A paired track has existed since 1865, for several railroads approaching the St. Louis area. In much of the St. Louis area, all railroads operated via the jointly owned Terminal Railroad Association of St. Louis (TRRA). And Amtrak trains to and from Chicago are able to enter and exit St. Louis via two different routes. Historically, the normal route was to switch to and from the TRRA at WR Tower, crossing the Mississippi River via Merchants Bridge, the most northerly of the river crossings in St. Louis. But beginning in 2000, the normal route would involve the MacArthur Bridge, immediately west of downtown St. Louis. The connection with the TRRA for that route is at Q Tower.
Radio Frequency - 160.560 (AAR Channel 30)
----- East Alton
262.1 Wann
262.9 Wood River (NS crossing)
265.0 Roxanna
268.8 CP North Lenox
269.7 Lenox (junction-UP)
270.0 Mitchell
272.6 Nameoki
275.5 WR Tower (junction-TRRA)
278.0 Venice
280.0 Bridge Jct.
281.0 Q Tower (junction-TRRA)
East Alton to Wann: 1 track, unsignaled.
Wann to WR Tower: 2 tracks, paired track. West track: signaled southbound only. East track: CTC in use.
WR Tower to Q Tower: 2 tracks, CTC in use.
This line is being upgraded for high speed operation, resulting in some changes.