Amtrak brings back second Valley Flyer, additional New Haven-Springfield trains Amtrak will restore a second weekday round trip of its Valley Flyer between New Haven, Conn., and Greenfield, Mass., as of July 26, along with restoration of three trains on the New Haven-Springfield, Mass., portion of the route that were suspended in March 2020. The […]
Zone & Region: Northeast
Digest: MARC commuter trains to resume full schedule in August
After nine months of reduced service, full MARC schedule to resume Aug. 30 MARC commuter trains will resume full operations on Aug. 30, nine months after reducing service in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. The Baltimore Sun reports that Maryland Transit Adminstration officials announced the restoration of MARC and commuter bus service on Monday, while […]
Preservation roundup: Steamtown increases hours, visitor services
Steamtown offering increased hours and features for summer Steamtown National Historic Site in Scranton, Pa., will begin increasing visitor services this week, with additional features to open on July 7. As of this Saturday, June 26, the park’s summer hours of 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. go into effect, and the theater will open, allowing […]
‘Seatrain Georgia’
‘Seatrain Georgia’ The hull configuration of the Seatrain ships—three decks, each with four tracks (plus four tracks on the top deck)—is evident in this view of Seatrain Georgia being lengthened at Sun Shipbuilding in 1963. The vessel has been cut in two for installation of a new midsection. Hagley Museum & Library collection […]
Amtrak, Maryland announce new approach for replacement of B&P Tunnel
BALTIMORE — Amtrak and the state of Maryland marked the 150th anniversary of the groundbreaking of the Baltimore & Potomac Tunnel on Friday by announcing new plans to advance treplacement of the tunnel, as well as plans to name the new bore for Maryland-born abolitionist leader Frederick Douglass. Longstanding plans to replace the aging B&P […]
East Broad Top hires archivist
ROCKHILL FURNACE, Pa. – The East Broad Top Railroad has hired an archivist to begin organizing and cataloging hundreds of cubic feet of the historic narrow gauge line’s company records. Julie K. Rockwell of nearby Huntingdon, Pa., is leading efforts to sift through a vast collection of material documenting the operations of the 33-mile central […]
Digest: Canadian government proposes delay for grade-crossing regulations
Proposed amendments would push back deadline for Canadian grade-crossing rules The Canadian government has published proposed amendments to regulations regarding railroad grade crossings which would extend the deadline for compliance with existing rules. The amendments would provide a one-year extension from the original deadline of Nov. 28, 2021, for grade crossings considered to be higher […]
Central Railroad of New Jersey, locomotives
All through June 2021, Classic Trains editors are celebrating the heritage, grit, and grandeur that was the Central Railroad of New Jersey. Please enjoy this Jersey Central locomotive photograph gallery selected from the image archives of Kalmbach Media’s David P. Morgan Library. Only from Classic Trains! […]
Investigation finds husband and wife conductors on LIRR clocked in for each other while one didn’t work
NEW YORK — Husband and wife conductors on the Long Island Railroad received more than $3,400 in pay for not working by clocking in for each other over a period of months, the Metropolitan Transportation Authority’s Office of Inspector General has determined in an investigation. In a report given to the LIRR in April but […]
Digest: Fernandez confirmed as head of Federal Transit Administration
Senate confirms Fernandez to head FTA The U.S. Senate has confirmed appointment of Nuria Fernandez as administrator of the Federal Transit Administration, becoming the first confirmed administrator in more than a decade and the first Senate-confirmed woman of color to lead the agency. “I am humbled and extremely grateful for the confidence bestowed upon me […]
Maryland’s Purple Line receives funding for project oversight, provides first look at trainsets
ANNAPOLIS, Md. — A Maryland agency has approved more than $180 million for a consultant to continue overseeing contracts for Maryland’s troubled Purple Line light rail project until the companies managing the project can hire a new lead contractor. Also, the Maryland Transit Administration has provided a first look at the equipment for the 16-mile, […]
South Schenectady smoke show
South Schenectady smoke show Delaware & Hudson 4-6-6-4 No. 1510 drifts downgrade with an eastbound freight seen from a perch on New York Central’s West Shore bridge in South Schenectady, N.Y., on May 14, 1950. Photo by William D. Middleton […]