AskRail hazmat app for first responders integrated into dispatch systems in East Palestine, Ohio, area

The Association of American Railroads and Norfolk Southern have integrated AskRail, the industry’s hazardous materials app for first responders, into the emergency management dispatching systems for Columbiana County, Ohio, and Beaver County, Pa., which serve the East Palestine, Ohio, area. The AskRail app helps ensure that first responders can quickly access train consist information to […]

Read More…

Ontario tourist railroads you must visit

Streetcar decorated with holiday lights at station

Ontario tourist railroads you must visit include a locomotive shop-converted museum, a scenic destination only accessible by train, and everything in between. From the Tourist Trains Guidebook, here are the tourist railroads, museums, and historic sites you must visit across this Canadian province. Ontario Tourist Railroads and Museums Bruce Peninsula, Southern Georgian Bay and Lake […]

Read More…

British Columbia tourist railroads you must visit

Passenger train rounds curve with Rocky Mountains in background

British Columbia tourist railroads you must visit include steam-powered railways, luxury excursions, and everything in between. From the Tourist Trains Guidebook, here are the tourist railroads, museums, and historic sites you must visit across this Canadian province. British Columbia Tourist Railroads and Museums Kootenay Rockies Cranbrook History Centre – 57 Van Horne Street S, Cranbrook […]

Read More…

Amtrak goes outside for new chief commercial officer

Headshot of Amtrak executive. Amtrak goes outside for new chief commercial officer.

WASHINGTON — Seeking “to lead our continued transformation of the customer experience,” according to Roger Harris, Amtrak president, in an announcement Monday, Amtrak has hired Eliot Hamlisch to a position once held by current CEO Stephen Gardner. As the company’s Executive Vice President and Chief Commercial Officer, Hamlisch will oversee corporate marketing, sales distribution, network […]

Read More…

Minnesota Transportation Museum hosts Trains photo charter

train crossing bridge with water under

Minnesota Transportation Museum’s Osceola & St. Croix Valley Railway OSCEOLA, Wis. — If you were at the restored Soo Line depot in Osceola on Sept. 11-12, you’d be hard pressed to know what railroad operated there. That’s because the Minnesota Transportation Museum’s Osceola & St. Croix Valley Railway operated three trains representing three different railroads […]

Read More…

Tesla buys German railway line, now hosting passenger trains

Yellow train standing at the platform of a new modern passenger station. Tesla buys German railway line, plans passenger trains.

BERLIN — Electric vehicle maker Tesla has opened its railway line east of Berlin to passenger trains designed for use by workers at its new ‘Gigafactory’ east of the German capital. Trains started running on Sept. 4, and are free of charge and available to all passengers whether Tesla employees or not. The short rail […]

Read More…

Swiss Spectacular, Part 11: Cogwheel to the clouds

Train at station in fog

MONTREUX, Switzerland — Climb every mountain … That sometimes seems to be the motto for the Swiss people, and for its railway builders. There are 26 cog (or rack) railways in Switzerland, according to Wikipedia; given the source, view that number as something less than definitive, but it should at least be in the ballpark. […]

Read More…

Alaska Railroad’s SD70MACs

A yellow and blue locomotive rolls along under blue partly cloudy skies with golden vegetation in the foreground

Note: This article corrects an earlier version that contained an error in the description of the SD70’s HTC-R trucks. See Comments for more information.  Alaska Railroad’s SD70MACs make up the backbone of the railroad’s freight operations and they also power all the ARR’s long-distance passenger trains — wait, isn’t the SD70MAC a freight locomotive? Although […]

Read More…

BNSF and BMWED union reach tentative deal on paid sick time

BNSF Railway logo

BNSF Railway and the Brotherhood of Maintenance of Way Employes Division—International Brotherhood of Teamsters (BMWED) have reached a tentative agreement which includes paid sick days. Building upon existing BNSF paid time off and sickness benefits, BMWED members will receive individual paid days off to use as sick days and gain the ability to convert up […]

Read More…