The Milwaukee Road opened its line from Fox Lake to Janesville, Wisconsin on June 3, 1901, with Zenda soon among the intermediate stops on Walworth–Chicago commuter service.

[1][4] Intercity service on the line, including the Sioux and Varsity, did not stop between Fox Lake and Walworth.

[7] Amtrak began operating the Janesville–Chicago Lake Country Limited on April 15, 2000, as part of the Network Growth Strategy, which called for trains to carry mail and express cargo to subsidize passenger service.

[8][11][13] Its addition briefly doubled ridership on the Lake Country Limited – from 5-6 daily to 11 – but it returned to the former level by fall.

[8] The train was never successful; it was canceled between December 27, 2000, and February 2, 2001, due to equipment shortages, and had the worst operating ratio of any Amtrak route.

[8] A 2001 study by the Southeastern Wisconsin Regional Planning Commission evaluated a possible re-extension of Metra Milwaukee District North Line commuter service from Fox Lake to Walworth over the Wisconsin and Southern Railroad Fox Lake Subdivision.