STRASBURG, Pa. — After a year of being closed due to the Covid pandemic, the Railroad Museum of Pennsylvania in Strasburg, Pa., will reopen on Friday, April 30. The new normal days and times of operation for the museum will be Fridays through Sundays, with hours 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays, […]
Zone & Region: Northeast
Digest: MBTA extends shutdown of part of Orange Line
MBTA Orange Line work after derailment extended to April 11 The Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority has extended its shutdown of a portion of the Orange Line by one week, through April 11. NBC-10 Boston reports the use of shuttle buses between the Oak Grove and Sullivan Square stations will continue as the agency continues infrastructure […]
Hot spot: Alexandria Union Station
LOCATION: Alexandria, Va.’s Union Station is located on King Street, and is about 8 miles south of Washington, D.C., on CSX Transportation’s main line between the Northeast and Florida. Passenger service is provided by both Amtrak and Virginia Railway Express. Highway access is provided by numerous surface streets including U.S. Route 1. The Washington-area Capital […]
Federal regulators put higher hurdle in front of CSX-Pan Am deal (updated)
WASHINGTON — CSX Transportation’s proposed acquisition of New England regional Pan Am Railways will get a more thorough review. The Surface Transportation Board has decided that the merger application will be treated as a significant transaction, not the minor deal that CSX and Pan Am had sought. The move, announced in a draft notice in the […]
Digest: Dallas council approves light rail subway project
Dallas City Council approves $1.7 billion ‘D2’ subway project The Dallas City Council has approved building a new light rail route through downtown including a subway section with three underground stations. WFAA-TV reports the council also said it would support Dallas Area Rapid Transit’s effort to obtain an $800 million Federal Transit Administration grant to […]
Some states begin restoring Amtrak corridor frequencies; others continue planning (updated)
SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Anticipating rail travel demand comes with dual challenges: incur costs running trains with initial low patronage, or risk not providing enough options to build revenue and transportation relevance. Amtrak will begin restoring daily departures for its long-distance trains in late May, after receiving directives and $1.7 billion from Congress [see “As Amtrak […]
Long Island Rail Road releases new schedules, unveils new seating-information tools
NEW YORK — The Long Island Rail Road has posted new timetables effective March 29, as well as improved technology to help riders know about seat availability on trains. The timetables announced Wednesday restore the weekday levels of service that had been in place Jan. 25 through March 5. The railroad reduced weekday service as […]
Digest: Northeast Corridor service disrupted at Providence; Hartford line also having issues
Fires disrupt service on Northeast Corridor, Hartford Line Amtrak service on the Northeast Corridor between New York and Boston has been disrupted this morning by fire department activity earlier this morning in Providence, R.I., that has affected overhead power lines. WJAR-TV reports a locomotive fire on an MBTA train in one of the underground approaches […]
Digest: New MBTA subway cars have derailed six times near site of recent incident
Car weight may be a factor in derailments by new MBTA subway cars The Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority’s new Orange Line subway cars have derailed six times near Wellington Station in Medford, Mass., since the first new cars entered service, and their weight may be a factor. New England Cable News reports five of those […]
Landmark former PRR tower facing demolition
MG Tower, a landmark on the former Pennsylvania Railroad Pittsburgh Line through the Allegheny Mountains, is reportedly facing demolition by current owner Norfolk Southern 27 years after its closure. The tower was built to help the Pennsylvania deal with the increased demand to transport war materials, troops, civilian passenger trains, and regular freight shipments. In […]
Digest: Minnesota tank car explosion spews molasses for more than a mile
Tank car of molasses explodes in Minnesota, damaging building An explosion of a tank car full of molasses on Tuesday morning in Cannon Falls, Minn., spewed the sticky substance as far as a mile and a half from the site of the incident. RiverTowns.net reports the Cannon Falls Fire Department received a call about an […]
Obituaries: Marvin Cohen, Pete Reimer
Steam Directory editor, heritage rail pioneer Marvin Cohen Marvin Cohen, editor of the Steam Directory from 1966 to 1989, passed away at home in Middletown, N.Y. on Dec. 10, 2020, at age 93. Mark Smith, Cohen’s successor, credited Cohen with an “incalculable contribution” to the heritage rail industry by creating the “bible of the industry.” […]