BOSTON — A four-day shutdown of Massachusetta Bay Transportation Authority’s Orange Line between Jackson Square and North Station resulted in elimination of six speed restrictions, with a seventh removed over the weekend after the conclusion of the March 18-21 suspension of service, the MBTA reports. “I’m proud of the dedicated workforce that worked in a […]
NEWPORT BEACH, Calif. — The company seeking to start a luxury sleeping car train between downtown San Francisco and Los Angeles Union station says it has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Union Pacific “formalizing the parties’ negotiations toward a comprehensive final agreement” to begin operations by 2025. A press release issued by Dreamstar Lines […]
TIXKOKOB, Mexico — Mexico’s Maya Train experienced its first known derailment today (Monday, March 25), a low-speed incident when the last car of a four-car trainset apparently split a switch entering the Tixkokob station on the route between Campeche and Cancún. The derailment occurred about 9:30 a.m. with the train moving at about 10 kilometers […]
Railbike excursions What’s the fuss about? This concept has existed roughly since the 1850s, when maintenance workers on railroads used handcars and railbikes to get from point A to point B. Something had to be used to carry the crew and materials for track inspections and/or repairs. In 1877, a Michigan farmer named George Sheffield […]
WASHINGTON — Canadian Pacific Kansas City says it has shippers lined up to export grain through the ports of Houston and Galveston, but they’re awaiting a regulatory decision regarding whether unit trains can move over Union Pacific trackage rights south of Beaumont, Texas. CPKC told the Surface Transportation Board last week that it has four […]
DURANGO, Colo. — The final chapter of the long history of coal-powered trains on the Durango & Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad came Saturday, March 23, with a round-trip excursion between Durango and Cascade, Colo., handled by a Baldwin Class K-36 2-8-2 No. 481. The locomotive will now be converted to oil firing, completing conversion of […]
DARIEN, Conn. – Genesee & Wyoming on Sunday marked the 125th anniversary of the company’s founding with a flag-raising ceremony at its headquarters and the release of a trailer for a full-length video. The original 14-mile Genesee and Wyoming Railroad was incorporated on March 24, 1899, when Edward Layton Fuller and his financial partners purchased […]
PUEBLO, Colo. — Stadler Rail’s hydrogen powered multiple-unit passenger trainset has set a record by traveling more than 1,700 miles without refueling or recharging. The FLIRT H2 trainset, destined for use on the San Bernardino County Transportation Authority’s Arrow service, covered 1,741.7 miles on the test loop at the Transportation Technology Center in Pueblo. The […]
JUNEAU, Alaska — A state legislator has introduced a bill calling for privatization of the Alaska Railroad — although even the bill’s sponsor says the purpose is as much about inspiring discussion as it is about potentially triggering a sale. HB 332, introduced by Rep. Jesse Sumner (R-Wasilla), calls for the state’s governor to request […]
CHICAGO — One of the last industries still receiving freight rail service in downtown Chicago — and one that gave its neighborhood a distinct aroma — is calling it quits. Blommer Chocolate will close its factory at 600 W. Kinzie Street at the end of May because of the increasing costs of running a facility […]
BOSTON — A Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority Red Line train derailed this morning (Saturday, March 23) while changing tracks to accommodate a planned service shutdown, WCVB-TV reports. The incident occurred just before 6 a.m. near the Broadway station in South Boston and involved the first car of the trainset. Shuttle buses for a planned shutdown […]
MIAMI — As the Spring Break surge approaches, Brightline continues to seek the right pricing strategy when operating 16 daily fixed-consist round trips between South Florida and Orlando, plus another two to handle early morning and late evening Miami-West Palm Beach travel. A password-protected, 2,044-page supplement to a “Preliminary limited remarketing memorandum relating to $770 […]
