Bill would provide grants for accessibility upgrades to transit systems Three U.S. Senators have introduced legislation that would provide $1 billion annually in grant funding to improve public transit accessibility for passengers with disabilities. Democratic Sens. Tammy Duckworth (Ill.), Sherrod Brown (Ohio), and Bob Casey (Pa.) have put forward the All Stations Accessibility Program Act […]
Zone & Region: Northeast
Digest: Rail Runner to add service; Pittsburgh, SEPTA will ease restrictions
Rail Runner Express to resume full schedule New Mexico’s Rail Runner Express commuter rail service will resume a full schedule on May 24, about two months after resuming a limited schedule following a year-long shutdown because of the COVID-19 pandemic. In addition to a full weekday schedule serving all stations, weekend service is also returning. […]
N&W 611 move to Strasburg delayed, leading to cancellation of trips May 21-23
ROANOKE, Va. — The Virginia Museum of Transportation has announced the arrival of Norfolk & Western No. 611 at the Strasburg Rail Road will be delayed, and events involving the Class J scheduled for this weekend, May 21-23, have been cancelled. In preparations for the move, a malfunction was discovered with the locomotive’s stoker, preventing […]
East Broad Top notebook: Damaged bridge replaced as part of rebuilding of main line
ROCKHILL FURNACE, Pa. – Rebuilding the main line of the East Broad Top Railroad continues at a rapid pace, with a damaged bridge replacement and significant ballast work completed this week. The historic narrow gauge line in central Pennsylvania, a National Historic Landmark, was dormant from 2011 to 2020, when it was bought by the […]
MTA to resume process of bringing Metro-North service to Penn Station
NEW YORK — Work will resume on the project to bring Metro-North commuter rail service to New York’s Penn Station, a project which had been paused over funding uncertainty and because of the COVID-19 pandemic. New York Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo said Thursday that the resumption of the process will see selection of a firm […]
Digest: NJ Transit settles lawsuits from Hoboken crash
NJ Transit settles suits from fatal 2016 crash at Hoboken Terminal NJ Transit has settled several lawsuits stemming from the fatal 2016 accident when a train ran through an end-of-track barricade at its Hoboken Terminal. NJ.com reports the agency settled the suit of the estate of the young woman who was killed by falling debris, […]
Digest: Test trains set to run Sunday on Point Defiance Bypass
Test trains set to run on Point Defiance Bypass Sound Transit and Amtrak will run test trains over the Point Defiance Bypass on Sunday, May 16, as part of continuing efforts to prepare for passenger service on the line in the Tacoma, Wash., area. Trains will run between the Tacoma Dome stadium and Nisqually Junction, […]
Analysis: How Kansas City Southern merger bids could affect Amtrak
CHICAGO — Canadian National has announced it intends to beef up what is currently a meandering, unsignaled 40-mph ex-Gulf, Mobile & Ohio branch to connect with Kansas City Southern’s main line to the Gulf Coast. And if Canadian Pacific gets KCS, it expects to direct Mexican supply chain business to and from Western Canada through […]
Niagara Junction
Niagara Junction Although it was built by the Niagara Falls Power Co. in the 1890’s, 11-mile switching road Niagara Junction used steam locomotives at first. Electrification, with 660-volt D.C. catenary and steeplecabs, came in 1913. New General Electric motors arrived in 1952 (that’s one at right, in October ’67), by which time the road was […]
Author, photographer Tom Nelligan dies at age 70
Tom Nelligan, who extensively rode, photographed, and wrote about Northeastern and Canadian railroads in the 1960s, ’70s, and ’80s, died April 9, 2021, at the age of 70. The author of seven books about railroading, he was also a frequent contributor to both Trains and Passenger Train Journal. A native of Connecticut, Nelligan covered the […]
Digest: NJ Transit has plan to test battery-electric equipment, but needs funding
NJ Transit awaits funding for plans to test battery-electric commuter equipment NJ Transit wants to test battery-electric rail equipment on its North Jersey Coast Line — if it can find the funding, NJ.com reports. The program would be similar to that announced last month by the Long Island Rail Road [see “Long Island Rail Road […]
Digest: Virginia Railway Express to resume full service on June 1
Virginia Railway Express to restore full schedule on June 1 Virginia Railway Express will restore service to pre-pandemic levels as of Tuesday, June 1, the commuter rail operator has announced. The agreement allowing VRE passengers to use some Amtrak trains remains suspended. Schedule information is available here. VRE reduced service to its “S” schedule, with […]