CHICAGO — Indiana residents frustrated by train-blocked grade crossings must wonder if it will take an act of Congress to clear their commutes. Fed up with the failure of state laws and federal bureaucracy to carry freight with the railroads, local politicians are aiming to do just that. Officials at a Monday meeting of the […]
Magazine: Trains Magazine
Metra seeking new cars; is open to ‘alternative designs’ NEWSWIRE
CHICAGO — Metra is seeking bids for new commuter rail cars and says it is willing to break with 70 years of Chicago rail commuting tradition if it gets a better idea. The agency Wednesday issued a request for proposals for at least 200 new railcars and is urging manufacturers to suggest alternative designs that […]
One Sound Transit board member now opposes dislocating fast food restaurant NEWSWIRE
KENT, Wash. — Sound Transit has begun taking public comment on a controversial proposal to build a maintenance base for light rail on the site of a popular local hamburger restaurant, but the idea has drawn fresh criticism from one significant voice: a board member of the regional transit agency. David Upthegrove, a King County […]
Transit needs $232 billion in investments over 10 Years, public transit group says NEWSWIRE
WASHINGTON — At least $232 billion needs to be invested during the next 10 years in public transit, according to a report released this week by the American Public Transportation Association. The study draws from three sources. A U.S. Department of Transportation infrastructure status report, issued in 2015, identifies an $89.8-billion backlog of spending needed […]
Sainthood candidate’s hometown gets caboose honoring archbishop’s fondness for railroads NEWSWIRE
EL PASO, Ill. — A Roman Catholic center dedicated to the memory of the late Archbishop Fulton Sheen has added a capstone, of sorts, to its Illinois center … in the form of a caboose. Sheen was born in El Paso and lived in the Peoria, Ill.-area before receiving ordination as a priest and moving […]
UP steam tests Big Boy No. 4014 at the Cheyenne shop NEWSWIRE
UP No. 4014 was steam testing, UP said on March 20, 2019. Facebook screen shot CHEYENNE, Wyo. — Union Pacific said Wednesday it is steam testing restored Big Boy No. 4014. In a post to the company’s Official Union Pacific Steam Club Facebook page, the railroad showed a 13 second video clip taken from the […]
Discovering the Transcontinental Railroad’s completion site at Promontory, Utah
Lonely. Isolated. Desolate. Remote. The list of words to describe how this place — one of the (if not the) most sacred sites in American railroad history — feels is nowhere long enough. To come here into the high desert is to be on a pilgrimage for a glimpse into the unending sagebrush, rocks, and […]
If a Transcontinental Railroad were Built Today
Construction crews working westward on the Union Pacific encountered rough going when they reached Utah’s Weber Canyon. Trains collection If you built a transcontinental railroad today from scratch, how long would it take, given the regulatory environment of the modern world? Nobody knows for sure, but the best guess is about 57 years. Here’s a […]
Year-by-year, a timeline of completing the Transcontinental Railroad
Union Pacific trains and ocvered wagons congregate near the end of track at Archer, Wyo., in 1867 during construction westward. Union Pacific 1832: Proponents call for transcontinental railroad 1845: New England merchant and traveler, Asa Whitney begins advocacy for Pacific Railroad 1853: Congress appropriates $150,000 for survey of five routes 1855-1860: 12 volumes of findings […]
FTA releases Washington Metro to local control NEWSWIRE
WASHINGTON — More than three years after the Federal Transit Administration took the unprecedented step of assuming direct safety oversight of the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority Metrorail system, the FTA has returned supervision back to local control. The Washington Metrorail Safety Commission, an independent body established by Virginia, Maryland, and the District of Columbia in […]
MBTA sets meetings on future of historic streetcars NEWSWIRE
An MBTA PCC streetcar stops in Milton, Mass., in December 2018. The MBTA has proposed replacing the 70-year-old cars. Justin Franz BOSTON — The Massachusetts Bay Transit Authority will hold three public meetings in the coming weeks to gather input about the future of Boston’s historic Mattapan-Ashmont High Speed Line. Earlier this year, MBTA officials […]
Railroads brace for Mississippi River flooding NEWSWIRE
DAVENPORT, Iowa – Railroaders are working “around the clock” this week to restore and maintain service along water-logged routes in the Midwest, but the worst may be yet to come as communities along the Mississippi River brace for major flooding in the coming days. Over the weekend, flooding affected hundreds of miles of BNSF Railway […]
