The train was handicapped by inconvenient departure and arrival times, as it ran on the same schedule as the Indianapolis-Chicago leg of the "Cardinal." It was also plagued by slow travel times, especially on the segment from Indianapolis south to Louisville. This segment was operated over the Louisville and Indiana Railroad, which had purchased the line from Conrail in 1994, and had a speed limit of 30 miles per hour (48 km/h) over most of the route due to its jointed rail. This made travel on the southern leg of the "Kentucky Cardinal" slower than automobile traffic on the parallel Interstate 65.