The Missouri Eastern Railroad is a class III American

shortline railroad :''Short Line is also one of the four railroads in the American version of the popular board game Monopoly, named after the Shore Fast Line, an interurban streetcar line.'' A shortline railroad is a small or mid-sized railroad company that opera ...

Missouri Missouri is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking List of U.S. states and territories by area, 21st in land area, it is bordered by eight states (tied for the most with Tennessee ...

that began operations in 2022. It operates a 53-mile (85-km) long railroad in the

St. Louis St. Louis () is the second-largest city in Missouri, United States. It sits near the confluence of the Mississippi and the Missouri Rivers. In 2020, the city proper had a population of 301,578, while the bi-state metropolitan area, which e ...

suburbs between Vigus in

Union Union commonly refers to: * Trade union, an organization of workers * Union (set theory), in mathematics, a fundamental operation on sets Union may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Music * Union (band), an American rock group ** ''Un ...

and Rock Island Junction in Overland. The rail line was once part of the mainline of the

Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific Railroad The Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific Railroad (CRI&P RW, sometimes called ''Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific Railway'') was an American Class I railroad. It was also known as the Rock Island Line, or, in its final years, The Rock. At the end ...

. When the Rock Island was liquidated in 1980, the line was purchased by the

Southern Pacific Railroad The Southern Pacific (or Espee from the railroad initials- SP) was an American Class I railroad network that existed from 1865 to 1996 and operated largely in the Western United States. The system was operated by various companies under the ...

's subsidiary the

St. Louis Southwestern Railway The St. Louis Southwestern Railway Company , known by its nickname of "The Cotton Belt Route" or simply "Cotton Belt", is a former Class I railroad that operated between St. Louis, Missouri, and various points in the U.S. states of Arkansas, Ten ...

, known as the Cotton Belt. The Cotton Belt merged into its parent in 1992. The line became part of the

Union Pacific Railroad The Union Pacific Railroad , legally Union Pacific Railroad Company and often called simply Union Pacific, is a freight-hauling railroad that operates 8,300 locomotives over routes in 23 U.S. states west of Chicago and New Orleans. Union Paci ...

in 1996 when the Southern Pacific merged with the U.P. The U.P. leased the track to the

Central Midland Railway The Central Midland Railway , a division of Progressive Rail Incorporated of Lakeville, Minnesota, was a short line railroad in the U.S. state of Missouri, operating under lease of the former St. Louis Subdivision of the Chicago, Rock Island and Pac ...

. The U.P. sold the track to the Missouri Eastern in 2021 and the Central Midland ceased operations. The railroad owns part of its line and leases the remainder. In 2021, the Missouri Eastern bought from V&S Railway, LLC, 42.89 miles (69.02 km) of track between milepost 19.0 near Vigus in

Maryland Heights Maryland Heights is a second-ring north suburb of St. Louis, located in St. Louis County, Missouri, United States. The population was 27,472 at the 2010 census. The city was incorporated in 1985. Edwin L. Dirck was appointed the city's first may ...

and milepost 61.89 near Union. The Missouri Eastern assumed from the Central Midland the lease of 8.65 miles (13.92 km) of track between Vigus and Rock Island Junction. The Union Pacific owns the track. When it acquired the lease, the Missouri Eastern assumed Central Midland's obligations as a

common carrier A common carrier in common law countries (corresponding to a public carrier in some civil law systems,Encyclopædia Britannica CD 2000 "Civil-law public carrier" from "carriage of goods" usually called simply a ''carrier'') is a person or compan ...

. The Missouri Eastern interchanges with the

Terminal Railroad Association of St. Louis The Terminal Railroad Association of St. Louis is a Class III switching and terminal railroad that handles traffic in the St. Louis, Missouri, metropolitan area. It is co-owned by five of the six Class I railroads that reach the city. Present ope ...

at Overland. The Missouri Eastern is a subsidiary of

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, based in

Joplin, Missouri Joplin is a city in Jasper County, Missouri, Jasper and Newton County, Missouri, Newton counties in the southwestern corner of the U.S. state of Missouri. The bulk of the city is in Jasper County, while the southern portion is in Newton County. J ...

References

*Eric Berger, "New Railroad to Take Over Former Rock Island in Missouri," Railfan & Railroad Magazine (2021). https://railfan.com/new-railroad-to-take-over-former-rock-island-in-missouri/ *"St. Louis-area short line launches operations," Trains Magazine (2022). https://www.trains.com/trn/news-reviews/news-wire/st-louis-area-short-line-launches-operations/ * * {{Missouri railroads Missouri railroads