Peoria Station

Heard of a late East Peoria interchange run, so camera already in my car, I drove from work to here to capture it. Both ways it turns out. Short train to, but longer train from. The loaded OZIX twin-bay covered hopper on the returning train is interesting. There are several rail-served Chicagoland Ozinga facilities accessible to UP, and one UP-served facility at Milwaukee.  CAPTION: Union Pacific's LPD01 ("Peoria Wayfreight") is shown at Peoria, Illinois mid- to late-afternoon Thursday, June 4, 2026. UP 7284 delivered 13 cars to the Tazewell & Peoria Railroad at East Peoria, and returned to Adams Street Yard with 52. Heard a northbound get warrants out of South Pekin. As soon as I arrived Cilco Lane, they were cleared to cross the Illinois River. It did not take long for them to show up. Probably bound for Rock River Lumber & Grain at Sterling. As soon as I returned to Peoria, LPD01 had clearance from East Peoria back to Adams Street Yard.  CAPTION: A northbound...

I was at the downtown library when I learned of this train's southbound movement. I decided to head to Mendenhall Road south of Bartonville. Sure enough, the train was already approaching when I arrived. It must have been just seconds behind me when I passed under the mainline at Bartonville.  CAPTION: A southbound Union Pacific grain extra, probably from Sterling, rolls by Mendenhall Road near Sommer (Bartonville), Illinois late-afternoon Saturday, October 11, 2025. UP 7410 and UP 6860 were on the point of the 115-car train. UP 6804 was DPU. - David P. Jordan

Past experience told me I had time, but I didn't.   I caught the tail end of an empty northbound Union Pacific grain extra as I drove under Harmon Highway (Rt. 116) Kickapoo Creek Road early this afternoon. I ended up going into town, getting onto westbound I-74 and noticing the train still on the double track either stopped or stalled. So I made my way to Alta Road and then Radnor, only to see it rolling north of Pioneer. I turned around and got to the Alta Road crossing just in time. Wrong side of the tracks, but with the high sun, it probably didn't matter much.  CAPTION: An empty northbound Union Pacific grain extra races across Alta Road on Peoria, Illinois' northwest side early afternoon Sunday, August 17, 2025. UP 5724, UP 6303 and UP 6825 lead 112 Sterling-bound cars. - David P. Jordan

Friday was my birthday so I took a vacation day and spent the day looking for action that I would not normally see.    The Tazewell & Peoria Railroad's Industry 2 job soon became the focus of my attention, as evidenced by 32 minutes of footage! CAPTION: The Tazewell & Peoria Railroad's "Industry 2" Job works the Uptown Division between Bridge Junction and the North Limit Yard in Peoria, Illinois on May 9, 2025. TZPR 1352 left East Peoria with 18 cars - four empty flats for Komatsu America Corp. plant, six corn syrup loads, a sodium gluconate empty and sodium hydroxide solution load for PMP Fermentation Products, two empty alcohol and three possible distillers corn oil empties (or buffer cars) for BioUrja Renewables LLC. A tank car between the last two cars for PMP appears to have used as a buffer. Train pulled one chassis load and an empty BNSF flat car from Komatsu and five corn syrup empties from PMP. Last scene shows the train across the river after sw...

This afternoon's MPECL waited for passage of a southbound grain extra from Sterling, so I managed to catch two trains on Friday.  CAPTION: A Union Pacific grain extra rolls by W. Farmington Road late afternoon Friday, April 12, 2024. UP 5446 and UP 2762 have 112 cars. UP 7809 is DPU. Train was loaded at Rock River Lumber & Grain Co.   Train MPECL appeared just fifteen minutes after the grain extra passed W. Farmington Road so it was likely already waiting at Peoria Junction.  CAPTION: Union Pacific train MPECL (Manifest, Peoria IL to Clinton IA) rolls by W. Farmington Road near Peoria, Illinois late-afternoon Friday, April 12, 2024. UP 8950 and UP 7099 have 36 cars.   - David P. Jordan

I had a family gathering for lunch today, so I was already close by when I got a heads up this train was coming out of South Pekin. CAPTION: An empty northbound Union Pacific grain extra rolls by W. Farmington Road near Peoria, Illinois mid-afternoon Monday, January 1, 2024. UP 7312, UP 7497 and UP 8088 have 108 cars. Train symbol is reportedly GSDURK (Grain Shuttle, Dupo IL to Sterling IL). The Peoria Sub was relatively busy today. A loaded grain left Allen Station around 1300 hours, and a southbound baretable train arrived South Pekin just before the northbound grain empties departed. Train MCLPE is parked on the Low Line by Adams Street Yard with about 50 cars. I assume that it arrived earlier this morning. As with Dec. 26, the local crew will be working Tuesday to classify this train, work interchanges and build MPECL.  I should also note that a BNSF feed train, X-SMRPEI, is tie up on the main short of Darst Street. I don't know the plan for today, a holiday, but a crew will h...

Union Pacific's Peoria Subdivision was relatively busy today. This morning, I learned that an empty northbound and a loaded southbound grain train would meet at Pottstown, so after comfirming a favorable signal indication at W. Farmington Road, and rejecting the increasingly poor lighting, I moved to Pottstown. As soon as I arrived, Union Pacific train GSPGRK-10 was approaching the double track.  I waited another 20 minutes for train GSRKCP-12 to show. Apparently, it was parked well north of Reservoir Boulevard, and ran at 10mph on Track 2 until the crew could confirm the green signal at the end of the double track. (I'm sure I've caught similar meets there in less time before.) Both were Sterling grain trains, empties returning for more loads and a loaded train having just departed from Rock River Lumber & Grain Co. there earlier this morning. A third movement, a ballast train, likely appeared by mid-afternoon, but I didn't see it.  CAPTION: An empty northbound gr...

Union Pacific's MPECL did not run Friday afternoon. Word is its sole locomotive was "borrowed" for use by this Sterling grain train. Whether MPECL runs Saturday or Sunday is unclear. CAPTION: A southbound loaded Union Pacific grain extra rolls by W. Farmington Road early evening Friday, August 25, 2023. UP 7718 and UP 6593 were on the point of 109 cars. UP 6162 was DPU. Train was loaded at Rock River Lumber & Grain Co's Sterling, Illinois facility.   David P. Jordan

My first video, taken August 27, 2002 - TWENTY years ago today! I was in Galesburg hoping to see the Ringling Brothers and Barnum & Bailey circus train when a potash train entered the Peoria line. The circus train was already in town, but stopped for a crew change and to rest and water the elephants, so I knew I had time to chase the potash train. I went as far as Yates City then turned around and managed to get the circus train leaving Galesburg for the Quad Cities! Much has changed in 20 years. Most significant for the train shown above is that potash trains from Saskatchewan have been routed via Canadian Pacific to Davenport, Iowa and then Iowa Interstate to Peoria since 2013.  And all these years later, I still record local train operations on video. I even got one today! After several hours of looking through Peoria Journal Transcripts from March 1942, my brain had turned to mush, and I needed a break. Through social media, I learned that a southbound Union Pacific grain e...