Amtrak’s #4 of 7/2 apparently detoured between Kansas City and Galesburg yesterday.
https://asm.transitdocs.com/train/2018/7/2/4
I was checking the La Plata MO webcam looking for it and the above site kept saying it was expected to arrive LaPlata 1 hr, 22 min late with an update of an hour earlier. Around 3:15 pm, after looking for information on Amtrak’s website, I called and after some back and forth with a patient agent, she said it would be arriving in Galesburg around 3:55 PM. She did not have any other information. The map kept showing the icon just east of Kansas City until it suddenly appeared near Galesburg. Also observed a BNSF hi-rail pickup truck traveling west on the north track (nearest the station) and no activity at the station. I am curious as to the detour route and cause. Does anyone have any information?
The detour was via the BNSF Brookfield sub, the former CB&Q line via Quincy. The reason was bridge maintenance work somewhere on the former Santa Fe line. Freights were also affected.
Thanks. That makes sense. Does BNSF route much traffic that way? I know they used to have the two passenger trains each way on that line back in the fifties. What condition is it in?
I’m in California, and haven’t personally seen or ridden the Brookfield Sub in nearly 50 years; but it’s my understanding from chats on the La Plata webcam site that BNSF routes coal traffic over that line. Maybe someone in the Midwest can comment on its current physical condition and traffic levels.