Ask Trains.com February 2024 compilation | In this month’s installment, Cody answers inquiries related to modeling era-appropriate industrial structures; getting into a sticky situation; building a metal paint/spray booth from scratch; selecting motive power that’s best suited for a short line railroad; and so much more. Plus, Senior Editor Roger “Professor” Carp also stops by […]
LOWELL, Ark. — J.B. Hunt will acquire all of Walmart’s domestic intermodal containers and chassis as part of a new long-term intermodal contract with the nation’s largest retailer. Walmart, which has been a J.B. Hunt customer for decades, had 14,100 WAMU containers in its fleet as of April 2023, but that figure is now between […]
What was your first byline in Trains? Thomas Danneman: My first byline was in the March 2006 issue. I had photos published before then, including a few covers, but “New Muscle for Montana,” which was about Montana Rail Link’s new SD70ACe locomotives, included my first published words. What’s your favorite locomotive and why? Thomas Danneman: […]
FORT MYERS, Fla. — More than 500 days after Hurricane Ian devastated Southwest Florida, and the Seminole Gulf Railway, on Sept. 28, 2022, the railroad has restored operations to Fort Myers. On Tuesday, the railroad operated its first test train across the Caloosahatchee River, having completed the rebuilding of four bridges and track structures across […]
WASHINGTON — Federal Railroad Administrator Amit Bose, in a Wednesday letter to Norfolk Southern CEO Alan Shaw, has cautioned against “backsliding, as a result of a change in leadership or otherwise, on the safety-oriented path” the railroad has established since the February 2023 East Palestine derailment. Bose’s letter comes in response to an effort by […]
OMAHA, Neb. — Union Pacific plans to spend $3.4 billion on capital projects in 2024, the railroad announced Wednesday, with more than half of that going to basic infrastructure upgrades and replacement, such as rail, ties, and ballast. The $1.9 billion for infrastructure represents approximately 56% of the capital plan. Another $600 million is budgeted […]
WASHINGTON — U.S. rail traffic was up from 2023 levels for the fourth straight week, according to statistics from the Association of American Railroads, with overall traffic showing a 3.7% gain for the week ending Feb. 17. Total traffic for the week was 474,226 carloads and intermodal units. That included 220,539 carloads, down 0.6% from […]
CHICAGO — Stadler US will build eight two-car battery-electric trainsets for Chicago’s Metra, its first order for such equipment in the United States, the commuter operator and manufacturer announced today (Wednesday, Feb. 21). The eight trainsets are the initial order for an agreement that could expand to as many as 16 trainsets. While the trainsets […]
WASHINGTON — Metra will receive $100 million to purchase 50 new multilevel commuter rail cars, the Federal Transit Administration announced today, part of almost $631 million in federal funding awarded through the FTA’s Rail Vehicle Replacement Program. Other awards — to the Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority and the Maryland Transit Administration — had previously been […]
The Shay dates back to the 1870s, when logger Ephriam Shay was looking for a more efficient way to move timber from the woods to the mill. More than 2,700 units were built by Lima Locomotive Works between 1880 and 1930. The geared locomotives came in many variations in four different classes. To learn more […]
FORT WORTH, Texas — BNSF Railway has made a founding donation of $2 million to the National Juneteenth Museum, the planned Fort Worth facility has announced. “BNSF is proud to partner with the National Juneteenth Museum to help honor American history and foster opportunities for economic and cultural growth, right near our headquarters here in […]
BALTIMORE — The Maryland Transit Administration will receive more than $213 million in federal funding to help replace its entire light rail fleet, Democratic members of the state’s congressional delegation announced Tuesday. The $213,696,341 from the Federal Transit Administration’s Rail Vehicle Replacement program will go toward MTA plans to replace the 52-vehicle light rail fleet. […]
