Amtrak to reduce passenger train service to one round trip daily

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) – Amtrak service across Missouri will be reduced to one daily round trip starting Monday.

The change comes after state and federal COVID relief money that helped fund two round trips ran out in December.

Missouri’s budget does not include enough funds for two Missouri River Runner round trips across the state.

Patrick McKenna, director of the state transportation department, said the service would lose an estimated $2.5 million if two trains ran from January to June.

Starting Monday, one Amtrak train will leave Kansas City in the morning and one will leave St. Louis in the afternoon.