Amtrak will cut 2 Michigan train trips for summer to make upgrades

JACKSON COUNTY, MI -- Amtrak plans to temporarily cut down on its train routes so workers can make track upgrades, the transportation company said.

Wolverine Trains 350 and 353, which run between Chicago and Pontiac, will operate on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays only, starting May 6. Those Wolverine routes will not operate Monday through Thursday, as they normally do.

The reduction in trains will last through Oct. 18.

Wolverine 350 takes off from Chicago at 6:45 a.m. (Central time) every day and arrives in Pontiac at 2:11 p.m. (Eastern time), with stops including Kalamazoo, Jackson, Ann Arbor, Detroit and more.

Wolverine 353 leaves Pontiac at 8:50 a.m. (Eastern time) every day and arrives in Chicago at 2:02 p.m. (Central time). It also has numerous stops along the way, generally following the path of I-94.

Amtrak’s upgrades will ease turns in the work area, located between Jackson and Ypsilanti, Amtrak spokesman Marc Magliari said.

The train’s top speed in Michigan is 110 mph, Magliari said. The work is expected to smooth out some of the railway turns, allowing the train to move at faster speeds for more of the trip, he said. Ultimately, it will cut a few minutes off trips, once complete.

Magliari did not know the exact locations where the work will be done. More details will be announced before the work begins, he said.

“We’re working on the curvy part of the railroad to improve travel times through there,” Magliari said. That includes replacing rails, working on “superelevation,” he said, or the elevation of the different tracks as they curve.

The changes will occur within the existing footprint of the railroad, he said.

“Every minute counts,” Magliari said “We’ll be taking minutes out of the schedule, depending where you are.”

The Wolverine line will still offer two daily trips from Chicago to Pontiac (Wolverine 352 and 354) and Pontiac to Chicago (Wolverine 351 and 355) each day. Check out Amtrak’s website for schedule details.

Trains will operate normally (with all three routes running) on the following holidays:

Memorial Day, May 27
Juneteenth, June 19
Independence Day, July 4
Labor Day, Sept. 2

Blue Water Trains 364 and 365, with service to Port Huron, will operate normally and also serve Wolverine stations in southwest Michigan, per Amtrak.

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