HOMEWOOD, Ill. — Shovels were out Monday, manned for the cameras by masked Amtrak, Metra, and civic officials that helped arrange $29 million of federal and local funding that will enhance the original 1923 Illinois Central Homewood, Ill., facility with features that make it completely accessible to passengers with disabilities. Construction began in July on […]
Zone & Region: Midwest
STB denies Metra request for declaratory order
WASHINGTON – The U.S. Surface Transportation Board has denied Metra’s request for a declaratory order and proceeding in its ongoing dispute with Union Pacific over Chicago area commuter operations. The decision follows a U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois ruling to keep a UP lawsuit against Metra, noting that the court does […]
Effort to launch second Chicago-Twin Cities Amtrak train receives $31.8 million grant
Commissioners in Ramsey County, Minn., say the effort to launch a second daily train between Minneapolis-St. Paul and Chicago will be the recipient of a $31.8 million federal grant. The Twin Cities Pioneer Press reports an official announcement of the Consolidated Rail Infrastructure and Safety Improvements grant from the U.S. Department of Transportation is expected […]
MoPac doubleheader
Two Missouri Pacific 4-8-4s, Baldwin products of 1943, lead a westbound freight with a long string of hopper cars through Sandy Hook, Mo., about 19 miles west of Jefferson City on the River Line. Photo by C. T. Wood […]
Midwest Mikado
Minneapolis & St. Louis Mikado No. 627, a 1921 Alco (Brooks) locomotive, charges toward Peoria with a hot freight in a publicity photo. Photo by Minneapolis & St. Louis […]
Load ‘em up
Early auto racks allowed easy loading and unloading of multiple cars with end ramps. Here AMC cars are being loaded near Kenosha, Wis., on the Chicago & North Western in 1966. Photo by Chicago & North Western, Keith Kohlmann collection […]
Great grains
Jumbo 100-ton covered hoppers revolutionized rail handling of grain in the 1960s. The Great Northern staged this publicity photo near terminal elevators in Minneapolis after receiving a new order of cars in 1967. Photo by Great Northern […]
Group asks STB for OK to build new rail line in Kentucky, Tennessee
WASHINGTON — A group representing development agencies in Kentucky and Tennessee has filed a request with the Surface Transportation Board that would allow it to build a new 12-mile rail line connecting two existing short lines to better serve a Kentucky river port. Ken Tenn Regional Rail Partners, a non-profit corporation created by the Fulton […]
Digest: First cars in IDOT order for regional Amtrak trains arrive in Illinois
Monday midday rail news: First IDOT cars arrive; testing to begin in September The first four cars of the Illinois Department of Transportation order for equipment for state-supported regional Amtrak trains arrived in Chicago earlier this month, with four more en route from Siemens’ Sacramento, Calif., factory. Testing is likely to begin in September for […]
Judge denies Metra’s motion to dismiss UP suit over commuter operations
Metra’s request to dismiss Union Pacific’s federal lawsuit over continued operation of three Chicago-area commuter lines was denied Thursday, with a hearing on the case set for Sept. 8. The order by Judge Jorge L. Alonso of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois said the primary issue in the case — […]
Digest: Metra says it is losing $1 million a month because UP won’t collect fares
Wednesday morning rail news: Metra says it is losing $1 million a month as UP won’t collect fares Union Pacific is not collecting fares from riders on the three Metra lines it operates, costing the commuter railroad $1 million a month in fares, Metra says. The Chicago Tribune reports UP, citing coronavirus safety concerns, is […]
Unions, passenger groups offer support to Metra in dispute with UP
WASHINGTON — A coalition of unions and passenger groups has filed a statement with the Surface Transportation Board supporting Metra’s request for a preliminary injunction to require Union Pacific to continue operating commuter service on three Chicago-area routes. The statement filed Tuesday notes that the STB has said it will hold ruling on Metra’s quest […]
