Peoria Station

Cool temperatures, overcast, stay home after work weather...until I learned of an interesting Iowa Interstate movement.    I caught SIPE just south of Mossville, and shot video at San Koty then again as it entered the North Limit Yard. The train stopped briefly for the conductor to detrain. When I left it around 1830 hours, the train was preparing to shove into the North Limit Yard. When finished, both units would run engine lite through Peoria and across the river to fetch a LOADED grain train received Canadian National.  CAPTION: Iowa Interstate Railroad Ltd. manifest SIPE (Silvis IL to Peoria IL) rolls by San Koty, Illinois early evening Wednesday, September 23, 2026. Later, the train enters the North Limit Yard and Tazewell & Peoria Railroad property. IAIS 151 and IAIS 511 have 44 cars. I decided to go back into Peoria to see if I could capture IAIS units pull that loaded grain train from CN through one of the brightly-lit street crossings in downtown Peoria. B...

I saw a Facebook group message about this train just as I was leaving work at 5:00 this afternoon, so I decided to go for it. I caught it in Chillicothe, and was able to capture the first scene at the W. Moffitt Street crossing. I wanted another shot, so I settled on Sparland, which turned out very well! Notables include a loaded GBRX gondola (steel billets?) and three dry bulk fertilizer (urea, phosphate, etc.) loads (cars 22-24), possibly for the Growmark facility at Stuart, Iowa.  CAPTION: Iowa Interstate manifest PESI rolls by W. Moffitt in Chillicothe, Illinois late-afternoon Thursday, June 18, 2026. Shortly in early-evening, it was rolling through Sparland. IAIS 700 and IAIS 153 have NS 5281, and 43 cars. After capturing the IAIS train at Sparland, I crossed the river into Lacon and took Rt. 26 to East Peoria, hoping the CN local had not yet departed. I arrived with radio chatter indicating they were still in the TZPR yard. I sat at Wesley for a little while, but after dozin...

The Iowa Interstate's Bureau Switcher (BUSW) ran SIPE to Peoria today and took PESI to a point just north of Chillicothe for a relief crew. I learned of PESI's departure from East Peoria and decided to head over to see it. An accident on westbound I-74 forced a detour that delayed my encounter but I'm happy I got it where I did. Behind the two geeps were 19 loads (ADM traffic from...CN???), two loaded alcohol tank cars and 34 ADM empties.  CAPTION: Iowa Interstate Railroad Ltd. manifest PESI (Peoria IL to Silvis) rolls through Rome, Illinois late-afternoon Thursday, May 14, 2026. Shortly, it passes W. Moffitt Street on Chillicothe's north side. After another crew relieved BUSW, the whole train is shown again north of Chillicothe. IAIS 708 and IAIS 710 have 55 cars.   - David P. Jordan

It is unusual for PESI to have more loads than empties, but 15 iron oxide loads from TP&W, three gondolas from NS which appear to contain steel billets (based on another railfan's video at Putnam), two tank cars containing beverage alcohol and all loaded covered hoppers contain ADM grain products (probably from CN). Those NS cars are NW 190350, CR 582421 and NS 187590. CAPTION: Iowa Interstate Railroad Ltd. manifest PESI (Peoria IL to Silvis IL) crosses the Tazewell & Peoria Railroad's Illinois River Bridge into Peoria, Illinois late-morning Sunday, February 8, 2026. Later, power runbys at the Ft. of Main Street in downtown on the TZPR and on home rails at Peoria Heights, and the whole train at San Koty and Mossville. IAIS 502, IAIS 705 and IAIS 712 have 87 cars (48 loads, 39 empties).   CN and BNSF seemed to have suspended the Decatur (IL) to Summerfield (TX) gluten feed trains for awhile, but today, the carriers swapped empties and loads. The last one I shot was ...

