In 1970, the Department of Transportation, in its designation of endpoints for the Amtrak system, ordered a train to run between New York, Washington, and St.

Amtrak initially retained the Spirit of St. Louis, extending it to Kansas City along the Missouri Pacific Railroad.

It frequently ran late (and sometimes not at all), owing to the poor condition of ex-PRR trackage in Ohio, Indiana, and Illinois.

Until October 29, 1978, this section split at Harrisburg and reached Washington Union Station via the Port Road Branch.

Rampant delays caused by deteriorating Penn Central trackage in the Midwest led to a substantial decline in ridership on the National Limited.

Two other former Penn Central trains inherited by Amtrak, the Floridian (formerly the South Wind) and the James Whitcomb Riley, were plagued by similar problems.

Amtrak officials said that eastbound trains frequently left Kansas City with fewer than 100 passengers even at the peak of the crisis.