The ''American Royal Zephyr'' was a streamlined

passenger train A passenger train is a train used to transport people along a railroad line. These trains may consist of unpowered passenger railroad cars (also known as coaches or carriages) hauled by one or more locomotives, or may be self-propelled; self pr ...

service operated by the

Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad The Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad was a railroad that operated in the Midwestern United States. Commonly referred to as the Burlington Route, the Burlington, or as the Q, it operated extensive trackage in the states of Colorado, Illin ...

between Chicago and

Kansas City The Kansas City metropolitan area is a bi-state metropolitan area anchored by Kansas City, Missouri. Its 14 counties straddle the border between the U.S. states of Missouri (9 counties) and Kansas (5 counties). With and a population of more ...

. This CB&Q ''Zephyr'' was named for the American Royal, one of the

Midwest The Midwestern United States, also referred to as the Midwest or the American Midwest, is one of four Census Bureau Region, census regions of the United States Census Bureau (also known as "Region 2"). It occupies the northern central part of ...

's largest and oldest livestock exhibition, professional rodeo, and horse show. The ''American Royal Zephyr'' made its inaugural run on February 1, 1953, as an all-new overnight streamliner between Chicago and Kansas City. The new train was prompted by the completion the previous October of the $16-million "Kansas City Shortcut", 49 miles of new track that made the route shorter, flatter, and straighter. The new alignment shaved 2 hours off of the previous shortest route, and made CB&Q optimistic that it could compete successfully against its entrenched rival, the AT&SF, on this busy route. ''American Royal Zephyr'' #56 departed Kansas City at 10:00 pm, arriving in Chicago at 7:30 am. Westbound counterpart #55 operated on a mirrored schedule, departing the Windy City at 10:00 pm and arriving in Kansas City at 7:30 am. Both trains covered the 466 mile route at an average pace of 49 mph. The original consist included two Vista-Domes (which provided meal service), two Chicago-KC sleepers, one Chicago - St. Joe sleeper, and coaches. The CB&Q simultaneously launched a daylight Chicago-Kansas City service on the same route under the banner of the ''

Kansas City Zephyr The ''Kansas City Zephyr'' was a streamliner passenger train service operated by the Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad (CB&Q) between Chicago and Kansas City. Overview The largest fleet of named streamliners in the United States were t ...

.'' Like its daylight counterpart, the ''American Royal Zephyr'' never lived up to ridership expectations, and it was not long before equipment from the ''ARZ'' was being shuffled off to other trains. Intense competition came from the Santa Fe, which ran six daily streamliners in each direction through Kansas City on a shorter schedule than CB&Q, and an existing, dedicated overnight service called the '' Kansas City Chief''. The ''American Royal Zephyr'' was discontinued in 1971.

Station stops

Original ''American Royal Zephyr'', station stops: ; Illinois * Chicago Union Station * La Grange Road station * Aurora old CB&Q station (abandoned, largely demolished) * Plano station *

Mendota station Mendota can refer to any of the following places in the United States: * Mendota, California * Mendota, Illinois, a city in LaSalle County * Mendota Township, LaSalle County, Illinois * Mendota, Minnesota * Mendota Heights, Minnesota * Mendota, Virg ...

* Princeton station *

Kewanee station Kewanee station is an Amtrak intercity train station in Kewanee, Illinois. A new station opened on April 13, 2012, replacing a smaller brick structure built in 1986. In addition to the waiting room, the depot houses a regional office of the ...

* Galesburg CB&Q Seminary Street station (demolished) *

Macomb station Macomb station is an Amtrak intercity train station in Macomb, Illinois, United States. There is one daily morning train to Chicago. In the evening, the return train continues on to Quincy, Illinois. The station is a brick structure constructed ...

* Quincy station ; Missouri * West Quincy CB&Q station (entire town abandoned after the Great Flood of 1993). * Macon (CB&Q station) * Chillicothe (CB&Q station) * Kansas City station

References

* * *
Burlington Route Historical Society

Amtrak's Illinois Service

Amtrak's ''Southwest Chief''
{{CBQ named trains Passenger trains of the Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad North American streamliner trains Night trains of the United States Railway services introduced in 1953 Railway services discontinued in 1971