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

I left work this afternoon knowing an Iowa Interstate was leaving town, so I decided to give chase, finally catching up to it at Sparland. I'm glad I did as I was able to document the contents of the six gondolas bringing up the rear.    I shot overhead video from the wood road bridge at Putnam. The gondolas contain iron oxide shipped from Waelz Sustainable Products' Clymers, Indiana facility. I can't think of a destination for this product on the Iowa Interstate so they are likely going to CPKC at Davenport. Thus, IAIS is acting as a bridge line between the TP&W and CPKC! CAPTION: Iowa Interstate manifest PESI (Peoria IL to Silvis IL) rolls between Sparland and Henry late-afternoon Friday, October 17, 2025. Later, it is shown from the wooden road bridge at Putnam. Power runbys at Rt. 26 and entering the mainline at Bureau Junction minutes later conclude the chase. IAIS 151 has 77 cars. - David P. Jordan

Late this morning, I found BNSF's M-GALPEI sitting on the mainline short of Darst Street. I believe it had just arrived, but it did not appear to have a crew aboard. I could be wrong though. It is possible that the Tazewell & Peoria Railroad's East Peoria Yard had no room, and M-GALPEI was waiting for Iowa Interstate's PESI to depart.   I did not stick around to find out, opting instead to chase PESI to a location with decent lighting, but ended up getting it several times between downtown Peoria and Chillicothe.    Today's PESI had a decent variety.    - 12 ADM mash empties - 1 industrial empty alcohol (UN 1170)* - 6 BRIX (Incobrasa Industries) soybean empties - 1 PTEX potash empty - 2 gondolas (CIGX/GBRX) that were likely iron oxide loads - 2 ADMX covered hoppers (probably corn germ or gluten meal empties) - 14 BRIX (Incobrasa Industries) soybean empties - 5 industrial alcohol loads (UN 1170) - 15 (various marks) dry fertilizer loads - 18 AD...

I heard the dispatcher give it permission to head north on the Peoria Subdivision, so when it took awhile to catch up to it, I figured it had to be short.    It was.    Kind of a neat one though. Behind the ES44AC were two empty covered hoppers and five loaded tank cars, all placarded as UN 3065, or "alcoholic beverage." I'll dub this one the "Vodka Special." Don't know if the five cars came from BioUrja in Peoria or Alto Pekin LLC or Alto ICP in Pekin.   I'm curious about their destination. Typically, they are consigned to a distillery that is resuming operations after a maintenance shutdown or to a liquor blending and packaging facility. Although the cars are likely to be handled all the way to Silvis, I suspect they will moving back east on manifest CRBI (Cedar Rapids IA to Blue Island IL) to a Chicago connection.  CAPTION: Iowa Interstate Railroad manifest PESI (Peoria IL to Silvis IL) rolls along the Peoria Subdivision through Mossville, Ro...

Iowa Interstate's SIPE and PESI trains between Silvis and Peoria are no longer running a regular schedule, so they technically run as extras and turn at East Peoria (usually with a re-crew) the same day. I was at work when Friday's SIPE arrived this afternoon, but I was able to see PESI this evening.    Besides the Incobrasa empties, one notable in today's consist is the 15-car block of dry fertilizer (urea or phosphate) behind IAIS 152.  CAPTION: Iowa Interstate manifest PESI (Peoria IL to Silvis IL) departed East Peoria, Illinois early evening Friday, May 16, 2025. The whole train is shown at Chicago Street in Peoria, a power runby is at Fairholm Street. Finally, the whole train is shown on home rails at San Koty. IAIS 152 has 62 cars. - David P. Jordan

Friday afternoon after work, I crossed the river on I-474 and then headed toward the downtown library. I picked up barely discernible radio chatter from the TZPR St. Albans dispatcher that prompted investigation. East Peoria traffic nearly prevented me from seeing the rear of Norfolk Southern train D49 shortly after clearing the TP&W Peoria Sub at Farmdale.   And East Peoria traffic kept from from getting ahead of it.   So I backtracked to Morton and got on I-74. I caught a glance of D49 at Crandall, but my decision to get ahead of it at Goodfield was the correct one. I actually shot this video about half way between Deer Creek and Goodfield.    The second time I've seen D49 this week, I was hoping wire rod shipments from Liberty Steel & Wire would resume, but apparently, at least on Norfolk Southern (if at all). The first three covered hoppers may have contained organic grain. That a CUBX pressure-aid covered hopper and corn syrup tank car followed, ma...

