NEW YORK — The Metropolitan Transportation Authority board has approved the revised congestion tolling plan announced last week by New York Gov. Kathy Hochul. In a meeting on Monday, Nov. 18, the board approved a plan that will launch the toll plan for lower Manhattan with a basic peak-hours toll of $9, while raising it […]
WASHINGTON — The Railway Engineering-Maintenance Suppliers Association, or REMSA, has elected two new members to its board of directors. Elected at the Nov. 6 membership meeting are Bob Coakley, sales director, Ballast Tools Equipment, and Matt Violin, vice president of sales, NARSTCO. They will join the board for two-year terms as of Jan. 1, 2025. […]
Last month we took a look at modeling urban scenery. This time around, we’ll step back from the big city and focus on rural scenery. I spent my formative years in the Red River Valley of the North, which was dotted with small towns up and down the Minnesota and North Dakota sides of the […]
WASHINGTON — Anything can, and generally does, happen to impede trains on Amtrak’s network. On Sunday, Nov. 17, for instance, Norfolk Southern emergency repairs to an elderly drawbridge south of Chicago delayed the Miami-bound Floridian (and two trains headed to Michigan) more than 2 hours, 20 minutes. The setback was typical of timekeeping hiccups the […]
HARRISBURG, Pa. — Amtrak marked the completion of major track reconstruction and restoration of full service on its Keystone Line on Monday, capping an eight-month project to replace more than 43 miles of track between Harrisburg and Lancaster, Pa. The work also included installation of more than 113,000 concrete ties. The $122 million project required […]
OMAHA, Neb. — Craig Richardson, Union Pacific’s executive vice president, chief legal officer, and corporate secretary, will retire March 31, 2025, the railroad has announced. UP said in a post on its website that, in anticipation of Richardson’s departure, Christina Conlin will join the railroad as of Dec. 2 as senior vice president and deputy […]
News & Products for the week of November 18th 2024 Model railroad operators and builders can get the latest information about locomotives, freight cars, passenger cars, tools, track, and more by reading Model Railroader’s frequent product updates. The following are the products Model Railroader editors have news on for the week of November 18th […]
NEW YORK — The RailTrends conference in New York has been called the greatest single collection of rail investors in one place, and has featured in recent years a level of introspection by an industry that hasn’t grown much despite regular promises to do so. But the event this year wrapped up Friday with presentations […]
SCHAUMBURG, Ill. — Registration is now open for the 2025 Winter Meeting of the Midwest Association of Rail Shippers, which is scheduled to include BNSF Railway CEO Katie Farmer and Surface Transportation Board Chairman Robert E. Primus as featured speakers. The event moves this year from its longtime home in Lombard, Ill., to a new […]
Perhaps you don’t have the space to build a layout but still want to build “something.” Maybe your layout is already built but you’re looking to renovate a scene or section. Or there might be a show coming up and you want to highlight a scene or show off an animated feature. The solution to […]
NEW YORK — BNSF Railway remains committed to volume growth even as it seeks to improve its profit margins. “Growth is foundational for us,” BNSF Chief Marketing Officer Tom Williams told the RailTrends conference last week, noting that BNSF has accounted for 72% of the industry’s volume growth since it was formed in 1996. In […]
Amtrak trains during the holidays in 2024 are facing ridership demand comparable or even greater than 2019 before COVID-19’s dip in 2020. While autos jam highways where public transportation options are scarce, and airlines add flights to accommodate longer trips, Amtrak in the past also rose to the occasion by offering extra trains and expanded […]
