he Texas Eagle is the longest train route in the United States operated by Amtrak. Alone, the train navigates 1,306 miles daily between Chicago, Illinois to San Antonio, Texas; but three days a week, it operates with the Sunset Limited—a train route that runs between New Orleans, Louisiana to Los Angeles, California. When combined with the Sunset Limited, it runs for a total of 2,728 miles (4,390 km) from Chicago to Los Angeles, which means traveling on a train for approximately 65 hours. By the end of the trip, passengers will have visited 7 states in approximately three days: Illinois, Missouri, Arkansas, Texas, New Mexico, Arizona, and California.
Currently, the Texas Eagle runs along the same train route that the Texas and Pacific Railway built in the late 1800s from Chicago to San Antonio. The Texas Eagle got its name from another passenger train that used to ride from St. Louis, Missouri to Laredo, Texas due to a partnership that was created between Texas & Pacific Railway and Missouri Pacific Railroad in 1948. Despite the Texas Eagle being discontinued in 1971, Amtrak revived the train line in 1981 as a “re-structuring” of the Inter-American, dropping the Houston stop while one of the stops was cut back from Laredo to San Antonio. In 1982, it was announced that the Texas Eagle would combine with the Sunset Limited to make tri-weekly trips from Chicago all the way to Los Angeles.
Today, the Texas Eagle consists of double-decker “Superliner” trains, which has Sightseer Lounges on the second floor. These are observatory rooms available to anyone, allowing passengers to get a clear view of changing the landscapes as they travel through parts of the Midwest, South, and Western part of the United States. The great part is that there is no assigned seating in these lounges, allowing anyone to not only get a perfect photo of the 630-foot-tall St. Louis Arch, but of other places and landscapes as well. By riding the Texas Eagle, passengers will go through the Land of Lincoln, across the Mississippi River, and through the Ozark Plateau to Little Rock. Afterwards, the train will go through the piney Eastern Texas woods, and go past the Rocky Mountains. will even get the chance to go by Hope, Arkansas, which is the birthplace of Bill Clinton (America’s 42nd President).
Bob Johnston, correspondent for Trains Magazine since 1991, has been on countless travels on the Texas Eagle. He recalls being able to see the Texas School Book Depository, a historic building that served as Lee Harvey Oswald’s vantage point when he assassinated JFK in 1963, passing by as the train headed West from Dallas Union Station. As the train goes along the Mississippi River, passengers can also enjoy the view of numerous boats traveling along the river. Johnston adds that as the train goes by route 66, it gives people the opportunity to view several towns along the way. Unlike other alternative modes of transportation, Johnston enjoys traveling on the Texas Eagle because it allows him to get a taste of every town he passes, allowing him to get an accurate visualization of what it would be like to live in these areas.
In times of COVID-19, trains provide a safer mode of transportation as passengers who pay for a private room can stay isolated while traveling, whereas this is not a possibility with planes. With a territory as expansive as the United States, there is so much to see and explore—and the Texas Eagle provides an opportunity for wanderlust travelers to do just that in comfort and safety.
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America’s Longest Train Route
October 11, 2020
This legacy train rides on the rails of those that came before it.
T
he Texas Eagle is the longest train route in the United States operated by Amtrak. Alone, the train navigates 1,306 miles daily between Chicago, Illinois to San Antonio, Texas; but three days a week, it operates with the Sunset Limited—a train route that runs between New Orleans, Louisiana to Los Angeles, California. When combined with the Sunset Limited, it runs for a total of 2,728 miles (4,390 km) from Chicago to Los Angeles, which means traveling on a train for approximately 65 hours. By the end of the trip, passengers will have visited 7 states in approximately three days: Illinois, Missouri, Arkansas, Texas, New Mexico, Arizona, and California.
Currently, the Texas Eagle runs along the same train route that the Texas and Pacific Railway built in the late 1800s from Chicago to San Antonio. The Texas Eagle got its name from another passenger train that used to ride from St. Louis, Missouri to Laredo, Texas due to a partnership that was created between Texas & Pacific Railway and Missouri Pacific Railroad in 1948. Despite the Texas Eagle being discontinued in 1971, Amtrak revived the train line in 1981 as a “re-structuring” of the Inter-American, dropping the Houston stop while one of the stops was cut back from Laredo to San Antonio. In 1982, it was announced that the Texas Eagle would combine with the Sunset Limited to make tri-weekly trips from Chicago all the way to Los Angeles.
Today, the Texas Eagle consists of double-decker “Superliner” trains, which has Sightseer Lounges on the second floor. These are observatory rooms available to anyone, allowing passengers to get a clear view of changing the landscapes as they travel through parts of the Midwest, South, and Western part of the United States. The great part is that there is no assigned seating in these lounges, allowing anyone to not only get a perfect photo of the 630-foot-tall St. Louis Arch, but of other places and landscapes as well. By riding the Texas Eagle, passengers will go through the Land of Lincoln, across the Mississippi River, and through the Ozark Plateau to Little Rock. Afterwards, the train will go through the piney Eastern Texas woods, and go past the Rocky Mountains. will even get the chance to go by Hope, Arkansas, which is the birthplace of Bill Clinton (America’s 42nd President).
Bob Johnston, correspondent for Trains Magazine since 1991, has been on countless travels on the Texas Eagle. He recalls being able to see the Texas School Book Depository, a historic building that served as Lee Harvey Oswald’s vantage point when he assassinated JFK in 1963, passing by as the train headed West from Dallas Union Station. As the train goes along the Mississippi River, passengers can also enjoy the view of numerous boats traveling along the river. Johnston adds that as the train goes by route 66, it gives people the opportunity to view several towns along the way. Unlike other alternative modes of transportation, Johnston enjoys traveling on the Texas Eagle because it allows him to get a taste of every town he passes, allowing him to get an accurate visualization of what it would be like to live in these areas.
In times of COVID-19, trains provide a safer mode of transportation as passengers who pay for a private room can stay isolated while traveling, whereas this is not a possibility with planes. With a territory as expansive as the United States, there is so much to see and explore—and the Texas Eagle provides an opportunity for wanderlust travelers to do just that in comfort and safety.
