NEW ROCKFORD, N.D. — The driver of a BNSF maintenance-of-way vehicle was killed Monday, Nov. 4, when the vehicle was struck by a train, KFGO Radio reports. The collision occurred about 11 a.m. Eddy County Sheriff Paul Lies told the station that the vehicle was hit when it was backing across railroad tracks about 2.5 […]
Zone & Region: Plains & Texas
Chicago CREATE project receives both Mega, INFRA grants
WASHINGTON — A piece of Chicago’s CREATE project and an element of California’s high speed rail construction are among the 11 recipients of Department of Transportation National Infrastructure Project Assistance, or Mega, grants announced today. Also, the same CREATE project and infrastructure improvements on the Paducah & Louisville Railway are among the 36 projects selected […]
UP, Ferromex limit grain traffic into Mexico following derailment
EAGLE PASS, Texas — Union Pacific and Mexican partner Ferromex have suspended permits for grain shuttles as a result of a derailment in Mexico, UP said in a notice to customers issued Saturday, Oct. 12. The suspension of permits for two active Ferromex embargos reflects “the high volume of ag unit trains in the pipeline […]
CPKC announces schedule, performers for 2024 Holiday Train
CALGARY, Alberta — Canadian Pacific Kansas City has released the schedule and list of performers for the annual CPKC Holiday Train, which begins its tours through the U.S. and Canada on Nov. 20. The railroad’s holiday train will also continue to include the Holiday Express, originated by Kansas City Southern, which will make a 13-stop […]
Knoxville Locomotive Works delivers Tier 4 switcher for ADM facility in Texas
CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas — Knoxville Locomotive Works has delivered a Tier 4 switcher to agricultural firm ADM for use at the company’s Corpus Christi facility, a locomotive funded by a state grant to address emissions reduction. “KLW is pleased to deliver the first successfully integrated a Cummins Tier 4 QST 30 Module to power a […]
Port strike ends on third day (updated)
The strike by dockworkers that shut down East Coast ports came to an end today (Thursday, Oct. 3) when the International Longshoremen’s Association and the United States Maritime Alliance announced they had come to a tentative agreement on wages and an extension of the master contract. The agreement ended the strike on its third day. […]
Automated Railway
In a view taken halfway up a light tower we see Union Pacific’s modern hump yard at North Platte, Neb., around 1950. At the bottom left is the hump tower, and the two cars just above it are rolling free toward the master retarder. Union Pacific photo […]
Kansas Belle dinner train cars find temporary home at Abilene & Smoky Valley
ABILENE, Kan. — Nearly five years after the last run out of Baldwin City, six passenger cars of Bruce Eveland’s Kansas Belle dinner train have found a new owner and a temporary home. A Sept. 16, 2024, Facebook post by the Abilene & Smoky Valley Railroad (A&SV) announced the recent acquisition with American Heritage Railways […]
Lionel No. 2245 Texas Special F3 Diesel A and B Units
Lionel No. 2245 Texas Special F3 Diesel A and B Units celebrate their 70th anniversary this year. The beautiful O gauge locomotives made their debut in the noteworthy year of 1954 as separate-sale items priced at $39.95 ($470.63 in today’s dollars) and as the motive power in a pair of outstanding O-27 outfits: the Nos. […]
Tornado derails cars of BNSF train in North Dakota
STEELE, N.D. — More than 40 cars of a stopped BNSF Railway train were derailed when struck by a tornado near Steele, N.D., on Wednesday night. A BNSF spokeswoman told KFYR-TV that 43 cars empty coal gondolas were derailed at approximately 8:19 p.m. The train had been stopped because of reported tornado activity in the […]
Full schedule released for Big Boy’s fall ‘Heartland’ tour
CHEYENNE, Wyo. — Union Pacific has released the full schedule for the 10-state “Heartland of America” tour by Big Boy No. 4014, to begin Aug. 28 in Cheyenne and return there Oct. 23. As previously announced, public display events are planned for Sunday, Sept. 8, in Rochelle, lll.; Sunday, Oct. 6, in Houston; and Thursday […]
NTSB releases preliminary report on July CPKC hazardous-material derailment in North Dakota
WASHINGTON — A CPKC freight train was traveling about 45 mph when 29 cars derailed on July 5 near Bordulac, N.D., leading to a fire involving methanol and anhydrous ammonia, the National Transportation Safety Board said in the preliminary investigation report released today (Thursday, Aug. 1). The fire burned for two days, leading to a […]