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PJStar Remembers Peoria Has An Airport! (Aug/Sep Pax Records)

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Someone at the Peoria Journal Star, our newspaper of extremely selective record, must have seen a comment I made recently on Peoria Dot Com, regarding their lack of coverage on local airport passenger traffic.  Well, what do you know, they actually posted an article on August and September records and even talked to the airport director. And not once did the article mention a restaurant! Peoria International Airport handled 57,353 passengers in August, and 53,796 passengers in September, beating 2019 figures for those months. The August figure exceeded by 1.3 percent the previous record for that month, which was set in 2019. Director of Airports, Gene Olson, doesn't believe 2024 passenger traffic will break 2019's record of 689,416 passengers. I hope he is wrong as the numbers are likely close. Unfortunately, the article fails to note that 2023 passenger traffic totaled 638,378. (Figure was posted on the airport's Facebook page on February 15.) Unfortunately, the article i
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Keokuk Junction Rwy. EP Turn 10-11-24

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I just missed the arriving train, which appeared to be heavy, thus four units. Barely an hour after departure, the local departed East Peoria back west with four cars.  CAPTION: The Keokuk Junction Railway East Peoria turn is shown running the Tazewell & Peoria Railroad in Peoria, Illinois on its return leg to Mapleton late-afternoon Friday, October 11, 2024. Later, it is running on the Union Pacific's ex-Peoria Terminal Company line south of Bartonville. LTEX 3010, PREX 2047, PREX 2003 and LTEX 6437 have four cars.   - David P. Jordan
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TP&W East Peoria Switcher 10-10-24

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Shorter days of October mean fewer encounters with local rail action, but I have come across two trains, four days apart, in the same location in East Peoria.    Sunday afternoon, I was driving eastbound Interstate 74 when I encountered an empty Union Pacific grain train (with TP&W crew). On Thursday afternoon, I exited eastbound Interstate 74 onto southbound N. Main Street when I heard a locomotive horn and saw the flashers activitate. Fortunately, I was able to turn left after the train cleared and shot video the same place I did the TP&W-UP train on Sunday. CAPTION: A Toledo, Peoria & Western Railway East Peoria Switcher (EP3?) rolls by E. Washington Street shortly before entering the yard late-afternoon Thursday, October 10, 2024. TZPR 2133 has six cars there were picked up at Collier Yard in Bartonville. - David P. Jordan
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Bartlett Grain Co. LP to Build Elevator on UP Peoria Sub!

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Bartlett Grain Co. LP's Bureau County facility will be similar to its Canadian Pacific Kansas City-served South Jacksonville, Illinois facility, shown May 2, 2020.  Bartlett Grain Co. LP is planning to build a $50 million grain loading facility in Bureau County, Illinois. Media reports here and here  tells us Bartlett Grain will build on 155 acres east of Rt. 40 and north of Interstate 80 between County Roads 1700 and 1745 East. The complex, complete with a rail loop capable of loading up to 120 cars, will employ 25 to 30.  Rail service will be provided by the Union Pacific on its Peoria Subdivision, which runs from Nelson south to Barr. Grain will be shipped to Mexico.  - David P. Jordan
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BNSF Chillicothe Sub Action, UP-TP&W Grain MTs 10-6-24

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The weather was nice but windy Sunday afternoon as I parked along BNSF's Chillicothe Subdivision.    The first train to show, an eastbound, was primarily intermodal but with a block of autoracks on the rear. The second, also eastbound, had seven reefers mid-train. I like that kind of variety. After a third eastbound, I moved from North Rice Road to Princeville to check for activity at the Seneca Foods plant (one boxcar on spot, two empties "constructively placed" on the siding). No sooner did the fourth eastbound cleared the crossing did a westbound show its face. After another westbound, I headed for home, and another adventure... Train symbols in order are: S-CLOLPC1-04A (Port Stack Intermodal, Clovis NM to Logistics Park Center IL) Z-STOWSP7 (Priority UPS-LTL Intermodal, Stockton CA to Willow Springs IL) Z-PHXWSP8-04A (Priority UPS-LTL Intermodal, Phoenix AZ to Willow Springs IL) Z-LACWSP4-04U (Priority UPS-LTL Intermodal, Los Angeles/Hobart CA to Willow Springs IL)
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TZPR Transfer, BNSF E-PEKNAM & G-PEISMR and Iowa Interstate PESI 10-5-24

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Late-Saturday morning, I headed for the downtown library but got delayed. Driving on I-74, I glanced toward the TP&W's East Peoria Yard and found a TZPR switch crew building a cut for a return run to their home yard. Short train but no less interesting encounter.  CAPTION: A Tazewell & Peoria Railroad crew pulls a transfer from sister Toledo, Peoria & Western Railway toward the East Peoria Yard midday Saturday, October 5, 2024. TZPR 1521 has 12 cars. Later, I found an empty BNSF coal train crossing the river. As I followed it out of town, I learned that a second train would follow, so I stuck around the south end rather than return to the library.  CAPTION: BNSF Railway train E-PEKNAM (Coal Empties, Peoria/Kincaid IL to N. Antelope Mine WY) crosses the Tazewell & Peoria Railroad's Illinois River Bridge in Peoria, Illinois mid-afternoon Saturday, October 5, 2024. Later, the whole train is shown at W. Farmington Road. Coal empties came from the Kincaid Powe
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Union Pacific MPECL 10-4-24

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After three misses, I actually got Union Pacific's MPECL today.   I did something different, and photographed the train from the SW Adams Street viaduct. The crew apparently went on duty late due to maintenance-of-way activity north of town, so the scene at W. Farmington Road was shortly after 1800 hours.  CAPTION: Union Pacific train MPECL (Manifest, Peoria IL to Clinton IA) is first shown in a still from the SW Adams Street bridge on Peoria, Illinois' far south edge late-afternoon Friday, October 4, 2024. By early evening, the train rolls by W. Farmington Road and then crests the top of Pioneer Hill. UP 6258 has 34 cars.   - David P. Jordan
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