Unlike other New York City to Chicago trains, it bypassed Buffalo to the south, running through Jamestown, Youngstown, Akron, and Marion in Ohio.

On November 28, 1966, the Lake Cities regained diner and sleeper service to compensate for the withdrawal of the Phoebe Snow (which had its final run the previous day), but by 1967 the sleeping service went no further west than Marion, Ohio, while the dining car stopped at Huntington, Indiana.

[5] After World War II the Erie acquired seven lightweight sleepers from Pullman-Standard, each with ten roomettes and six double bedrooms.

[7] This late 1960s timetable with the New Jersey and Pennsylvania stops reflects a consolidation of service with the Phoebe Snow train, which was discontinued in 1966.

Before the 1960 Erie-Lackawanna merger, the Lake Cities' route ran through New York's Sullivan and Orange Counties.