The Glen Carbon Central Railroad, hereafter known as the GCC, is a 'from the mines' coal hauler that also serves industries which require iron ore and scrap metal, coke and coal, various alloys, limestone, and that produce finished steel, waste slag and ash. Some of the industries served also produce raw agricultural materials such as wheat, oats, rye, flax, corn, soy beans, and finished products such as oil, various catalysts, refined lubricants, and fuels. Malt, grain, and hops as well as brewed products are also produced by other industries. Other materials hauled would include airplane parts, farm implements, pumping equipment, generators, and other mechanical manufactured goods.

The GCC serves several coal mines, a steel mill, a refinery, mills and elevators, and a brewery as major industries, plus a host of small businesses on various spurs and sidings. It also provides passenger service connecting with other roads including the Union Pacific and the Missouri Pacific, the Rock Island, the Wabash, the Norfolk and Western, the Chicago and Northwestern, the Nickel Plate, the Illinois Central, the Illinois Terminal, the Litchfield and Madison, the Pennsylvania Railroad, and the New York Central. These connections are also utilized for freight service.