No sooner did I arrive East Peoria this afternoon did I hear the Iowa Interstate PESI crew asked for permission from the West Lead (East Peoria) to the North Limit Yard. Train was an unusually short six cars.   But it had a gem: two gondolas on the head end were loaded with the grayish granular stuff known as iron oxide. They were on a "Luthy Turn" from Logansport, Indiana last Wednesday.   Those gondolas are loaded at Waelz Sustainable Products (WSP) at Clymers, Indiana. New business! And since I can't think of a customer on the IAIS that would use iron oxide (except perhaps Gerdau AmeriSteel at Wilton), I suspect these cars will be going to CPKC at Davenport.  CAPTION: Iowa Interstate manifest PESI is shown running along the Tazewell & Peoria Railroad at several locations in Peoria, Illinois mid-afternoon Monday, April 14, 2025. IAIS 707 and IAIS 153 have six cars (four loads, two empties), including two iron oxide loads (new business!) from the TP&W. ...

I nearly missed the first one.   I got word that an Eastern Airlines LLC 777-200 had arrived Peoria on a military charter from El Paso, Texas. Flightaware.com provided the departure time to Victorville, California so I waited at the airport for departure. Afterward, I headed for downtown Peoria, but somehow missed it going by me (a geep and an RDC can hide, but I assumed I'd hear horn action). So I turned back and found out the train had already passed through downtown. I barely made it in time to Bridge Junction to capture the first scene.  CAPTION: An Iowa Interstate geometry train, consisting of IAIS 707 and CN 1501, a converted Rail Diesel Car (RDC), is shown late-afternoon Saturday April 12, 2025 on the Tazewell & Peoria Railroad crossing the Illinois River and then shoving into the Creve Coeur Team Track.   I normally don't wait for a train at night, but Iowa Interstate is an exception. Downtown street lamps are bright, which enables me to get decent video...

When I passed by the East Peoria Yard mid-afternoon, I heard radio chatter indicating a crew was aboard IAIS 509 and would shortly go into the yard and couple to PESI. So I left the downtown library early to check. Sure enough, I had crossed the river and realized the train was snaking its way through downtown.  CAPTION: Iowa Interstate Railroad Ltd. manifest PESI (Peoria IL to Silvis IL) crosses Fairholm Ave. on the Tazewell & Peoria Railroad in Peoria, Illinois late-afternoon Tuesday, April 8, 2025. IAIS 509 had 43 cars (15 loads/28 empties).   - David P. Jordan

On my way to the Davenport Train Show Saturday morning, I noticed the rear of an empty coal train approaching Knoxville on BNSF's Peoria Subdivision. I was able to set up at County Highway 10 crossing in time for video. Train came from the Kincaid Power Station on the Illinois & Midland Railroad. A BNSF crew took over at Crescent/Powerton Yard. CAPTION: An empty BNSF coal train rolls across County Highway 10 at Knoxville, Illinois late-morning Saturday, April 5, 2025. Shown nearing the end the train's run on the Peoria Subdivision, BNSF 6018 and BNSF 9080 are on the point. BNSF 8560 is DPU.   My return home via a different route and knowledge that Iowa Interstate train PESI had passed Mossville at 1805 hours led to an encounter at Putnam. The empty "Crandic" boxcar was apparently bad ordered by BNSF at Galesburg and routed to the IAIS at Peoria (via TZPR). Boxcars are rare on the IAIS Peoria Sub.  CAPTION: Iowa Interstate Railroad Ltd. manifest PESI (Peori...

A few minutes after I first noticed the Iowa Interstate's PESI sitting on the West Lead at the Tazewell & Peoria Railroad's East Peoria Yard, the crew received instructions for departure. The afternoon lighting influenced my choice of Persimmon Street as a video location. An incident involving a woman walking in the right-of-way near the old (1900) Rock Island depot at Liberty and Water streets forced the crew to sit for a short while.  CAPTION: Iowa Interstate Railroad Ltd. manifest PESI (Peoria IL to Silvis IL) rolls along the Tazewell & Peoria Railroad's Uptown Division at Persimmon Street in Peoria, Illinois mid-afternoon Friday, March 28, 2025. The train stopped downtown due to a woman walking on the right-of-way. When police dealt with the situation, the train resumed its run. IAIS 150 and IAIS 702 have 60 cars (14 loads/46 empties). - David P. Jordan

I happened to be approaching the SW Washington Street intersection coming off the Cedar Street Bridge when I caught a glimpse of a train to the southwest. No headlight, so it appeared to be a train having just crossed the river (like me!). I headed down SW Washington and as I crossed the SW Adams Street viaduct, caught a glimpse of a short BNSF manifest. I waited at W. Farmington Road and caught this racing by me. I decided to get it one more time, at Kramm Road a few miles west of Edwards.  CAPTION: BNSF Railway train M-PEIGAL rolls by W. Farmington Road near Peoria, Illinois mid-afternoon Monday, March 24, 2025. It is shown again at Kramm Road, a few miles west of Edwards. BNSF 4075 and BNSF 6052 have 15 cars. Note two Komatsu truck chassis loads on the head end.   A did go to the downtown library for a little bit, but left early on account of Iowa Interstate PESI's impending departure. When I returned to the south side, I caught a short TP&W local, likely returning...

Just as I thought, the Iowa Interstate ran PESI on Sunday.    The only oddity was an empty tank car placarded UN 1993, which is for diesel/petroleum distillates. CAPTION: Iowa Interstate Railroad Ltd. manifest PESI (Peoria IL to Silvis IL) rolls by BioUrja Renewables LLC and both former Rock Island depots on the Tazewell & Peoria Railroad in Peoria, Illinois mid-afternoon Sunday, March 16, 2025. Later, the whole train is shown at San Koty and again at Mossville on home territory. IAIS 510 has 75 cars.   - David P. Jordan

I only saw this afternoon's northbound Iowa Interstate train because I heard radio chatter on the Tazewell & Peoria Railroad's road channel.   A few notes on today's consist:   (1) The ADMX tank car on the head end was empty and had no haz-mat placards, so it may be in soybean oil service. I would guess it came from Decatur on CN and is enroute to another ADM plant, but that's just speculation.    (2) The 21 covered hoppers of mixed ADM/leasing company markings are probably the same I saw last evening behind TZPR 1351 waiting for BNSF's M-PEIGAL to get out of its way.   (3) Two IAIS-marked covered hoppers were loaded, possibly with urea or phosphate fertilizer at either Mosaic Crop Nutrition LLC's facility south of Bartonville or the TP&W-served Growmark terminal at Mapleton.    (4) The tank car on the rear was loaded, and placarded for industrial alcohol (UN 1170). CAPTION: Iowa Interstate Railroad Ltd. BUSW (Bureau Switcher) ran ...

After seeing SIPE Saturday afternoon, I figured would run PESI this morning, so I managed to catch it once before the Peoria Train Fair. Looks like 35 DDGS and/or gluten feed pellet empties, and five scrap metal loads.    CAPTION: Iowa Interstate Railroad manifest PESI (Peoria IL to Silvis IL) rolls by the E. Linnet Street crossing off Rt. 29 in Peoria Heights, Illinois late-morning Sunday, February 16, 2025. IAIS 712 and IAIS 151 have 40 cars.  A TP&W westbound was seen near Piper City late this morning, so after an hour or so at the Peoria Train Fair, I decided to head east to intercept. I found it just west of El Paso and shot video in five locations between there and Ernest Street.   Today's train has a decent mix, including 12 limestone loads on the head end. A 15-car block of corn could have been pulled from La Hogue. I noticed a few nitrogen fertilizer solution empties. This traffic, with loads originating at Wever, Iowa, may have been reduced afte...

I learned that Iowa Interstate brought in an SIPE in the pre-dawn hours Sunday, so the crew would not be rested to return on PESI until mid-afternoon. A pair of SD38-2s indicate SIPE may have been a heavy train, but PESI left with just eleven cars.  CAPTION: Iowa Interstate manifest PESI (Peoria IL to Silvis IL) is shown mid- to late-afternoon Sunday, February 2, 2025 shortly after crossing the Tazewell & Peoria Railroad's Illinois River Bridge. Subsequently, we see it at the West Yard, the new (1967) Rock Island depot and the North Limit Yard. The final scene at San Koty is on home rails. IAIS 153 and IAIS 150 have eleven cars. - David P. Jordan