Norfolk Southern, the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen, and the SMART-TD union will participate in the Federal Railroad Administration’s Confidential Close Call Reporting system, or C3RS, the railroad and labor unions said in a joint statement today. “NS is proud to partner with our labor leaders and FRA to make another industry-leading advancement in […]
FAIDO, Switzerland — Rail traffic through the one functioning tube of the Gotthard Base Tunnel was suspended for about six hours today (Monday, Jan. 29) after a vehicle caught fire at the southern tunnel exit near Faido, Swissinfo.ch reports, citing reports from SRF, Swiss public radio. The vehicle, belonging to a security firm, caught fire […]
Boise Locomotive’s MK1200Gs During the heyday of ultra-low emission liquid natural gas as an alternative to diesel propulsion, Boise Locomotive Co. [formerly Morrison Knudsen Rail Co.] produced a quartet of LNG 1,200 hp switchers for domestic use in 1994. Two were sent out into the world to be tested on the Atchison, Topeka and Santa […]
Jack Hedge, a lifelong O gauge enthusiast and talented layout builder, created the fictitious city of Hedgerton for his three-rail display. His layout features four loops and includes contemporary steamers and diesels from just about everybody, including Atlas O, K-Line, Lionel, Right-of-Way Industries, 3rd Rail, Weaver, and Williams. Jack outlines what he installed, beginning with […]
PHILADELPHIA — Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro has proposed a $282.8 million annual increase in public transit funding — the first increase in state funding in more than a decade — to prevent service cuts or fare increases on the Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority. The 1.75% increase in statewide funding announced Sunday, reported by WHYY, follows […]
WASHINGTON — Nine rail-related projects were included among the 37 receiving funding from the U.S. Department of Transportation through Mega Grant and INFRA Grant program funding announced on Friday. Two projects — including one from the rail-related group — received grants under both programs. The Mega Grant program — formally the National Infrastructure Projecg Assistance […]
CANCÚN, Mexico — The launch of Mexico’s tourist-oriented Maya Train on the Yucatán Peninsula continues to run into problems, the latest being that the last portion of the looping 950-mile route will not be complete by the end of February, as President Andrés Manuel López Obrador had previously said. López Obrador — the project’s primary […]
NEW YORK — New York’s first batch of “open gangway” subway cars — those with accordion-style connections, rather than doors between cars, making it easy to walk from car to car — will not be able to operate on some express lines because their design creates a conflict with New York City Transit operating rules, […]
Many model railroaders get their start during the holiday season, with a train set either wrapped in colorful paper or already set up and circling under the tree on Christmas morning. But after a while, even a starry-eyed kid can get bored watching that train go around and around in an endless loop. It would […]
Meet Jerry Paladino How did you get started in the hobby? I was looking for a hobby that would help me relieve workplace stress. Two friends recommended that I build a model railroad. My Dad and grandfather both worked for Union Pacific in Council Bluffs, as well as in Omaha, so I was already interested […]
We’ve all seen blue flags. A sign with words “STOP MEN AT WORK” clamped to the head of a rail, or hanging from the side of a locomotive. It was placed there by a railroader working in the area, and the rules of its use are strict and unbending. A blue flag, is defined by […]
NEWARK, N.J. — NJ Transit has cancelled a controversial natural-gas power plant designed in part to provide emergency power for rail lines, saying the project is “not financially feasible,” and will reallocate federal grant funds to other projects, the transit agency announced on Friday. The TransitGrid Microgrid Central Facility in Kearny, N.J., would have generated […]
