RENO, Nev. — At 11:19 a.m. Pacific Time Friday, a tractor-trailer gravel truck traveling at a high rate of speed on U.S. 95 at Ocala, Nev., about 70 miles east of Reno, barreled into the side of the westbound California Zephyr. The truck struck the left-hand side of the Zephyr behind the two locomotives and […]
Section: News Wire
Santa Fe boots short line from depot NEWSWIRE
SANTA FE, N.M. — Santa Fe Southern has left the historic Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe depot in the city under duress after 18 years of keeping its headquarters there. The city ordered the railroad out so it can open a visitor’s center to welcome passengers arriving on the New Mexico Rail Runner Express. A […]
Anheuser-Busch route to survive under new operator NEWSWIRE
ST. LOUIS — Anheuser-Busch will continue to receive rail service after its rail subsidiary, the Manufacturers Railway, shuts down. FTRL Railway has won the contract to provide local operation to the brewery. Anheuser-Busch ceased shipping beer by rail last month, leaving Manufacturers only six to seven daily inbound carloads. That wasn’t enough for it to […]
Manufacturers Railway applies to shut down NEWSWIRE
ST. LOUIS — The Manufacturers Railway has asked the federal government for permission to cease service over all its lines. The railroad, which was formed in 1887, handles shipments to and from its owner, Anheuser-Busch. The company operates two lines: the one-mile “Brewery Line” to Anheuser-Busch, and the 2.6-mile First Street line, which historically served […]
Engineer convicted in fatal Swiss crash NEWSWIRE
ZURICH, Switzerland — The engineer that was operating the Glacier Express when it crashed last summer has been convicted of negligence and homicide, Swiss Info has reported. One Japanese tourist died in the crash and 40 were injured. Investigators say the crash occurred at a point where the line’s speed limit jumps from 22 mph […]
TRAINS exclusive: Amtrak police chief bars Transportation Security Administration from some security operations NEWSWIRE
WASHINGTON — In late February, the Transportation Security Administration took over the Amtrak station in Savannah, Ga., and thoroughly searched every person who entered. None of the passengers got into trouble, but the TSA certainly did — big time. Amtrak Police Chief John O’Connor said he first thought a blog posting about the incident was […]
Canada recalls deadly passenger-freight crash 20 years later NEWSWIRE
HINTON, Alta. — Twenty-five years to the day after one of Canada’s deadliest train crashes, the Edmonton Sun published the account of one of the heroes of the day. Ken Cuttle saved himself and two passengers by breaking the glass of a dome car and escaping before the car exploded in fire. On Feb. 8, […]
Jim Boyd, railroad book author and Railfan Railroad editor emeritus, dies NEWSWIRE
NEWTON, N.J. — Jim Boyd, an influential railroad photographer, book author, and longtime editor of Railfan & Railroad magazine, died Dec. 31, 2010. Boyd was born in Dixon, Ill., in 1941, and grew up watching steam engines on the nearby Illinois Central. He attended the University of Illinois and the Layton School of Art in […]
CSX decommissions last of ex-Monon semaphore signals NEWSWIRE
CRAWFORDSVILLE, Ind. — CSX has removed the last semaphore signals from service on its Monon Subdivision in northwestern Indiana. The line was one of the final bastions for the signals anywhere in the U.S. and Canada. The final “blade” to fall, located at milepost 147.1 at North Crawfordsville, came down Tuesday. CSX is replacing the […]
New Commonwealth Railway line set to open NEWSWIRE
PORTSMOUTH, Va. – Double-stack trains will begin rolling next week on the Commonwealth Railway. The railroad, owned and operated by Genesee & Wyoming, had operated a line through urban neighborhoods in Portsmouth and Chesapeake, Va., which has 14 grade crossings. To replace the crossing-riddled line, a new route has been constructed that will enable double-stack […]
Army-Navy game train ‘Liberty Limited’ returns to the rails NEWSWIRE
The Philadelphia-bound Liberty Limited passes Bowie, Md., with 19 cars enroute to the Army-Navy game. Alex Mayes WASHINGTON — Wounded veterans from the Iraq and Afghanistan wars rode a classic passenger train to the Army-Navy football game in Philadelphia Saturday. The “Liberty Limited” operated this year following a year off owing to a death in […]
Trinity Railway Express receives upgraded F59PHs NEWSWIRE
IRVING, Texas — The Trinity Railway Express fleet of F59PHs has begun returning to the Dallas-area commuter agency following upgrades at shops in Iowa and Pennsylvania. The units, jointly owned by Dallas Area Rapid Transit and the Fort Worth Transportation Authority, are being overhauled to meet Environmental Protection Agency Tier 2 standards. The entire seven-unit […]
