Union Pacific steam guru Steve Lee to retire NEWSWIRE

stevelee

Union Pacific steam program director Steve Lee. David Hoge CHEYENNE, Wyo. — Union Pacific steam program boss Steve Lee will retire at the end of this year after 22 years in his position. Lee has become synonymous with the program during his tenure. Lee went railroading in January 1972 as a student fireman on the […]

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Ohio Governor-elect: “That train is dead” NEWSWIRE

COLUMBUS, Ohio – In his first news conference as governor-elect, John Kasich shot down the proposed passenger train corridor linking Cleveland, Columbus, and Cincinnati. Kasich told reporters: “That train is dead. I said it during the campaign. It is dead. Passenger rail is not in Ohio’s future.” Kasich went on to say that he supports […]

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Illinois city celebrates station upgrades NEWSWIRE

MATTOON, Ill. – A four-year, $3 million project to stabilize and then improve the three-story former railroad office building and passenger station in Mattoon was celebrated last week by Amtrak and Illinois DOT. Six daily Amtrak trains use the station, which is sited about 130 miles northeast of St. Louis. The Coles County Historical Society […]

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American Railway Explorer plan is scrapped NEWSWIRE

DENVER – The proposed American Railway Explorer luxury passenger train is being mothballed just three months after its announcement, the Denver Post has reported. Officials with Xanterra Parks and Resorts, the train’s owner, yesterday told contractors working on equipment refurbishment to cease work. Xanterra, one of billionaire Phil Anschutz’s holdings, couldn’t be reached for comment. […]

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Burlington Northern icon Robert W. Downing dies NEWSWIRE

Robert W. Downing Burlington Northern SPOKANE, Wash. – Robert W. Downing, a railroad legend who helped shape today’s BNSF Railway during a career with its predecessor roads, died yesterday following surgery. He was 96 years old. Downing’s railroad career began with Pennsylvania Railroad during the Great Depression. When PRR laid him off, he took a […]

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Bill Purdie, Southern’s steam master, dies NEWSWIRE

Southern Railway’s master mechanic-steam occupies the engineer’s seat of Tennessee Valley 630 during a 1980s excursion. Jim Wrinn ATLANTA – Bill Purdie, the beloved master mechanic for Southern Railway’s extensive steam locomotive excursions in the 1960s and 1970s, died yesterday evening. He was 95. Purdie joined Southern Railway as a helper in 1936 and progressed […]

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