City of New Orleans
New Orleans Union Passenger Terminal to Chicago Union Station. Northbound train 58 and southbound train 59, daily. The table below lists the named stretches in northbound order with the direction and season each is in daylight.
What you see, in order
Northbound order. Times are the published timetable at the midpoint of each stretch, in Central time. "Dark" means the scheduled time is after sunset or before sunrise in that month; "dawn" and "dusk" are within 30 minutes of them.
| Stretch | Northbound 58 | Southbound 59 | Stations around it |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lake Pontchartrain and the bayouLeaving New Orleans the line runs along the shore of Lake Pontchartrain for several miles, with the skyline across the water, on the longest single railroad curve in the U.S. at more than nine miles, then crosses Pass Manchac between Lake Pontchartrain and Lake Maurepas into the cypress swamps of the bayou, where alligators sun on floating logs and pelicans are abundant.Watch for Lake Pontchartrain, New Orleans skyline, Pass Manchac, alligators, pelicans, water lilies | Afternoon, 2:18 p.m.daylight | Afternoon, 2:59 p.m.daylight | New Orleans Union Passenger Terminal, Hammond |
| Florida Parishes and the Piney WoodsThrough the Florida Parishes past Independence, Amite, Camp Moore, and the Tangipahoa River, Magnolia and McComb, the Bogue Chitto River at Brookhaven, and the pines of the Piney Woods south of Jackson, whose gold-domed capitol marks the skyline.Watch for Tangipahoa River, Bogue Chitto River, Piney Woods | Afternoon, 4:09 p.m.daylight | Midday, 12:59 p.m.daylight | Hammond, Mccomb, Brookhaven, Hazlehurst, Jackson |
| Mississippi DeltaYazoo City and Greenwood on the Yazoo River, the Wades Bottom swamp beyond Aberdeen Junction, and the small towns and farms of the lower Mississippi Delta with their porches.Watch for Yazoo River, Wades Bottom swamp | Night, 8:02 p.m.dusk May to Aug; dark Sep to Apr | Morning, 9:17 a.m.daylight | Jackson, Yazoo City, Greenwood, Marks, Memphis |
| Mississippi River at MemphisApproaching Memphis on the high bluffs of the east bank, the Great American Pyramid and Mud Island are on the right northbound, with steamboats along the shore, Cotton Row and Confederate Park on the left, and Beale Street near the station.Watch for Mississippi River, the Pyramid, Mud Island, Beale Street | Night, 9:30 p.m.dark | Early morning, 7:40 a.m.daylight Apr to Feb; dawn Mar | Marks, Memphis |
| Cairo and the Shawnee HillsCairo, the river port at the junction of the Ohio and Mississippi, then the Shawnee Hills, called the Illinois Ozarks, around Carbondale.Watch for Ohio River, Mississippi River, Shawnee Hills | Night, 2:11 a.m.dark | Night, 2:53 a.m.dark | Fulton, Carbondale |
| Illinois Corn BeltThe farms of the gently rolling Till Plains between Rantoul and Kankakee, part of the Corn Belt; corn grows on one of every three acres in Illinois. | Early morning, 7:00 a.m.daylight Apr to Aug; dawn Sep to Mar | Night, 10:06 p.m.dark | Champaign-Urbana, Kankakee |
Computed from the Amtrak GTFS timetable (feed version 20261015, valid 2026-10-16 to 2026-10-22, fetched 2026-10-15) and sunrise and sunset on the 15th of each month at the midpoint of each stretch. Scheduled times only; a late train moves evening stretches into darkness.How this table is computed.
Stations, in northbound order
| Station | Arrives | Departs |
|---|---|---|
| New Orleans Union Passenger Terminal | 1:45 p.m. | |
| Hammond | 2:51 p.m. | 2:54 p.m. |
| Mccomb | 3:44 p.m. | 3:46 p.m. |
| Brookhaven | 4:08 p.m. | 4:10 p.m. |
| Hazlehurst | 4:29 p.m. | 4:31 p.m. |
| Jackson | 5:24 p.m. | 5:40 p.m. |
| Yazoo City | 6:36 p.m. | 6:38 p.m. |
| Greenwood | 7:33 p.m. | 7:38 p.m. |
| Marks | 8:33 p.m. | 8:35 p.m. |
| Memphis | 10:25 p.m. | 10:45 p.m. |
| Newbern-Dyersburg | 12:26 a.m. +1d | 12:28 a.m. +1d |
| Fulton | 1:08 a.m. +1d | 1:10 a.m. +1d |
| Carbondale | 3:13 a.m. +1d | 3:18 a.m. +1d |
| Centralia | 4:11 a.m. +1d | 4:13 a.m. +1d |
| Effingham | 5:09 a.m. +1d | 5:10 a.m. +1d |
| Mattoon | 5:36 a.m. +1d | 5:38 a.m. +1d |
| Champaign-Urbana | 6:25 a.m. +1d | 6:30 a.m. +1d |
| Kankakee | 7:31 a.m. +1d | 7:33 a.m. +1d |
| Homewood | 8:08 a.m. +1d | 8:11 a.m. +1d |
| Chicago Union Station | 9:15 a.m. +1d |
All times Central time; "+1d" is the day after departure from New Orleans Union Passenger Terminal.
Connects with
Routes that stop at a station this train stops at, from the same timetable. Transfer times are not checked.