Hastings is a city mostly in Dakota County, Minnesota, of which it is the county seat, with a portion in Washington County, Minnesota, United States. It is near the confluence of the Mississippi, Vermillion, and St. Croix Rivers. The population was 22,154 at the 2020 census. It is named for the first elected governor of Minnesota, Henry Hastings Sibley.
The Empire Builder is a daily long-distance passenger train operated by Amtrak between Chicago and either Seattle or Portland via two sections west of Spokane. Introduced in 1929, it was the flagship passenger train of the Great Northern Railway and was retained by Amtrak when it took over intercity rail service in 1971.
Milwaukee Road 261 is a class "S3" 4-8-4 "Northern" type steam locomotive built by the American Locomotive Company (ALCO) in Schenectady, New York in July 1944 for the Milwaukee Road (MILW). It was used for heavy mainline freight and passenger work until being retired by the MILW in 1956.
Saint Paul Union Depot is a historic railroad station and intermodal transit hub in the Lowertown neighborhood of Saint Paul, Minnesota. It serves light rail, intercity rail, intercity bus, and local bus services.
Midway is a former Amtrak intercity train station in the Midway neighborhood of Saint Paul, Minnesota, United States. It was last served by Amtrak's daily Empire Builder, with service from Chicago, Illinois to Seattle, Washington or Portland, Oregon. When the station opened March 1, 1978, it was also served briefly by the long-distance North Coast Hiawatha, and the Hiawatha and Arrowhead, the latter combined as the North Star later that year.
Sturtevant station is an Amtrak railroad station in Sturtevant, Wisconsin, United States, which opened for service on August 14, 2006. It is located on East Exploration Court in the Renaissance Business Park off Wisconsin Highway 20. The facility accommodates travelers who use the Hiawatha between Chicago and Milwaukee and the related Borealis between Chicago and St. Paul, Minnesota, and sees fourteen daily arrivals. The Empire Builder also passes through this station but does not stop. Located along tracks owned by the Canadian Pacific Kansas City railroad, the station was constructed as a replacement for the former Milwaukee Road depot, which was moved from its former location to Caledonia in October 2009.
Milwaukee Intermodal Station is an intercity bus and train station in downtown Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Amtrak service at Milwaukee includes the daily Empire Builder, the daily Borealis, and the six daily Hiawatha round trips. It is Amtrak's 18th-busiest station nationwide, and the second-busiest in the Midwest, behind only Chicago Union Station. The station is served by bus companies Coach USA - Wisconsin Coach Lines, Greyhound Lines, Jefferson Lines, Indian Trails, Lamers, Badger Bus, Tornado Bus Company, and Megabus. It is also the western terminus of the M-Line service of The Hop streetcar.
Wisconsin Dells station is an Amtrak intercity train station in Wisconsin Dells, Wisconsin. It is served by the daily round trips of the Borealis and Empire Builder. Despite the antiquated appearance, the station was built in 1989. The station is a replica of a former Chicago, Milwaukee, St. Paul and Pacific Railroad depot, and is in close proximity to a tourist railroad called the Riverside and Great Northern Railway. The previous station on this site was damaged by a Soo Line Railroad freight train derailing in 1982 A nonprofit group was created in the town in order to raise funds for the current station building. Borealis service began on May 21, 2024.
La Crosse station is an Amtrak intercity train station in La Crosse, Wisconsin, served by the daily Borealis and Empire Builder. The station was built in 1926–27 by the Chicago, Milwaukee, St. Paul, and Pacific Railroad, replacing an older station that burned in 1916. The station was listed on the National Register of Historic Places as the Chicago, Milwaukee and St. Paul Railway Depot and was renovated in 2001.
Winona station is an Amtrak train station in Winona, Minnesota, United States. It is served by the daily round trips of the Borealis and Empire Builder. The station building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2013 as the Chicago, Milwaukee & St. Paul Railway Station. The station is typically the second-busiest Amtrak station in Minnesota.
