Don Colangelo, Genesee Valley’s ‘Alco doc,’ retires

Man with hard hat in blue shirt, standing in front of shop building

SCRANTON, Pa. — Don Colangelo, the Genesee Valley Transportation vice president, mechanical, who gained renown as the “Alco doc” for keeping the company’s fleet of American Locomotive Co. diesels healthy, is retiring this month. Colangelo spent some four decades in railroad, more than 25 of those with Genesee Valley, which saw its fleet of Alco […]

Read More…

BL2 diesel locomotive: An EMD diesel that didn’t.

Red and yellow semi-streamlined diesel locomotive

The BL2 was a mistake at diesel locomotive leader EMD EMD’s BL2 diesel locomotive was a mistake of historic proportions. During the 1930s and ’40s — when diesel-locomotive sales grew from smoldering embers to white-hot inferno — Electro-Motive Corp. (after 1940, General Motors’ Electro-Motive Division) seemingly could do no wrong. With the technical and marketing […]

Read More…

Norfolk Southern outlook brightens after record second quarter

Black locomotives lead train through curve

NORFOLK, Va. — Buoyed by strong volume and revenue growth, Norfolk Southern lifted its outlook for the year as it reported record second-quarter financial results on Wednesday. “We are even more confident about growth for the balance of this year,” CEO Jim Squires told investors and analysts on the railroad’s earnings call. The railroad now […]

Read More…

Shortline savior

Red-and-white diesel switcher locomotives in a road crossing

Shortline savior North Carolina’s Laurinburg & Southern was a GE 70-tonner bastion in the Southeast. A pair works Dixie Guano in Laurinburg in September 1984. The GE small locomotive line enabled great savings for short lines that adopted them, keeping some of them running for years longer than if powered by steam. Jim Wrinn photo […]

Read More…

Detail a diesel on a budget, Ep. 47

From adding grab irons to installing hood details to painting the parts, Cody Grivno shares how he finished his HO scale Atlas Trainmasters EMD GP38-2 diesel locomotive without breaking the bank. Watch all the steps detailed in this video, and then read the story in the September 2021 issue of Model Railroader magazine. […]

Read More…

Detail a diesel on a budget, Ep. 47

From adding grab irons to installing hood details to painting the parts, Cody Grivno shares how he finished his HO scale Atlas Trainmasters EMD GP38-2 diesel locomotive without breaking the bank. Watch all the steps detailed in this video, and then read the story in the September 2021 issue of Model Railroader magazine. […]

Read More…

MTH Trains O gauge EMD SD24

O Gauge Wisconsin Central SD24 by MTH

Introduction to MTH’s O gauge SD24 When I found out that the next locomotive for us to test and review was an MTH O gauge SD24 road diesel, my response was pretty much “Huh?” I needed to track down my old Diesel Spotter’s Guide for sure! I was familiar with SD7s and SD9s, but the […]

Read More…

M-10001

M-10001 In the late 1930s, the Union Pacific’s streamliner M-10001 is serviced between runs in Chicago; although dirty, the streamliner stands out from older steel and wood cars in the yard. Alexander Maxwell photo […]

Read More…

Norfolk Southern to close Cresson, Pa., engine house

Norfolk Southern logo

CRESSON, Pa. — Norfolk Southern will close its engine house in Cresson, Pa., eliminating seven jobs, the Altoona Mirror reports. The closure will come at the end of July. A Norfolk Southern spokesman told the newspaper in an email that the move “is part of our long-term business plans to evolve our operations to best […]

Read More…

News photos: Amtrak ‘Day One’ Charger continues east for delivery

Train with two Amtrak locomotives, second in special black paint scheme

CHICAGO — After a much-delayed arrival in the city, Amtrak’s “Day One” Siemens ALC42 Charger locomotive continued toward its official handover to Amtrak on Tuesday evening, heading east on the Capitol Limited. Trailing P42 locomotive No. 142 were ALC42 No. 301 and a six-car consist including a dormitory car, sleeper, Cross-Country Café, baggage-coach, and full […]

Read More…