Peoria Station

Based on activities just a week ago, December 26, I was hoping that Union Pacific's MPECL would leave at least a few hours late, but when I arrived the south side of Peoria around 3:30 Friday afternoon to find ,MPECL gone and a Union Pacific crew shoving an empty coal train (received from Decatur via Canadian National) off the Tazewell & Peoria Railroad and onto the Low Line toward Peoria Junction.   Apparently, as of December 2025, most Decatur coal routed to CN at Peoria (actually TZPR's Pekin double track) now originates at the Gateway Mine near Coulterville, Illinois instead Wyoming's Powder River Basin. So trains must "see-saw" on the Nickel Plate in East Peoria to be positioned in the right direction. If UP and CN hadn't removed the direct connection at South Pekin in March 2002...   Anyway, once the UP coal empties cleared onto home rails at Darst Street, the Keokuk Junction Railway local's conductor lined the switch and the train moved acro...

I left work early when I learned that Union Pacific was running a loaded, northbound coal train on the Peoria Sub!   And when it appeared nothing was running smoothly, I wonder if I could have seen this train anyway had a I not left work early.   The first delay was a GFL garbage truck hitting the truss bridge over Rt. 29 at Pekin. Union Pacific had to send out someone to inspect the bridge for damage. Fortunately, there was no damage to the track structure, and the train was cleared to depart South Pekin.    Next, soggy weather and wet rails are a problem for loaded, northbound coal trains, but distributed power assisted the train's attack up Pioneer Hill, preventing a stall.  CAPTION: Union Pacific train CGMBV (Coal, Gateway Mine IL to Beverly IA) rolls by W. Farmington Road mid-afternoon Friday, December 27, 2024. Later, after fighting Pioneer Hill, the train runs past Akron Services Inc. at Akron. UP 7891 and UP 6198 on the point, 134 coal loads and UP 6246...