Peoria Station

As expected, Peoria International Airport set a new annual passenger record in 2025. At a news conference inside the passenger terminal this morning , Metropolitan Airport Authority director Gene Olson announced that 812,376 passenger were handled during the past year. The previous record was 689,416 passengers, which was set in 2019. The airport nearly broke its 2019 record with 687,601 passengers in 2024.  The actual record was broken the first eleven months of 2025 when 741,724 passengers had used the airport. This was the first time PIA had exceeded 700,000 passengers in a year. With December traffic at 70,672 - the highest ever for that month - the 800,000 mark was exceeded as well.  PIA benefitted from stable or declining fuel prices, airlines engaging in fierce competition for market share and sufficient pilots to handle the resulting growth. Allegiant Air's low-fare nonstops as well as increased capacity by American Eagle and United Express has attracted travelers not ...

Looks like the BUSW (Bureau Switcher) pulled PESI this afternoon. The plan for the CN grain empties is to have SIPE come down tonight with a relief crew to take PENT early tomorrow morning.  CAPTION: Iowa Interstate manifest PESI (Peoria IL to Silvis IL) rolls out of Peoria, Illinois late-afternoon Tuesday, January 20, 2026. IAIS 712 has 39 cars.   - David P. Jordan

Short train, but the Tazewell & Peoria Railroad's East Peoria Yard has been plugged the last few days, so inbound freights are being parked elsewhere, traffic is accumulating and not getting classified. An earlier SIPE is on the double track at Grove. A KJRY outbound or TP&W inbound is on the Nickel Plate, and Friday's BNSF M-GALPEI left its train on the New Long. The Limit Yard also has cars. A TZPR switcher delivered a train to Kickapoo Yard about midday Sunday and an extra was supposed to be called this afternoon.    Today's train had mostly loads - most covered hoppers (ADM loads from CN?), two iron oxide gondolas from TP&W and five likely dry fertilizer loads out of Mapleton (TP&W) or Mosaic (TZPR). I'd guess the former, and that they are going to the Growmark warehouse at Stuart, Iowa.  CAPTION: Iowa Interstate Railroad Ltd. manifest PESI (Peoria IL to Silvis IL) rolls through Rome, Illinois late-morning Sunday, January 18, 2026. IAIS 151 and I...

Friday afternoon was busy, but the days are still too short to take advantage of anything other than chance encounters. The Tazewell & Peoria Railroad's East Peoria Yard was pretty full, so BNSF left M-GALPEI on the New Long Main in Peoria and ran engine lite to East Peoria for M-PEIGAL (which, as usual, had to be built from two tracks). A TP&W local ran around the same time as well. The Keokuk Junction Railway local had to wait for an BNSF Kincaid coal empty before moving from Iowa Junction to East Peoria. A Tazewell & Peoria Railroad job was working Liberty Steel & Wire and the Kickapoo Yard area. I did capture one train movement however...   BioUrja Renewables LLC purchased ADM's Peoria plant and property on November 1, 2021 but today was the first time I heard the crew call it "BioUrja 932."  CAPTION: One of BioUrja Renewables LLC's, ADMX 932, pulls 15 corn loads from the South Yard in Peoria, Illinois toward the distillery on old Rock Isl...

When I found it, CN's L557 was stopped after finishing working at Hanna Steel, so it is possible the hi-cube CN boxcar up front was pulled from Amerhart. But it might be a zinc ingot empty car from Liberty Steel & Wire Co.  CAPTION: Canadian National Railway train L557 (Local, E. Peoria IL to Decatur IL) rolls across Fifth Street near South Pekin, Illinois mid-afternoon Tuesday, January 13, 2026. CN 3192 has four cars.   On my way from South Pekin to the downtown Peoria library, I encountered this Tazewell & Peoria Railroad industry Job.  CAPTION: A Tazewell & Peoria Railroad "Industry Job" rolls by Darst Street and Krause Avenue in Peoria, Illinois enroute from Kickapoo Yard to the East Peoria Yard late-afternoon Tuesday, January 13, 2026. HESR 2107 has six cars.   - David P. Jordan

My first Class I encounter in 2026!   I was entering Peoria on the Cedar Street Bridge and saw the headlight in the distance, and learned within seconds that it was the BNSF "local."    The five OZIX-marked (Ozinga) twin-bay covered hoppers on today's train were empty, and may be assigned to Illinois & Midland RR-served Harsco slag processing facilities at Powerton and Sicily. After all, I saw several loaded OZIX-marked cars departing East Peoria on Norfolk Southern's D49 last summer. But the new Ozinga Cement Co. barge-rail-truck? facility recently opened at the lower end of the old Peoria Barge Terminal property has been getting a lot of these cars, most of which have OZIX markings as well.  CAPTION: BNSF Railway train M-GALPEI (Manifest, Galesburg IL to Peoria IL) enters Tazewell & Peoria Railroad property enroute to East Peoria late afternoon Monday, January 12, 2026. BNSF 3910 and BNSF 6795 have 35 cars.   - David P. Jordan