MBTA railcar builder hit by seizure of components from China

Six-car train of rapid-transit equipmen

BOSTON — The Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority’s troubled deal with China’s CRRC for rapid-transit equipment has a new problem: components have been confiscated by U.S. Customs and Border Protection agents. Public broadcaster WGBH reports railcar shells and other parts manufactured in China for completion at a plant in Springfield, Mass., have been seized by customs […]

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Caltrain fares rise by 25 cents

Front view of two red-and-white EMU trainsets

SAN CARLOS, Calif. – Bay area commuter rail operator Caltrain is increasing its base fare by 25 cents as of today (July 1, 2025). The move reflects actions taken after the operator delayed a 50-cent increase in its base fares, scheduled for July 1, 2023, to avoid discouraging riders from returning to public transportation following […]

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ScaleTrains HO AC44C6M diesel

Photo of HO scale diesel painted blue, white, yellow, gray, and black on white background.

ScaleTrains HO AC44C6M diesel Scale: HO (1:87.1) Price: Direct-current model with 21-pin connector, $225; with ESU LokSound V5 sound decoder two cube-type speakers, and ESU-designed PowerPack with two super capacitors, $335 Manufacturer: ScaleTrains, 4901 Old Tasso Road NE Cleveland, TN 37312; 844-987-2467; scaletrains.com ScaleTrains HO AC44C6M features: Factory-applied snow plow, m.u. hoses, train line hose, […]

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Britain’s royal train to be retired

Short British passenger train

LONDON — The private train of Britain’s royal family will be retired, King Charles has decided. The first royal train, with special cars commissioned by Queen Victoria, dates to 1869. The current version’s equipment dates to 1977 and was last upgraded in the 1980s; its stock would need to be replaced, and storage and maintenance […]

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STB aims to check more items off its to-do list

Surface Transportation Board logo

WASHINGTON – Surface Transportation Board Chairman Patrick Fuchs provided an update today on efforts to clear a backlog of cases that have languished for years. The cases include: Colorado Landowners — Adverse Abandonment — Great Western Railway of Colorado, LLC, in Weld County, Colo.: On Oct. 5, 2022, a group of landowners filed an application […]

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News & Products for the week of June 30th 2025

A model locomotive in a mural paint scheme

News & Products for the week of June 30th 2025   Model railroad operators and builders can get the latest information about locomotives, freight cars, passenger cars, tools, track, and more by reading Model Railroader’s frequent product updates. The following are the products Model Railroader editors have news on for the week of June 30th, […]

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BNSF fails to convince regulators it should be able to serve two UP locations

WASHINGTON — BNSF Railway’s efforts to serve two shippers located on Union Pacific trackage were dealt a setback today when federal regulators said they were not persuaded that BNSF had the right to reach the customers as part of conditions granted during the UP-Southern Pacific merger. The separate decisions from the Surface Transportation Board, however, […]

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Amtrak introduces time restriction on Metropolitan Lounge use

Woman at counter with food at railroad-station lounge

WASHINGTON — Beginning Tuesday, July 1, Amtrak is revising rules on how passengers are permitted to utilize first-class Metropolitan Lounges at its major stations. The principal change is that passengers now entitled to access can no longer enter Metropolitan Lounges after arriving unless they are booked in Acela First Class or a sleeping car on […]

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Naugatuck Railroad FL9 sustains ‘significant damage’ in derailment

FL9NH2019

THOMASTON, Conn. — No injuries resulted when the Naugatuck Railroad’s restored New Haven FL9 locomotive, No. 2019, derailed during a Sunday, June 29, excursion — an incident captured on video and circulating on social media. The locomotive sustained “significant damage,” the Railroad Museum of New England said in a statement. Thirty-five passengers were on board […]

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Parallel Systems and G&W see huge potential for autonomous container cars

Parallel Systems is only in the early innings of testing its self-propelled, autonomous flatcars on Genesee & Wyoming short lines in Georgia and already CEO Matt Soule says he’s likely to have a problem on his hands. “Parallel is going to have a manufacturing backlog problem,” the Parallel Systems founder predicted on a webcast last […]

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Three suffer minor injuries in Wisconsin & Southern derailment (updated)

Aerial view of train derailment

HARTFORD, Wis. — Three crew members were injured when a Wisconsin & Southern Railroad train derailed today (June 30, 2025) in the town of Hartford, near Independence Ave. The derailment occurred about 9:30 a.m. Hartford Fire Chief Tony Burgard told a press conference that the three people had walked to a nearby road and were […]

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Santa Fe No. 2926 to participate in Downtown Albuquerque’s Railroad Days

Steam locomotive operates on the main line with a massive facility building in the background.

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — Santa Fe No. 2926’s yearly visit to Albuquerque’s downtown Rail Yards — a former ATSF facility with sections redeveloped as a multi-use venue and future home for the 4-8-4 — is scheduled for Sept. 27 and 28, as part of New Mexico Railroad Days.  It will mark the third straight year the […]

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