Amtrak National Limited service began operation on May 1, 1971, linking New York City and Washington, D.C., with Kansas City. It carried Nos. 30-31. The route roughly paralleled that of Interstate 70, which links Baltimore and Kansas City. The name was a nod to a Baltimore & Ohio train serving Washington and St. Louis, but on a different route via Cincinnati.
Under Amtrak, the National Limited’s eastern portion split at Harrisburg, Pa., to serve both the Big Apple and our nation’s capital. West of Pittsburgh it used the former Pennsylvania Railroad’s “Panhandle” line, so named because it cut across the northern panhandle of West Virginia. The train provided the only Amtrak service in its time to Pittsburgh; Columbus and Dayton, Ohio; and Jefferson City, Mo. Of note, Columbus and Jefferson City are their respective states’ capitals.
The train initially operated with EMD E units acquired at startup and a mix of steam-heated heritage fleet equipment. A sample train consist from August 1972 shows a baggage car, two 10-and-6 sleepers, two coaches, a diner, and four more coaches. One coach and sleeper operated through Kansas City to Los Angeles on the Southwest Limited. One coach operated Monday, Wednesday, and Friday west of Harrisburg only, having arrived from Washington, D.C. This was to meet a statutory requirement that Amtrak provide Washington to Kansas City service. Three coaches operated New York to Pittsburgh only, and one of those three on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday only.
On Aug. 13, 1978, the train was re-equipped with head-end power-converted heritage equipment — sleepers, diner, and lounge — and new Amfleet coaches.
The National Limited vanished in October 1979 during a systemwide service reduction leaving Indianapolis and Dayton and Columbus, Ohio, without intercity passenger rail service at the time.
Sadly, east-west service through Columbus is a pipe dream without any major investment. Columbus to Indianapolis would require a circuitous routing. Columbus to Pittsburgh would be possible but the Panhandlle route is gone east of Wierton. What is left of the Panhandle is mostly slow single track and the signals are gone.
In its final weeks the PRR downgrade between Columbus and Indy was in full swing and the National moved to an ex-NYC routing west of Columbus via Union City, Indiana and through Muncie and Anderson.
Today, it would be a challenge to link Ohio, Indiana, and Illinois. The PRR is long gone between Columbus and Terre Haute.
However, linking Kansas City, St. Louis, and Indy to the east coast remains a goal. It should be prioritized.