ELY, Nev. — On the night of Feb. 3, the Nevada Northern Railway Museum successfully fired No. 81, a 1917 Baldwin Locomotive Works 2-8-0. The locomotive had not been fired for more than two years due to ongoing repairs. For the firing, 1,000 pounds of coal was placed in the 5-foot-by-9-foot firebox, which had been […]
The ScaleTrains Electro-Motive Division SD7 HO scale (1:87.1) diesel locomotive is highlighted in this latest product review video from Model Railroader magazine. Senior Editor Cody Grivno explores the manufacturer’s Rivet Counter line, focusing here on the highly detailed Great Northern No. 572. Built in April 1953, the prototype 1,500hp locomotive originally sported the iconic Empire […]
The ScaleTrains Electro-Motive Division SD7 HO scale (1:87.1) diesel locomotive is highlighted in this latest product review video from Model Railroader magazine. Senior Editor Cody Grivno explores the manufacturer’s Rivet Counter line, focusing here on the highly detailed Great Northern No. 572. Built in April 1953, the prototype 1,500hp locomotive originally sported the iconic Empire […]
STRASBURG, Pa. — A new year brings new resolutions. For RJD America LLC, a group of railroaders and businessmen who purchased Chesapeake & Ohio No. 614 in 2024, its 2026 resolution hopes to go above and beyond the ongoing restoration to return the Class J3a 4-8-4 to service. 2025 recap In an interview with Trains.com, […]
BOSTON — The Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority has released its heritage locomotive honoring the New York, New Haven & Hartford Railroad. It is the second in a planned series of three locomotives honoring predecessor operators of commuter rail service in the MBTA service area. The orange, black, and white locomotive — displaying the New Haven […]
CHICAGO — Amtrak has canceled several trains in the Midwest and Pacific Northwest today (Friday, Feb. 6), along with a second day of large-scale cancellations in the Northwest. Canceled today are Chicago-St. Louis Lincoln Service Nos. 300, 302, 305, and 307; Chicago-Pontiac, Mich., Wolverines Nos. 351, 352, 353, and 354; and Chicago-Quincy, Ill., Illinois Zephyrs […]
WASHINGTON — The Trump administration offered to release funds for the Hudson Tunnel project if New York Penn Station and Washington’s Dulles International Airport are renamed for President Donald Trump, according to multiple news reports. ABC News, citing “two sources familiar with the conversation,” reports Trump made the offer to Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer […]
LOGAN TOWNSHIP, Pa. — More than 60 cars of a Norfolk Southern train derailed early today (Friday, Feb. 6) near Altoona, the railroad has confirmed. NS said in a statement to Trains that the derailment of train 12G205 — a manifest freight from Conway Yard near Pittsburgh to Enola Yard near Harrisburg — occurred about […]
DAVIS, W.Va. — The last operating coal mine on the right-of-way of the original Western Maryland Railway, a facility in the mountains of rural northeastern West Virginia, is slated for closure this spring. Mettiki Coal’s Mountain View Mine, owned by Alliance Resource Partners, announced on Jan. 29 its plans to lay off nearly 200 employees […]
MUNSTER, Ind. — One aspect of the Federal Railroad Administration’s certification process for any new passenger route before revenue service begins is to supervise simulated scheduled operations. These replicate actual service except for a lack of passengers. Wednesday and today (Feb. 4-5), Northern Indiana Commuter Transit District personnel began those tests along the 8-mile Monon […]
WASHINGTON — Republican members of Congress today urged the Surface Transportation Board to conduct a thorough review of the proposed merger of Union Pacific and Norfolk Southern — and to reject the deal if it does not meet the high standards set by the board’s merger rules set in 2001. Rep. Dusty Johnson of South […]
At the dawn of the 20th century, dusk was approaching for the narrow gauge (3 feet or smaller between the rails) fad that began roughly 30 years prior. As 4’ 8 ½” officially became the “standard” gauge, as it remains to this day, retaining multiple rail lines in different gauges no longer made sense for […]
