PETS ON TRAINS: MAKING PROGRESS

Reggie finds the whole idea of
train travel very exciting

The idea of taking your pet on a train trip is making progress. A test program in Illinois has been made permanent. One small step for owners, and a giant step for pets. Here's the full release from Amtrak:

"Amtrak and the Illinois Department of Transportation (Illinois DOT) are officially continuing a service that allows travelers to bring their small pets along on trips to and from Chicago and Downstate Illinois. An extended trial was set to expire this month, but due to positive customer response, the program is instead being made permanent with no changes in the provisions that were piloted.

AMTRAK EXTENDS PET TRIAL

Pet travel on Amtrak has taken another step forward.

Amtrak and the Illinois Department of Transportation have announced they are adding another route (Chicago-Champaign-Carbondale) to a pilot project that allows travelers to "bring their pets along on trips to and from Chicago and Downstate Illinois. Small pets have been carried between Chicago and Quincy on Illinois Zephyr and Carl Sandburg trains since April, with almost 20 small animals safely transported."

Although the test was scheduled to end in November, Amtrak and Illinois jointly decided to give the idea an extended trial, through April 26, 2015.

Other details from Amtrak: