Peoria Station

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.  ...

Delta Connection can drop Peoria from its network.  The Department of Transportation issued a Notice of Adjustments to Service Obligations on May 12, which states -  On May 12, 2020, the Department issued the Notice allowing Covered Carriers to request exemptions from their Service Obligation up to five percent of the points of their service obligation, or five points, whichever is greater, subject to certain conditions. The Notice directed Covered Carriers to submit prioritized lists of the points for which they wish to be granted an exemption. The Department explained that it would not grant an exemption to a Covered Carrier for a point if it would result in that point losing service from all Covered Carriers. The Notice also described how the Department would resolve conflicts should multiple Covered Carriers request an exemption for the same point where the Department could not grant all the requests. The Department reserved the right to deny an exemption r...

Two events in 1999 - AccessAir's failure and the displacement by Bloomington-Normal's Central Illinois Regional Airport (CIRA) as the region's leading airline passenger facility - threatened PIA's future as 2000 dawned. The question on everyone's mind was how to deal with the problem. Let us review happenings by airline for the year. AMERICAN EAGLE (American Eagle Airlines) By the end of May 2000, flights moved from Gate 4 to Gate 5, which was formerly used by AccessAir and was jetway-equipped. About this time, the carrier announced that it intended to convert all Chicago-O'Hare flights to regional jets by fall. Peoria would gain a sixth daily roundtrip (first shown in AA's September 6 timetable). A fifth roundtrip was converted to jet service on August 21 and the sixth on October 23. There would be no more American Eagle ATR-42s operating in or out of Peoria.  NORTHWEST AIRLINK (Mesaba Airlines) On May 1, when Bloomington-Normal received an ...

Moments after replacing my scanner batteries, I heard the Tazewell & Peoria Railroad (TZPR) dispatcher give BNSF's M-GALPEI permission to run from S. Darst Street to East Peoria. I was on Wesley Road, so I had to cross the river and get to a good spot.  Fortunately, discussion between the crew and the crew van driver delayed the train's movement, so I arrived with plenty of time.  BNSF 2300, BNSF 2592, BNSF 2742, BNSF 2787 and HLCX 1072 have 37 cars. The symbol, M-GALPEI, stands for "Manifest, Galesburg, IL to Peoria, IL." - David P. Jordan

By 1995, it was clear that PIA's passenger business was in recession. One would expect a downward trend during an economic recession, but at this time both the local and national economy were booming. High fares, loss of major carriers and the false perception created by the local media that PIA had lost all jet service were primary contributors to the decline. Understanding the times is vital. Let's start with a rundown of local air service happenings in 1995 and 1996. AMERICAN EAGLE (Flagship Airlines/Simmons Airlines) When a sufficient number of Flagship Airlines Saab 340 turboprops were made available and their crews finished training for winter weather operations, Chicago-O'Hare service resumed Janauary 4, 1995. Initially, there were six daily roundtrips. The FAA's December 9, 1994 order to ground ATR-42s apparently ended permanently the Peoria-Burlington (Iowa) tag-on that was operated daily for several years. Simmons returned its ATR-42 fleet to five of s...

Rising air fares and reduced jet service plagued PIA in the late 1980s and early 1990s. Despite some moderate success in its efforts to convince carriers to cut fares and increase service, nothing could prevent the blow Peoria received in mid-January 1991. Let's review events by airline. My primary source is the North American Edition of OAG's July 15, 1991 Desktop Flight Guide .  AMERICAN AIRLINES/AMERICAN EAGLE (Simmons Airlines/Flagship Airlines) Although it added (resumed, technically, after 29 years) Peoria to its network late in 1991, news preceding American Airlines' re-introduction of Chicago jet service rated much media coverage throughout the year. A March 15 Peoria Journal Star story indicated that service could begin in August. Progress came on May 8 when the Federal Aviation Administration proposed modification of the High Density Rule to allow for jet aircraft of up to 110 sets to use slots designated for commuter flights. The rule change would be in ...

Frequent happenings continued into the 1990s so I'll continue with my yearly theme for awhile longer.  The Peoria Journal Star  carried a piece the last day of 1989 in which reporter Stephen Wittmer predicted stable economic growth into the next decade, but cautioned that improved airline service depended on an increase in our passenger base. (Growth did not necessarily require significant population growth*, but rather, a return to competitive air fares.) Suffice if to say, Peoria's local passenger base didn't grow in 1990, but the airport attracted two new airlines and learned of prospects for jet service to Chicago! Let's review airline happenings for the year. Specific flight details in the airline summary below were culled from the OAG's April 1990 Pocket Flight Guide . *Peoria's Metropolitan Statistical Area lost significant population in the 1980s. The 1980 census shows 365,774 residents in the Tri-County area but ten years later this number had...

As the 1980s were closing, PIA officials expressed an optimistic view of the future and pushed for growth opportunities. It was strange though that GPAA chairman Gerald Shaheen was quoted in the Peoria Journal Star' s May 18 issue as saying in response to a propose mag-lev train project, "If it's a natural flow of development, how could you stop it? We have said all along our future is in handling freight, not in passengers ." Whether his indifference to passengers was based solely on the possibility of a mag-lev train connecting Peoria with major cities or a general attitude based on expectations of future challenges is unclear. But it does appear airport officials were contradicting themselves at times.  With that in mind, here is a rundown of air service happenings for 1989. I possess only two Official Airline Guides (North American Edition - Pocket Flight Guide) for that year - February and March - so details will be more limited than in prior years. En...