MBTA staffing shortages lead to trolley, bus service cuts

Yellow and white streetcar at station

BOSTON — The Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority will cut service on its Mattapan trolley line, as well more than 30 bus routes, because of an operator shortage. Boston.com reports the agency announced Tuesday that the cuts will be effective Dec. 19. Employee attrition has outstripped the ability to find new employees, officials say, leading to […]

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Worker warning system at fault in fatal SEPTA accident, NTSB says

Schematic diagram of site of railroad accident

WASHINGTON — The use of the Train Approach Warning method to warn track workers of approaching traffic — in a multiple-track location where trains could approach at full speed in either direction — led to a fatal 2019 accident involving Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority workers, the National Transportation Safety Board said in a report issued […]

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Hudson Tunnel project gets federal permit

Amtrak train coming out of tunnel

The much-discussed project to build new Northeast Corridor tunnels between New York and New Jersey has received the permit allowing construction to begin once funding is secured. NJ.com reports the permit from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers would allow construction of the Hudson River Tunnel to begin in summer 2023. Once the two new […]

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DC Metrorail issues lead to NTSB safety alert

Map of DC Metrorail system showing three locations where a car derailed

WASHINGTON — The National Transportation Safety Board has issued a safety alert, asking commuter rail and rail transit systems to check wheelsets for possible out-of-gage situations. Safety Alert 083, issued Wednesday, results from an October derailment on the DC Metrorail system, which revealed problems in which some wheels moved outward from their mounted position on […]

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Groundbreaking set for Baltimore tunnel project

CSX logo

BALTIMORE — CSX CEO Jim Foote and Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan head the list of those those scheduled to take part today (Monday, Nov. 29)  in a groundbreaking ceremony for the start of work on the long-sought Howard Street Tunnel project in Baltimore. The 1 p.m. ceremony will be at the former Mount Royal Station […]

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GE 44-tonners to be preserved by organizations in New Jersey, New York

Green and yellow locomotive running in middle of street

The New Jersey-based Tri-State Railway Historical Society and Operation Toy Train of New York have partnered to acquire two General Electric 44-ton diesel-electric switchers for preservation, and launched a joint campaign to cover transportation and restoration costs. Former Hoboken Manufacturers Railroad locomotive No. 700 and Middletown & New Jersey Railroad locomotive No. 2 are the […]

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Anthracite hauler

Black-and-white broadside photo of 2-10-2 steam locomotive with hopper cars beside a river

Anthracite hauler Reading Co. 2-10-2 3012 leads a train of anthracite along the Schuylkill River at Tamaqua, Pa., in July 1953. RDG’s 20 K-1’s were the heaviest Santa Fe types ever built. Classic Trains collection […]

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Firebox replacement plans advance for PRR K4s restoration project

Boiler of disassembled steam engine

ALTOONA, Pa. — Work is proceeding on planning for and funding a replacement for the firebox of Pennsylvania Railroad K4s-class 4-6-2 steam locomotive No. 1361 at the Railroaders Memorial Museum. FMW Solutions LLC, the engineering consultant on the $2.6 million project to restore the engine to operating condition, determined that the original squared-off Belpaire firebox […]

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