closest station to these inland lakes that are popular to the Chicago residents who spend their weekends there. Many Chicago residents leave a vehicle at the stations lot during the week. The movie by Alford Hitchcock North by Northwest mentions all these Michigan stops on the overhead PA at the Chicago station. Although back then the passenger service from Chicago to Detroit was owned by New York Central. The City of Michigan City IN,Lawton Mi and Marshall,Mi had their stops eliminated. Lawton,Mi many years ago. Michigan City and Marshall more recent.

MAN! These trains can MOVE! Also they look cool inside!

I would love to see more coverage of Michigan trains!

I heard of Kalamamazoo as a brand name - now I know it is a place & has a beautiful railway station. I especially like the fact that Amtrak has retained the use of train names rather than just a number or destination - the name Wolverine makes one want to explore this experience. I note that Amtrak intends to replace all the passenger carriages with new Siemens passenger carriages. Wow, I thought it snowed a lot in Winter - seems it also rains a lot in Spring up your way. I also heard that there was a tornado that plunged Michigan into a cold snap - hope you are all okay Thom. Stay safe & thank you for sharing your train experience. As always much appreciated.

Michigan weather in the wet and snow season looks to be a challenge for any mode of transportation.

Pierre Marquette resurrects a Fallen Flag for that area.

If memory serves my correctly, Whiting has a major BP (formerly AMOCO) refinery. Once upon a time my father worked there.

Raised in Kalamazoo and miss it tbh!!!

Request: California Zephyr, Chicago to Emeryville

The MCRR has some fascinating history on this line. Crazy to think it was once the mainline between Chicago and Toronto/New York via southern Ontario on the Canada Southern Railway

As usual, a nice video! To be quite honest with you, I like travelling by train on rainy, stormy, and even on snowy days! I know this may sound a bit strange, but it just something that I enjoy doing for some reason. I have seen many videos here on youtube of trains in Europe during the winter months that are packed full of riders and tourists that ride the train specifically to view the landscapes and mountains in the snow. I understand that those routes are quite popular in the wintertime. Hopefully I will be able to add that to my bucket list one day.

Thanks for a great ride. The Horizon cars are coming to the end of their lives with Amtrak, and the recent refurbishment with new seats is good. The coming Venture cars, as you have seen, are great !

The Amtrak I take to Cleveland and Pittsburgh are awesome seats that I could lay down and go to sleep.

The further West you go the worse Amtrak gets, especially on the California Zephyr route. Chicago Union is a great hub for exploring the upper Midwest/Great Lakes area. My flight from Tokyo, Japan is going nonstop to Detroit. Michigan is on my bucket list of states I've never been. So it's a good excuse to ride the train to Chi-Town. I also want to book a couple nights in Chicago, just to take the Hiawatha Route to Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

Ahead of schedule is absurdly rare from what I understand with them.

You got a subscribe out of me. I like your videos. Nicely done and entertaining.

Love getting to see my hometown Kzoo. Fun fact: the Kalamazoo Mall is the first ever pedestrian mall. Love a lot of the shops!

Nice video. You strike the right balance between train and city and general information. Useful for people thinking of travelling in the area and interesting for armchair travellers and railfans too. You always seem to highlight the little details I want to know about, everything's well filmed and you're a good presenter with a sense of humour. Good job.

9 months ago, that building under construction in the background has walls and stuff on it now lol.

We’re continuing sir

I rode the Capital Limited from Washington DC to Chicago before. Very interesting ride.

I love your bathroom reviews... Amtrak should hire you as an consultant.

Union Station could really use high-level platforms!

Thanks for the video. The good thing I saw from Amtrak's FY24-29 about the horizons cars is that they will eventually be replaced by the venture coaches, so that should be more modern. Then the existing horizons coaches could then be used for new routes in Amtrak connects us routes.

I ate at the cafe there Feb. 2020. The food selection was nice.

I regularly take the train between Chicago and Kalamazoo. However we've had three trains cancelled by Amtrak in less than three months. Very frustrating.

For me personally I don't mind the Horizon Cars. For me personally it's not about the look of the car but the experience of riding the train and seeing the small towns and countryside that you wouldn't be able to see if you flew or drove. Though I will have one criticism those seats don't look comfortable. I preferred the old seats because they were extremely comfortable to me. I guess being I have a birth defect in my back the old seats helped keep my back from being in pain. While I understand why people want Amtrak to change them I wish Amtrak would've done it 50 50. Like while I don't remember my first time taking Amtrak I was about 5 or 6 years old I do remember my first time taking Amtrak on my own in 2009 and I do remember loving the seats.

