WASHINGTON – At the opening of today’s Surface Transportation Board hearing on the lack of rail freight volume growth, Vice Chair Karen Hedlund said she was still struck by what she heard the day before from analysts and shippers and Class I railroad executives. “What we heard yesterday was a tale of two cities. And […]
Type of Train: Freight
CSX rolls out Nashville, Chattanooga & St. Louis heritage locomotive
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — The 19th heritage locomotive in the CSX fleet is No. 1851, a tribute to predecessor railroad Nashville, Chattanooga & St. Louis. CEO Joe Hinrichs unveiled the locomotive today in a post on LinkedIn, as has been customary. “The NC&StL railroad was founded in 1845 and was acquired in a hostile takeover by […]
Museum restores Erie Mining hi-rail car
DULUTH, Minn. – The Lake Superior Railroad Museum has restored a former Erie Mining hi-rail car — a 1957 Pontiac — to service. The Pontiac Chieftain station wagon was put into service in 1957 on Erie Mining Co.’s 74-mile main line between Hoyt Lakes and Taconite Harbor. The vehicle traveled an estimated 110,000 […]
Report shows link between manifest train length and derailments caused by train makeup and handling issues
WASHINGTON – Long manifest trains are more likely to derail than their shorter counterparts due to excessive in-train forces – and the number of wrecks related to train makeup and handling issues has increased sharply since U.S. railroads adopted Precision Scheduled Railroading operating models that rely on ever-longer trains, according to a National Academies of […]
Hearing focuses on turning around the rail industry’s growth problem
WASHINGTON – The first day of the Surface Transportation Board’s unprecedented hearing focusing on growth in the rail industry – or, more precisely, the lack of it – allowed the Class I railroads to tout their successes. But the rail executives had to wait for an analyst panel that outlined the breadth and depth of […]
News & Products for the week of September 16th 2024
News & Products for the week of September 16th 2024 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 September 16th […]
Analysis: What a work stoppage at East, Gulf coast ports means for CSX, NS
Class I railroads’ intermodal volumes have been strong this year, but the growing threat of an East Coast ports work stoppage risks upending supply chains just as the freight industry was normalizing. East Coast Class I railroads CSX and Norfolk Southern are keeping an eye on the potential for a widespread strike at […]
CN blames unplanned CPKC trackwork for June congestion in Directional Running Zone
When Canadian National reported disappointing second quarter results in July – partly due to congestion related to trackwork in the Directional Running Zone it shares with Canadian Pacific Kansas City in British Columbia – executives were vague on why some of the maintenance of way work in the country’s most important corridor was unplanned. At […]
CSX train collides with truck hauling military equipment in South Carolina
GOOSE CREEK, S.C. — Amateur video shows when a CSX Transportation train collides with truck hauling military artillery equipment at Goose Creek, The Post and Courier reports. Goose Creek is located about 15 northwest of Charleston on a former Atlantic Coast Line route that also hosts Amtrak’s Silver Meteor. The incident occurred Thursday […]
New Norfolk Southern CEO Mark George prioritizes operational excellence
LAGUNA BEACH, Calif. – Norfolk Southern, which has struggled to maintain consistent and reliable service in recent years, will no longer tolerate mediocre operational performance, new CEO Mark George says. “The tolerance for poor performance inside of rails has always bothered me,” George said this morning in his first public remarks since replacing Alan Shaw […]
Moloco HO Northern Pacific boxcar
A Northern Pacific HO scale 50-foot XM double-door boxcar is the latest release from Moloco Trains. The ready-to-run model features car-number-specific details, Stanray R3-4 ends, and 8-rung ladders on the sides and ends. A railroad-built car The Moloco model is based on full-size cars built at NP’s Brainerd, Minn., shops between 1956 and 1959. During […]
Norfolk Southern brass seek to reassure employees after sudden firing of CEO
ATLANTA – Norfolk Southern sought to reassure employees that the railroad is in good hands after this week’s firing of CEO Alan Shaw and Chief Legal Officer Nabanita Nag, who were engaged in a consensual relationship in violation of the company’s ethics policy. “While we are deeply troubled to learn of this situation, I am […]