Peoria Station

Much of McLean County's historic rail mileage has disappeared in the past half-century, but this Central Illinois region is still served by six freight and one passenger railroad, offering variety to the rail enthusiast and historian. Bloomington-Normal, with a combined population of 130,000, commands most of our attention, with service by Amtrak, Norfolk Southern and Union Pacific. The Bloomer Line, Canadian National, Illinois Terminal Belt and Toledo, Peoria & Western operate in rural portions of the county. - David P. Jordan

Loaded ethanol trains make occasional appearances on Union Pacific's Peoria Subdivision, so when I receive a heads up that one is due, I usually go after it.  I'm unsure how to decipher "IH" and "BH" symbols but I assume the train came out of Iowa and is bound for Texas, though CSX units may indicate interchange at East St. Louis for a southeast point.   CAPTION: A Union Pacific unit ethanol train rolls by W. Farmington Road near Peoria, Illinois late-morning Saturday, November 19, 2022. UP 8119, UP 7368 and CSXT 7236 were on the point of their 110-car train (including a buffer car at each end). CSXT 896 was DPU. Symbol reportedly UEIHBH.  - David P. Jordan

CAPTION: A Tazewell & Peoria Railroad "Industry Job" rolls along S. Water Street in downtown Peoria, Illinois late-afternoon Tuesday, November 15, 2022. TZPR 1351 has five empty corn syrup tank cars pulled from PMP Fermentation Products, and two truck chassis loads from the Komatsu plant. I passed on Union Pacific's MPECL today. The EOT was flashing but with no movement or radio chatter by 4:00pm, I left the Adams Street Yard area. But when I arrived downtown, I heard a locomotive horn and came across this!  Hopefully, in the not-too-distant-future, locals like this working the Uptown Division (ex-Rock Island) will be handling steel to and scrap metal from O'Brien Steel Service Co. I've seen nothing new on plans to restore rail access and obtain service from the Tazewell & Peoria Railroad, but I assume that the project is still a go.  O'Brien Steel does a lot of work for Caterpillar and Komatsu, and for its Rohn Products subsidiary as well. So steel p...

This afternoon, I caught the Iowa Interstate arriving and departing. In between, I caught a TZPR job delivering Caterpillar tractor loads to Keen Logistics.  Regarding the TZPR job, this isn't a rare movement by any means, but it is rare to be in the right place to watch it happen.  A portion of the Caterpillar tractor loads pulled from Building SS are spotted at the Creve Coeur Freight House for Keen Logistics, which unloads them, prepares them for dealers and trucks them out. I assume that some of these may actually be re-loaded on flat cars for rail shipment.  This practice probably dates back to the late 1980s when TZPR predecessor Peoria & Pekin Union Railway formed "Peoria Midwest Transportation Service" (PMTS) to facilitate transloading and storage services for area industries. Keen Logistics took over these duties sometime after the Tazewell & Peoria Railroad began leasing P&PU on November 1, 2004. The enclosure on the south end of the freight house wa...

Fourteen boxcars - all from the Keokuk Junction Railway - was a nice treat to have on Union Pacific's MPECL this afternoon. I know the KJRY eastbound arrived Mapleton last evening, so I was hoping delivery of UP interchange would be in time to make Friday's MPECL. Looks like it did. CAPTION: Union Pacific train MPECL (Manifest, Peoria IL to Clinton IA) rolls by Milepost 80 shortly after departing Peoria, Illinois late-afternoon Friday, November 11, 2022. Later, the train rolls through Pottstown. UP 8828 has 48 cars. Note 14 boxcars in the consist. David P. Jordan Morton, Illinois

Today's MPECL was a couple cars longer than Friday's train, and eleven more than last Tuesdays. I guess that is on occasion for celebration.  The lack of Griffin Wheel boxcar business and WSP zinc oxide traffic has me concerned though. Hopefully, this is just a seasonal lull.  CAPTION: Union Pacific train MPECL (Manifest, Peoria IL to Clinton IA) rolls across W. Farmington Road shortly after leaving Peoria, Illinois late-afternoon Tuesday, November 8, 2022. UP 6155 has 37 cars. - David P. Jordan

I lingered in the area after church this morning, heard some radio chatter on the UP channel and waited. Finally, this unusual train showed up. It came probably came from the St. Louis area.  Given its length (only 90 cars) compared to unit coal trains, this may well be a train of coke empties. I don't know the "B2" or "C4" destination symbols.  CAPTION: Union Pacific train CB2C4 hits the top of Pioneer Hill on the northwest edge of Peoria, Illinois early afternoon Sunday, November 6, 2022. UP 5789 and UP 5577 have 90 TILX rapid discharge hoppers. Train may be in coke service. UPDATE (11-8-22): This train was moving from Cora, Illinois to Savage, Utah, which means it may have been handling coal empties after all.   - David P. Jordan

I got it again, but MPECL wasn't much longer Friday (35 cars) than on Tuesday (Tuesday). Perhaps Waelz Sustainable Products is routing zinc oxide TPW-Watseka-UP instead of TPW-Peoria-UP, and Amsted Rail/Griffin Wheel Corp locomotive wheel shipments are experiencing a lull? Notably, Friday's train did have four more scrap loads from Hitchcock Scrap Yard's KeokukmJunction Railway-served Canton facility routed KJRY-Peoria-UP.  CAPTION: Union Pacific train MPECL (Manifest, Peoria IL to Clinton IA) rolls by W. Farmington Road shortly after leaving Peoria, Illinois late afternoon Friday, November 4, 2022. UP 8828 has 35 cars.   - David P. Jordan

Receiving a text around 4:00 this afternoon that BNSF's M-GALPEI had just passed Elmwood, I decided that microfilm can wait another day. I'm glad I went to W. Farmington Road and waited. I hadn't shot this vantage point (the old Gateway Milling Co. raildock area) since October 1, 2012! Torrential rains flooded this area in April 2013 and equipment and supplies (including large stones) needed to restore the BNSF mainline tore up the ground, thus keeping anyone from driving back there. But in May 2022, a contractor used the area to store equipment and supplies to renew the railroad crossing, making it driving again.  I like it...no shadows, even on a late-afternoon November day!  CAPTION: BNSF Railway train M-GALPEI (Manifest, Galesburg IL to Peoria IL) rolls by W. Farmington Road late afternoon Thursday, November 3, 2022. BNSF 5766 and BNSF 6845 have 83 cars. I knew that an Iowa Interstate train was simultaneously crossing the river. When the BNSF train cleared, I headed dow...

I missed it all last week, so I needed to check on Union Pacific train MPECL (Manifest, Peoria IL to Clinton IA) this afternoon after work. Video shows it rolling by W. Farmington Road. UP 8005 has 26 cars. Just when you think traffic has been growing, you see that such is not always the case. Hopefully, Friday's train will be of decent length.  - David P. Jordan