PHOENIX — Union Pacific has opened its Phoenix Intermodal Terminal, the latest addition to the railroad’s “pop-up” terminal strategy to test markets before building large, permanent facilities. The railroad says in an article on its website that the facility opened Feb. 1, 45 days after it first announced plans for the facility [see “Union Pacific […]
Magazine: Trains Magazine
FTA Administrator Fernandez to retire (updated)
WASHINGTON — Nuria Fernandez, administrator of the Federal Transit Administration, will retire effective Feb. 24, the agency announced on Wednesday. Fernandez was named deputy administrator on Jan. 20, 2021, by newly inaugurated President Joe Biden, subsequently nominated as administrator, and was confirmed by the Senate on June 10, 2021, becoming the 15th FTA Administrator and […]
U.S. rail traffic down slightly in January
WASHINGTON — U.S. rail traffic was down slightly in January, but up considerably for the week ending Feb. 3, according to the latest statistics from the Association of American Railroads. For January, overall traffic was down 0.7%, with carload volume down 7.2% and container and trailer volume up 5.5%, compared to the first month of […]
NTSB releases preliminary report on January death of Ohio Central maintenance worker
WASHINGTON — The National Transportation Safety Board has released its preliminary report on the fatality of an Ohio Central Railroad signal maintainer, found deceased by the crew of a Wheeling & Lake Erie freight train on Jan. 15 operating on the Columbus & Ohio River Railroad adjacent to the New Rumley Road grade crossing near […]
Norfolk Southern replaced more rail in 2023 than in any year since 1990
ATLANTA — Norfolk Southern replaced 556 miles of rail last year, the highest tally since 1990, the railroad said today. NS’s capital production gangs broke productivity records by laying 35 more track miles of rail than in 2022, while using the same number of rail installation teams. “The Norfolk Southern Engineering Department truly came together […]
NS dispatchers to get scheduled days off under a pilot program
ATLANTA — Norfolk Southern and the American Train Dispatchers Association will launch a pilot program next month that provides dispatchers with a scheduled rest day that rotates weekly. “We want everyone on our team to have access to predictable time off,” said Rodney Moore, vice president of network operations, said in a statement Tuesday (Feb. […]
FRA slates public hearing on G&W proposal to test Parallel Systems autonomous freight cars
WASHINGTON — The Federal Railroad Administration will hold a public hearing regarding two Genesee & Wyoming short lines’ proposal to test Parallel Systems autonomous flat cars in Georgia. The hearing will be held March 12 from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. in Vidalia, Ga., and will be livestreamed, the FRA announced today. People can submit […]
All inclusive tour to Alaska by rail (2025)
2025 Alaska — All inclusive tour Special Interest Tours and Trains Magazine bring you a rail excursion tour with outstanding views of the Denali National Park and down the Kenai Peninsula. Get ready to enjoy beautiful scenery from Sept. 4-13 with Trains Editor Carl Swanson on a 9-day adventure. This all-inclusive tour highlights some of […]
NTSB to return to East Palestine for meeting on final report on NS derailment
WASHINGTON — The National Transportation Safety Board will return to East Palestine, Ohio, on June 25 for a public meeting on its final report on the Feb. 3, 2023, Norfolk Southern derailment and toxic chemical release, the board announced today. During the meeting, set for 9:30 a.m. ET at East Palestine High School, the board […]
STB to proceed with Amtrak Gulf Coast hearing
WASHINGTON — The Surface Transportation Board will proceed with its planned hearing on the status of Amtrak Gulf Coast service on Wednesday, Feb. 14, the board announced in a decision issued Tuesday. The parties to the agreement allowing service to begin — Amtrak, CSX Transportation, Norfolk Southern, and the Alabama State Port Authority — had […]
Rare-mileage trip to Mount Carmel, Pa., slated on Reading & Northern
PORT CLINTON, Pa. – A rare-mileage Rail Diesel Car excursion to Mount Carmel, Pa., the northwestern extent of Reading & Northern’s 400-mile system, is scheduled to run on April 20. Sponsored by the affiliated Lehigh Valley Chapter of the National Railway Historical Society and the Railroad Historians of the Lehigh Valley, the all-day, 104-mile trip […]
New slide activity halts freight traffic through San Clemente
SAN CLEMENTE, Calif. — BNSF freight traffic past the site of the latest landside in San Clemente has been halted by additional slide activity, the San Diego Union-Tribune reports. Tuesday night freight movement was suspended after the slope moved another 1.5 to 3 feet in a 24-hour period through Tuesday afternoon, Scott Johnson, Metrolink director […]