Final upgrades under way on Illinois high-speed route
July 1, 2012 / Updated July 7, 2012
Passenger Rail
Improvements are under way on the final phase of 2012 upgrades to the Chicago-to-St. Louis high-speed route that will be used by Amtrak to run up to speeds of 110 mph.
Installing premium rail with concrete ties and stone ballast are among planned upgrades in the joint project between the Illinois Department of Transportation and Union Pacific. Upgrades are planned for bridges, culverts and drainage; signal and wayside equipment; and roadway-rail grade crossings.
As of June 16, work will progress to north of Bloomington-Normal and most days it will lead Amtrak to charter motorcoaches for Amtrak Lincoln Service (Trains 300-307) passengers at St. Louis, Alton, Carlinville, Springfield, Lincoln, Normal, Pontiac, Dwight, Joliet and Summit, Ill. The Amtrak Texas Eagle (Trains 21/321/421 & 22/322/422) will detour between Chicago and St. Louis for the same period, with alternate transportation in both directions between Joliet and St. Louis.
Motorcoaches are being used to connect to and from Amtrak Illini and Saluki trains in Champaign-Urbana to avoid Chicago suburban highway congestion and downtown Chicago traffic.
A group of rail advocates led by John Robert Smith and Transportation for America would not take no for an answer while trying to return Amtrak passenger service along the Gulf Coast following Hurricane Katrina's devastation. Transportation for America guided the Southern Rail Commission through 20 years of muck, mud and political jambalaya to re-energize a route from New Orleans, LA, to Mobile, AL. In just seven months after its August 2025 launch the train posted 100,000 boardings — shattering Amtrak’s original target of 42,000 annual riders. Ridership topped 18,000 the first month, and by the second had eclipsed Amtrak’s estimate.
The Missouri-Kansas-Texas and Missouri Pacific railroads traveled on similar paths from Missouri to the Southwest. One model railroad manufacturer has paid tribute to these railroads that eventually were merged into the Union Pacific system with HO-scale GP40 and C36-7 models.
OmniTRAX recently opened an outdoor storage facility in Blue Island, IL, launching a new concept where companies can store anything from road equipment to tons of gravel without the need for a warehouse.
BNSF and Norfolk Southern introduce a wealth of patriotic diesel schemes leading up to America's 250th anniversary, the Railway Express Agency ensured that packages, parcels - even a hog - arrived quickly and on time, and the key to success for a Wisconsin model railroad club is opening its doors to the community, something it has done for the past 80 years. And more!
