HERMISTON, Ore. — Union Pacific announced this week that would be laying off nearly 200 people at its Hinkle rail yard in Hermiston, the latest example of cost reductions brought on by Precision Scheduled Railroading. About 195 people will lose their jobs as UP closes its Hinkle locomotive shop and warehouse over the next two […]
Magazine: Trains Magazine
Vancouver Island tourist railroad take a season off for locomotive repairs NEWSWIRE
SEATTLE — The Alberni Pacific Railway, the tourism excursion service that gives visitors a taste of industrial railroading in the forests of British Columbia’s Vancouver Island, won’t be operating this season because repairs are needed for both the steam and diesel locomotives it has been using. “The No. 7 Baldwin 2-8-2T steam locomotive is undergoing […]
Washington Metro returns cars to service after door malfunction NEWSWIRE
WASHINGTON — DC Metro returned most of its 3000-series railcars to service on Wednesday, a day after pulling them because the door on one car opened while a train was in motion. Metro General Manager Paul J. Wiedefeld said a malfunctioning electrical component caused the doors to open, the Washington Post reports. Twenty-six cars with […]
AAR: Carload traffic mixed for the week of May 18; crude oil still running high NEWSWIRE
Association of American Railroads WASHINGTON — The Association of American Railroads today reported U.S. rail traffic for the week ending May 18. For this week, total U.S. weekly rail traffic was 536,358 carloads and intermodal units, down 1.8% compared with the same week last year. Total carloads for the week ending May 18 were 267,006 […]
Agencies react to criticisms of mistakes leading to 2017 Amtrak Cascades crash NEWSWIRE
SEATTLE — The National Transportation Safety Board wasn’t stingy in handing out criticisms or recommendations for changes in the aftermath of the December 2017 Amtrak Cascades derailment, so those on the receiving end have a lot of work ahead of them figuring out if and how they’ll respond to the safety board. For the Washington […]
Amtrak suspends ‘Missouri River Runner,’ ‘Southwest Chief’ service NEWSWIRE
The westbound Southwest Chief passes through Brookfield, Ill., on May 15, 2019. Chief service is temporarily suspended in Kansas because of a BNSF route closure. TRAINS: David Lassen KANSAS City, Mo. — Amtrak has temporarily suspended service on its Missouri River Runner between Kansas City and St. Louis, and on the Southwest Chief between Kansas […]
DC Metro pulls cars from service after door malfunction NEWSWIRE
WASHINGTON — DC Metro has pulled almost 300 railcars from service after a set of doors on one car opened while a train was in motion. The 286 cars of Metro’s 3000 series, built by Breda and delivered in 1987, represent about 15 percent of the transit system’s fleet. They will remain out of service until […]
Group seeks funds to restore Canadian National 4-8-2 to operation NEWSWIRE
No. 6060 at Stettler, Alberta Rocky Mountain Rail Society STETTLER, Alberta – A nonprofit in Alberta wants to raise nearly $1 million to start restoration work on Canadian National 4-8-2 No. 6060. No. 6060 was built in 1944 and was used in mainline excursion service in the 1970s and 1980s. Today, the locomotive is owned […]
Illinois infrastructure plan would include $100 million for extension of Metra service NEWSWIRE
YORKVILLE, Ill. — Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s proposal for a six-year, $41.5-billion infrastructure program in the state includes $100 million for the expansion of Metra service into Kendall County, the Kendall County Record reports. A total of $3.4 billion in the plan is for transit projects, the Chicago Tribune reported earlier this week, with $2.9 […]
Meeting on federal infrastructure bill ends in acrimony NEWSWIRE
WASHINGTON — Talks between President Donald Trump and Democratic congressional leaders on an infrastructure bill broke down on Wednesday, with each side blaming the other: The president he can’t work with Democrats while they investigate his administration, and Democrats responded the president was never serious about an infrastructure program. Trump had met with House Speaker […]
Next stop for Big Boy No. 4014: Iowa. From there, eastbound? NEWSWIRE
No. 4014 will travel to Iowa on an excursion on July 15. Trains: Jim Wrinn OMAHA, Neb. – Where is Union Pacific Big Boy No. 4014 headed next? The UP Museum has confirmed that its fund-raising trip of July 15 from Omaha to Boone, Iowa, will be pulled by the newly restored 4-8-8-4 that returned […]
Safety board takes aim at Talgo train set in Cascades crash investigation NEWSWIRE
A view of the wreckage of derailed Amtrak Cascades Train 501 on Dec. 18, 2017. Steve Carter WASHINGTON — The conclusion of an investigation into a 2017 Amtrak Cascades derailment has touched off a debate over the safety of non-conventional trainsets. The National Transportation Safety Board concluded Tuesday that the Talgo equipment’s lightweight design was […]