Railroad names for a baby

A little boy in front of a Christmas tree holding a book about trains upside down

Okay let me be the first to say, I am childless. However when a friend of mine told me that he and his wife were expecting, I immediately started to wonder what they would name the child. The next day I brought up the idea to a colleague and said that I thought Norfolk would […]

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BLET members ratify contract with Florida, Gulf & Atlantic

Logo of Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen union

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — Members of the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen at the Florida, Gulf & Atlantic Railway have ratified a five-year agreement, their first since joining the union last year, the BLET has announced. The agreement, ratified Nov. 21 and announced this week, establishes such work rules as a seniority roster, grievance procedures, […]

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Saginaw, Mich., derailment spills corn into river

SAGINAW, Mich. — Two locomotives and five cars of a train derailed on Lake State Railway trackage Sunday afternoon, Nov. 24, spilling corn into the Saginaw River, WWJ Radio reports. The incident occurred about 1:30 p.m. Images on the Detroit News website show one covered hopper ended up on its side at the edge of […]

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Infrastructure fund acquires MobilGrain short lines in Saskatchewan

REGINA, Saskatchewan — Grain and pulse crop processor AGT Food & Ingredients has sold its MobilGrain short lines and its rail and port terminal operations to an infrastructure fund. The sale to GCM Grosvenor, announced Wednesday (Nov. 20), includes MobilGrain’s two Saskatechewan short lines, Last Mountain Rail and Big Sky Rail, both of which connect […]

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General Electric’s U23B: Where are they now?

Two yellow locomotives leading freight train

General Electric’s U23B General Electric broke into the domestic road-switcher locomotive market over six decades ago with its U25B model in 1961. The U-series line would continue to evolve and grow, laying the foundation for the company’s ascent to becoming the No. 1 locomotive builder in North America in later decades. The U23B was essentially […]

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CRISI infrastructure grants make a big impact on small railroads

blue and silver locomotive

WASHINGTON — Short line railroads across the United States will be able to lay more welded rail, replace more crossties, add sidings and build bridges as a result of $2.4 billion in funding through the Federal Railroad Administration’s Consolidated Rail Infrastructure and Safety (CRISI) grant program for fiscal years 2023-2024 [see “FRA awards $2.4 billion […]

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Kentucky awards $7.5 million for eight shortline rail projects

Line of people holding shovels

FRANKFORT, Ky. — The Commonwealth of Kentucky is providing $7.5 million in grant funding for eight infrastructure projects on short lines, Gov. Andy Beshear announced on Thursday (Nov. 14). R.J. Corman Railroad Group, Transkentucky Transportation Railroad, and the Paducah & Louisville Railway each received funding for two projects, while the Tennken Railroad Co. and Louisville […]

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Secondhand 2-8-2 in West Virginia

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Mikado 482 was built by Alco’s Schenectady plant for the Mobile & Ohio in 1928. It went to West Virginia short line Cherry River Boom & Lumber after the GM&O merger. It’s resting at Jerryville, W.Va., southwest of Elkins, in May 1952. Ed Theisinger photo […]

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