St. Cloud station is an Amtrak intercity train station in St. Cloud, Minnesota, United States. It is served by the daily Empire Builder on its route connecting Chicago, Illinois to Seattle, Washington and Portland, Oregon. The next stop westbound is Staples while the next stop eastbound is Saint Paul Union Depot.
Ottumwa station is an Amtrak intercity train station in Ottumwa, Iowa, United States. The station was originally built by the Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad, and has been listed as Burlington Depot by the National Register of Historic Places since November 26, 2008. It became a contributing property in the Historic Railroad District in 2011.
There are several passenger rail projects being discussed in Minnesota. There is one existing commuter rail service in the state, the Northstar Line, and two existing long-distance intercity rail services, the Empire Builder and the Borealis. Future projects include a mixture of short-distance commuter rail and medium-distance regional rail lines which would run from the Twin Cities outward to neighboring states and perhaps Canada.
The Minneapolis Great Northern Depot, also known as Great Northern Station, was a passenger railroad station which served Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA. It was built in 1913 and demolished in 1978. It was located on Hennepin Avenue next to the Hennepin Avenue Bridge and across the street from the main Minneapolis Post Office.
The St. Louis County Depot is a historic railroad station in Duluth, Minnesota, United States. It was built as a union station in 1892, serving seven railroads at its peak. Rail service ceased in 1969 and the building was threatened with demolition until it reopened in 1973 as St. Louis County Heritage & Arts Center . Train service also resumed from 1974 to 1985, by Amtrak.
The Chicago Great Western Depot at 726 East Main Street in Red Wing, in the U.S. State of Minnesota, is a former railroad station listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The depot was built in 1906 after the Chicago Great Western Railway (CGW) acquired two small railroads: the Minnesota Central, which connected to Cannon Falls; and the Duluth, Red Wing, and Southern, which connected to Zumbrota. CGW established a divisional headquarters and built this depot in 1906, with passenger space on the first floor and office space on the second floor. The red brick structure was the largest depot the railroad built in Minnesota.
The River Subdivision or River Sub is a railway line along the Mississippi River that runs approximately 124 miles (200 km) from Saint Paul, Minnesota south to La Crescent. U.S. Highway 61 closely parallels the route between La Crescent and Red Wing. The line is operated by the Canadian Pacific Kansas City through its subsidiary, the Soo Line Railroad. BNSF Railway operates a complementary St. Croix Subdivision which traces the eastern side of the river in Minnesota and Wisconsin. The two routes share some track between Saint Paul and St. Croix Junction, near Hastings.
The Tomah Subdivision or Tomah Sub is a railway line that runs about 103 miles (166 km) from La Crosse, WI in the west to Portage, WI in the east.
The Canadian Pacific Kansas City's Merriam Park Subdivision or Merriam Park Sub, also known as the Short Line, is a railway line in Saint Paul, Minnesota. It is run by the Soo Line Railroad, a U.S. in-name-only division of CPKC. It runs from the Saint Paul Yard, also known as the Pigs Eye Yard, westward to the Short Line Bridge over the Mississippi River, where rails continue as part of the Minnesota Commercial Railway. It was named for John L. Merriam, a Minnesota banker and politician. Completed by the Chicago, Milwaukee and St. Paul Railroad in 1880, it shortened the route Milwaukee Road trains took between downtown Saint Paul and downtown Minneapolis. Previous trains would exit Saint Paul and follow the Mississippi River southwest until crossing at Fort Snelling, where they would follow the path of today's Hiawatha Avenue and the Metro Blue Line toward the Milwaukee Road Depot. Originally built as an interurban route, it was eventually converted for heavy rail traffic because the Twin City Rapid Transit streetcar system had taken over the local transit market.
The Borealis, referred to as Twin Cities–Milwaukee–Chicago (TCMC) during planning, is an Amtrak inter-city rail service that operates daily between Chicago, Illinois, and Saint Paul, Minnesota, via Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Service began on May 21, 2024, under the Amtrak Midwest brand.
Hiawathaland Transit 