110Mph on the MC line is not bad if One takes into consideration all those grade crossings (over here in Europe, the rule is not having crossings at grade in lines where speeds are higher than 140 or 160 Km/h, but there are some exceptions. At least one 200 Km)h segment in Feance has level crossings). That section between Porter - where the junction swich should allow a "taking siding" speed higher than the present 45Mph - , and Chicago really needs a fixing. Maybe that will get done if One of the ideas of the CREATE plan is executed; a dedicated set of Passenger train lines all the way to the tip of current Amateak's Chicago division (by reuse of former PRR main line right of way. NS uses former NYC track. Both used to run side by side)

Does a frequency of 3x a day for an US passenger train count as more or less dense?

Having recently been on an Amtrak train that averaged 25 mph (Westbound Cardinal), I find 110 mph hard to believe, but I'm glad at least *some* of America's rail infrastructure is at least *slightly* modern.

Sirs, where is a long term parking in kalamazoo, thats near amtrak station kalamazoo?thank you.

I have ridden the Amtrak wolverine in Michigan many times and the stop Michigan city has always been a stop on the wolverine Amtrak. So I think you got one detail wrong there

Here in Germany we need continuos train supervision and in cab signalling for a traing going faster than 160 km/h or 100 mph. Especially since we calculate with a maximum break distance of 1000m or 1100 yds. If the break distance is longer than 1000m, the train needs in cab signalling as well. That's also the reason why most commuter trains do not go faster than 140 km/h or 160 km/h. Do you have insights into the signal concept of this route?

Pretty sure that the take are actually owned by the state of Michigan.

Do you think Amtrak wolverine will ever get electrified.

What app do you use to see how fast. I’m traveling with children and I think They would enjoy that.

Why do they even stop at stations that short if nobody is getting on or off? I take Cleveland to Chicago route (Lake Shore Limited) frequently, and three of those stops overnight do the exact same. Haven't seen anybody on or off at Elkhart or Waterloo, Indiana. Always wondered why they didn't just blow right through.

Yeah those Horizon faucets are awful! Bombardier used the same design on a ton of their bi-level cars such as a ton of the ones that Coaster has and they are a real pain in the ass to use without getting completely soaked. The "logic" behind it is to wash away all the germs off the handle but it does far more harm than good lol. Now on the topic of the Horizon cars, I am quite torn. The Venture cars also have their drawbacks, and it seems like it will be an eye for an eye tradeoff in my opinion. Some things are improved (larger, more logical lavs, ADA approved, center arm rests, larger windows, winged sculpted headrests in the seats, window shades, better placement for power outlets and are super quiet) but still leave a lot to be desired (the legroom is worse than the Horizon, and the seats don't really recline, it is more of a slide and tilt forward. Additionally, the seats are not as plush as these and the lights are even brighter than on these as well). They have been rattled with issues that have delayed their entry into service time and time again. Unfortunately because of these issues, the Blue Water crewmembers I have spoken to about it are not really looking forward to them entering service in Michigan. It is a shame because they are very pretty cars. I just believe that 6 hours in them will ultimately be a slight comfort downgrade even from these Horizon coach seats. After riding on both cars it really seems like a toss up. Superliners still knock it out of the park when it comes to comfort, and as do the Business Class/Café Amfleet I cars found on the Amtrak Midwest routes (which use Superliner seats). They are an excellent alternative to the Horizon and Venture cars but of course can get expensive sometimes. The aforementioned Amfleet I cars should still be operating with the Midwest routes for a year or so as the Venture café cars are not even built yet. Have you ever tried the Blue Water route? You can go between these two cities for (typically) less $ than on the Wolverine trains. I'd definitely recommend trying one of the Amfleet I Biz/Café cars if the opportunity arises as they are really comfortable, quiet, and retro with charm, unlike the Horizon cars. There are only 17/18 seats in that business class cabin so they go quick!

Hi, How does the South Shore Line train compare to this? Thank you

What is the Kalamazoo xxxx train or whatever

Different then from the one I’m watching about

Have u been in des plaines have u been on union pacific northwest line

The Kalamazoo and Dearborn stations are the best on the line. The rest mostly suck. And its taken forever to extend 110 mph to most of line. At least they finally have new engines and refurbished cars. efubished

REM 🎉❤😊😅😂

Horizon cars are the WORST!

High speed trains on Amtrak Michigan Services? Interesting! I thought that Amtrak high speed trains only ran on the Northeast Corridor with electrified trains with catenaries and pantographs. # Superliner cars rock