Does anyone know what traffic is like on the old Alton/GM&O line between Springfield, Illinois and St. Louis? I think there is something like 6-10 Amtrak trains per day, but I am wondering what the freight density is like.
I think there is a coal train that makes its way on this line from St. Louis to Springfield to the Kincaid power plant via Illinois and Midland. I also think that there is a train a day from the old CNW St. Louis line that was transferred to the Alton line after the CNW line was abandoned. I also think there is a weekly coal train that hits the line northbound just north of Carlinville. I finaly imagine that it gets at least one freight a day in each direction from regular traffic and occassional grain trains?
I also wonder if UP uses this line much as an alternate when traffic is heavy on the old CE&I line?
Gabe
P.S. Part of the reason I wonder is, this is likely the line that will be converted to high speed rail–in the event the tax payers decide they have money to burn. What would they do with this traffic?
I full of half answers today. The engineer from IDOT that was their man on the “high” speed upgrade from Joliet to Springfield was at a recent Sandhouse Gang meeting. He said that one of the reasons that the UP was OK with the whole project including the recently added trains was the fact the freight traffic on the line is low.
I don’t recall that he gave any specifics on current traffic levels.
I believe that the line south of Springfield is in line to eventually get upgrading, but probably for no more than the 110 MPH design for the northern end. That does not cause a big problem for freight operation. Incidently, the track and grade crossing protection for the line north of Springfield has been ready for 110MPH for over a year. The holdup is the signaling system. From what I understand, the systems under design are pushing the technology envelope and there are major hangups. The guy we met is the trackman, and on signals he said “Please don’t ask”.
I stopped at Ridgely Tower this summer and chatted with a taxi (van driver) that picks up crews. I dont remember the exact number of trains on the line, i think it is sporatic, based on coal from the UP going north on the I&M. He also mentioned a train that runs north on the old CNW line and recrews at Peoria.
Everytime i am in the area, I stop in at Ridgely to see if it is still in operation. So far, so good!
Gabe…gonna do a little railfanning over the holidays?
I get a break from the grind today, and will have 8 hours to go out. I wish I had more time, as I would like to get into Southern Illinois to see some things I have never seen before. Too bad CSX’s Southern Indiana line’s traffic went down so badly, there would be a lot of good spots 2 hours from me were it not for that fact.
Yes, I don’t get the signal problem thing either. 110 MPH is No Big Deal. I spent a day with the IC agent in Havana, IL. (I was maybe 12?) He told me of a cab ride he had on the old Green Diamond south from Springfield, that was the articulated train they built around 1936. The engineer took it up past it’s designed speed - which was 117 MPH. Then the governor would take over and it would drop back down to around 113. Then they’d go back up past 117. “Mile after Mile” he said to me. I think someone’s looting the treasury of the State of Illinois with some wacko signal system that is not needed. "Course that wouldn’t be the first time we’ve been looted. Q. Why is a thief preferable to a politician? A. Because a thief will just take you money and be on his/her way. A politician, on the other hand, will insist on staying around and telling you why it was good for you that he/she took your money.
Union Pacific does run a pair of daily manifests on the old Alton between East St. Louis and Ridgely. These are symbols MPRPB and MASPR. The operate on the old C&NW and C&IM trackage rights north of Ridgely. MASPR is often heavy with automotive and auto frame traffic and an extra section, MASPRX, reportedly runs as much as twice a week.
A pair of symbol freights, MASBN and MBNAS, are supposed to run on an alternate-day schedule between East St. Louis and Bloomington but instead seem to run when UP feels like it. Locals work out of Bloomington to Springfield/Carlinville, also on an alternate-day schedule and one works north out of Bloomington about five days a week. Grain extras run on this line sometimes as do some detouring freights. Also, using the line south of Ridgely are occaisonal potash trains (to Midstate Warehouse on the other side of Springfield) and about three loaded and three empty coal trains running between the Monterey Mine and AmerenCILCO’s Duck Creek Station on the Keokuk Junction Railway. Trackwork on the Jeff City Sub in Missouri has UP detouring manifests and empty coal trains northbound on the GM&O-C&IM-C&NW routing some days.
There isn’t much on-line traffic density but grain elevators at Cayuga (Pontiac), Bloomington, and Elkhart can ship unit trains of 100, 100 and 75 cars, respectively, while McLean can ship 25. Smaller elevators at Ocoya and Lexington also get service. Some fertilizer traffic exists at Dwight, Pontiac, Towanda, McLean and Springfield. Manufacturers are Cargill’s soybean crushing plant at Bloomington, St. Gobain Container (glass) and Weyerhaeuser (boxes) at Lincoln and Central Illinois Steel at Carlinville. There’s also a feed manufacturer/dealer north of Wilmington. Stepan Chemical, near Joliet, may be served by both CN and UP.
Mitsubishi Motor Manufacturing of America’s assembly plant is in Normal, Illinois and is located on the Norfolk Southern. NS serves the plant exclusively. In 1988-1996, Conrail had access to the plant, but NS did all of the switching.