Amtrak’s Lake Shore Limited links New York City with Chicago via Buffalo and Cleveland and generated the highest ridership of any long distance train in 2024. This route should be improved to better serve this busy corridor.
Phase I: Improved Cleveland service
Although Cleveland is the largest city between New York and Chicago, the Lake Shore Limited stops there in the middle of the night. Adjusting the Lake Shore Limited’s schedule to provide more reasonable departure times in Cleveland would significantly increase ridership and revenue. The train's New York City departure would be shifted from 3:40 PM to 6:20 PM, allowing the train to run overnight to arrive in Cleveland around 6 AM and then run to Chicago during daylight hours, arriving around noon. Instead of leaving Chicago at 9:30 pm, the Lake Shore Limited would leave at 3:20 pm, stopping in Cleveland before midnight and arriving in New York City around noon. See 2025 timetable and proposed timetable here.
The new schedule could easily increase ridership from 34,000 in 2022 to more than 100,000 in Cleveland alone. Although the Lake Shore Limited debuted in 1975 with this exact schedule, it was adjusted over time to prioritize passengers in upstate New York and ensure connections for passengers arriving late on western long distance trains.
To compensate for the loss of service between upstate New York and Chicago, an Empire Service train would be rescheduled and extended from Buffalo to Cleveland where it would connect to the Capitol Limited. This train would also create a second roundtrip between New York City and Chicago but at a much lower cost than an entirely new train as the only new section would run between Buffalo and Cleveland. This new section would require at least two 2-car sets to start, consisting of a sleeper and a coach.
Should passengers miss their Lake Shore Limited connection due to delayed western trains, this new section of the Capitol Limited would accommodate them. While Niagara Falls would lose a roundtrip, the train would continue to serve Buffalo via a short reserve maneuver. Some additional capacity on CSX freight railroad's busy main line between Buffalo and Cleveland would be needed to accommodate the new train such as a few new passing sidings.
New Michigan Service
Both the Capitol Limited and Lake Shore Limited stop in Toledo, about an hour south of Detroit. Several cars should be split from both trains in Toledo, allowing two short sections to run to Detroit and terminate in Pontiac. Starting with two-car sets for each route, Michigan service would likely add another 50,000 riders to each train. The Lake Shore Limited service would connect Cleveland to Detroit which is one of Amtrak’s ConnectUS routes.
While this service expansion to both Cleveland and Michigan can be accomplished with a low track infrastructure investment and small increase in operating costs, part two of this series will examine ways to substantially increase service.
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