Peoria Station

 I caught two local train movements today. First, was Iowa Interstate train PESI (Manifest, Peoria IL to Silvis IL). it was leaving East Peoria as soon as I drove by Wesley. I followed it through downtown Peoria and shot video as rolle through the San Koty area. IAIS 514-516-715 have 70 cars. All were empties except for two alcohol loads. The other tank car might have been a tallow empty going back to Council Bluffs, Iowa.    Second was Canadian National Railway local L557 (E. Peoria IL to Decatur IL). CN 5633 was parked on the Creve Coeur Team Track when PESI departed. When I returned, it was on the point of a 31-car freight on one of the Long Tracks. It departed a short time later. Video was taken at Hilliards. CN seems to be getting regular scrap metal business, probably loads for Liberty Steel & Wire. One of the empties on today's L557 displayed GSSX markings, which belong to Alter Metal Processing. CN serves Alter scrap facilities at Green Bay and Wapauca, Wiscon...

Thursday morning, I specifically went into East Peoria for some train action. I missed BNSF's M-GALPEI, which probably arrived early (BNSF 1766-541-1409 were sitting on TZPR's Creve Coeur Team Track around 1000). I exited I-74 and found a local, probably an East Peoria to Collier Yard turn, ready to come out of the TP&W's East Peoria Yard. I waited for it at W. Washington Street, shooting this scene just before it diverged left onto the Nickel Plate. TPW 5008 and TPW 3046 had 27 cars. Perhaps an hour after the TP&W went by, I caught Norfolk Southern local D49 arriving  with NS 3521 and NS 6948, and 17 cars. An hour-and-a-half later, D49 left for Good Yard with NS 6948 and NS 3521, and 15 cars. Power for Canadian National Railway local L557 (East Peoria IL to Decatur IL) was resting on the Creve Coeur Team Track when I arrived. By noon, the crew had boarded and coupled onto the outbound train. I recorded its departure at Wesley East then Hilliards. CN 5715 and CN 563...

Two local train movements captured on video this morning.  First, a Tazewell & Peoria Railroad Industry Job rolls by Hilliards (Creve Coeur), Illinois late Monday morning, November 9, 2020. TZPR 1521 has ten cars for East Peoria. The second is an unusual occurrence and location for me. Crossing reconstruction at the Elizabeth Street prevented movement on its regular route via IC Junction in downtown Pekin, Illinois so IMRR 2084 detoured along the Tazewell & Peoria Railroad's riverfront line to reach home rails. The Illinois & Midland RR transfer had 39 cars, the last 34 of which were grain mash loads off the Iowa Interstate. Radio chatter indicated the IMRR transfer will run Tuesday as well, probably due to heavy grain mash traffic coming off the Iowa Interstate. This BNGX (Bunge) markings on a few of the cars tells me they're from Southeast Iowa Renewable Energy (SIRE) in Council Bluffs, Iowa. These cars are consigned to the barge loadout at Crystal Lake. - David P...

  Delta Connection is resuming nonstops to the Motor City from CIRA. Officials made the annnouncement September 22 that daily service resumes October 11, 2020.  Flights from Detroit Metropolitan Airport will arrive at 4:17pm and leave at 5:10pm. Earlier service had been dropped in July 2016.  Rivian Automotive was influential in the deal. According to this WGLT article , the Detroit, Michigan-based automaker plans to use between 50 and 150 seats per week.  Carl Olson, airport director, said a deal to resume Detroit service had been made back in February but startup was delayed by COVID-19.  - David P. Jordan

  Norfolk Southern's Sunday extra local, probably D47, arrives and departs East Peoria, Illinois Sunday mid-afternoon and early evening, respectively, September 13, 2020. NS 5315 and NS 6964 led 28 cars into the Tazewell & Peoria RR's East Peoria Yard. Later, NS 6964 and NS 5315 are shown at Farmdale with 45 cars. Norfolk Southern Railway's weekday E. Peoria (IL) turn, D49, rolls under TP&W's famed Farmdale Trestle on its return to leg to Good Yard in Normal, Illinois at mid-day Thursday, September 17, 2020. NS 6964 and NS 6948 have 38 cars. Norfolk Southern Railway local D49 rolls through Deer Creek, Illinois at mid-day Friday, September 18, 2020 on its return trip to Good Yard in Normal. NS 7032 and NS 6976 have 34 cars. Note the empty autorack tucked behind three Komatsu truck chassis loads.  - David P. Jordan

  Peoria International Airport is getting $1.1 million for runway improvements and airline apron expansion. WEEK TV-25's website posted this story on its website on Wednesday .  The funds will be used to strengthen 5,650 feet of Runway 4-22, which is 8,004 feet in length. The improvement is needed for continued use by heavier aircraft. Subsurface conditions are causing deterioration of this runway, and part of the funds will be used to investigate this issue. Funds will also be used to design a much-needed airline apron expansion. Before coronavirus lockdowns, which crashed local passenger traffic starting in March, some carriers were using bigger planes, which limited parking space at the terminal. The apron expansion will increase the apron's size to allow for more and larger planes in the 76- to 90-seat class.  - David P. Jordan

Union Pacific couldn't run MPECL (Manifest, Peoria IL to Clinton IA) Friday, July 17, 2020 because a crew was unavailable. So the train ran Saturday.  I'm glad for two reasons: (1) I could see it and (2) it dropped an electric transformer load at Akron Services.   The crew used UP 5517 and UP 5870 to assemble its 67-car train, but had orders to deliver the latter to the Illinois & Midland Railroad at Crescent (Powerton) near Pekin. So before departure north, actually made the delivery. This consumed at least three hours.  I missed MPECL's departure, but knew I could beat it to a location north of town. The first scene is at Legion Hall Road, east of Dunlap. I made it to Akron in time to record MPECL dropping the transformer load and two buffer cars. Edwards Moving & Rigging of Shelbyville, Kentucky is handling unloading and trucking to final destination. Buffer car markings tell me the transformer came from Canadian National origins.  ...