New Green Bay-Milwaukee Amtrak bus service

Provides convenient connections to Chicago-Milwaukee via Amtrak Hiawatha; new video shows how

CHICAGO and MILWAUKEE– A new Amtrak Thruway Bus Service now provides two daily round-trip buses between Green Bay and Milwaukee, with stops in Appleton, Oshkosh and Fond du Lac. The service provides seamless connections to and from Chicago using Amtrak Hiawatha trains. It is being provided by Amtrak, in coordination with the Wisconsin Department of Transportation (WisDOT).

“This service provides residents in the I-41 corridor with convenience, comfort and connection,” says WisDOT Secretary-designee Craig Thompson. “It expands options for passengers traveling for business or leisure.”

The service will allow travelers to make a same-day round trip between the I-41 cities and Chicago, as well as Milwaukee’s Mitchell Airport, Sturtevant and Glenview, Illinois.

Amtrak has produced a short video showing how easy it is to use an Amtrak Thruway Bus. This service to the Fox Cities is the newest addition to the network.

“More than a million Amtrak customers every year begin or end their travels on an Amtrak Thruway bus. With our state partners, these services are an important part of our network that together give us more than 1,000 destinations nationwide served either by Amtrak train or by Amtrak Thruway services,” said Paul Vilter, the Amtrak Assistant Vice President for these Amtrak Services. “Our new video shows how easy it is to Get Carried Away on the combination of Amtrak services.”

Many of the same benefits for Amtrak Hiawatha Service train passengers will be provided to bus passengers:

• Promotional fares including the current Summerfest Buy One, Get One Half Off and the Kids Ride Free Summer Weekends
• Discounted fares, including the Student Discount
• At seat plug ins and Wi-Fi service
• Reservations for bicycles
• Reclining seats with seatbelts, extra legroom, tables and cupholders
• Location tracking through Amtrak.com
  

The bus will be operated by Wisconsin Coach Lines/Coach USA Milwaukee. “We are excited to partner with Amtrak and the Wisconsin Department of Transportation in offering these new convenient connections to the growing Hiawatha service for the Fox Valley and Green Bay areas,” says Tom Dieckelman, President, Wisconsin Coach Lines/Coach USA Milwaukee.

The service will use a Coach USA bus for the first weeks of service, while the Amtrak bus is outfitted. All buses are ADA accessible.

The new bus service addresses the gap in I-41 service that resulted from the Greyhound service cancellation last October. It supplements the existing Lamers daily round-trip on I-41, and the Jefferson Lines and Indian Trails buses that travel on I-43.

Adult fares from Green Bay via Appleton to Milwaukee are as low as $28 each way. Continuing via the Amtrak Hiawatha to Chicago is as low as an additional $11, for a total of $39 each way. Customers can purchase tickets at Amtrak.com, the Amtrak mobile apps, QuikTrak^SM kiosks at the stations, or by calling 800-USA-RAIL.

More information is available at AmtrakHiawatha.com.