#river cities

AMT 218 W detour 2Courtney MO 585 by Sneebly Via Flickr: There were a couple of years in the early 80s when there was some major trackwork on the Sedalia sub and some if not all KC STL Amtrak trains detoured on the River sub. Here we have westbound train 359 the River Cities/Mule at Courtney MO which though is on the ATSF, this train came west on the River sub. I took this picture in May 1985. Interesting too note that besides the dome coach, it also had a 10-6 sleeper at the time.

First Run of Amtrak #358 by Adam Via Flickr: The first run of Amtrak #358 the "River Cities," April 29, 1984. This was in Centralia, IL. Consist is an Amtrak F40, Pacific series sleeper, ex NP dome coach and an Amdinette. The River Cities was the connection Amtrak operated from 1984-1993 from the City of New Orleans at Centralia (later Carbondale, IL) to St. Louis and Kansas City.

1990-2-4 - 4 - AMTK 393 - Amtrak 358 - Saint Louis, MO - Mary Rae McPherson photo by Mary Rae McPherson Via Flickr: Amtrak's River Cities makes its station stop at St. Louis, Missouri, on February 4, 1990.

The River Cities by James House Via Flickr: Amtrak train #358, The River Cities, makes an on time 0700 arrival at St Louis, MO. The River Cities was an unusual little backwater on the Amtrak system that carried a single coach from a Kansas City originated St Louis Mule through to Carbondale, IL to connect with the City of New Orleans. In the Amtrak timetable, trains 358 and 359 were carded through between Kansas City and New Orleans, but in reality, the trains only operated independently on the short three hour hop between St. Louis and Carbondale via the Southern and Illinois Central. The remainder of the schedule west of St Louis and south of Carbondale operated within the consists of the St Louis Mule and City of New Orleans. The train operated nightly out of St Louis with a 9:00 PM departure as train 359, and would arrive back in town as train 358 by 0700. As a high school aged railfan, I always had the thought that riding the little one-car train on its overnight round trip between St Louis and Carbondale would be a fun, weird thing to do, but I never actually did it. The train was ultimately discontinued in 1993. September, 1988

Amtrak 280 Arrives on WB Mule by Sneebly Via Flickr: In July 1986 Amtrak F40PHR 280 arrives at Kansas City Mo on the Kansas City Mule\River Cities