ROSWELL, N.M. — BNSF Railway’s Carlsbad Subdivision has been closed by a washout near Roswell that will keep the line closed for most of the week, the railroad has informed customers. An advisory on the railroad website says the washout was reported shortly after 7 a.m. on Sunday, Oct. 20. After assessment by BNSF personnel, […]
MOBILE, Ala. — Another step in the long-running effort to launch Amtrak service between Mobile and New Orleans is set for Tuesday, Oct. 22, when officials including U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg take part in a groundbreaking ceremony for an Amtrak layover track and platform in Mobile. The ceremony is set for 2 p.m. at […]
SAN FRANCISCO — The floppy-disk era is nearing an end on the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency. KGO-TV reports that the Muni board has approved a $212 million contract with Hitachi Rail for a train control system that will replace the more than 30-year-old system that still runs on outdated floppy-disk technology. The Automatic Train […]
PORTLAND, Ore. — Following years of failed efforts to come up with money for a local match to apply for federal grants to help fund needed upgrades, the city of Portland has renewed efforts to sell Union Station. Built in 1896 and on the National Register of Historic Places since 1975, the station’s signature clock […]
EAGLE PASS, Texas — Mexican railroad Ferromex will resume issuing permits for unit grain trains entering Mexico through the Eagle Pass and El Paso, Texas, gateways “as a result of the improved ag unit train crossing cadence and pipeline” beginning today (Monday, Oct. 21), Union Pacific has informed customers. On Oct. 12, UP announced that […]
WASHINGTON — The Federal Transit Administration has finalized regulations giving state agencies overseeing rail transit more authority to conduct inspections and clarifying existing rules. An updated final rule regarding State Safety Oversight Agencies published on Friday, Oct. 18, allows those oversight agencies to conduct inspections of rail transit operations without advance notice, and requires them […]
DONALDSONVILLE, La. — No injuries were reported when 17 cars of a Union Pacific train derailed today (Friday, Oct. 18) in Donaldsonville, leading to a spill of what is described as a non-hazardous chemical. The derailment occurred about 7:30 a.m. A railroad representative told WBRZ-TV that cyanuric acid, used in herbicides and chlorine bleach, was […]
WATERBURY, Conn. — Train service on Metro-North’s Waterbury Branch, halted since the line suffered significant damage from flooding in August, will resume on Monday, Oct. 28, the Connecticut Department of Transportation has announced. Major washouts near Beacon Falls and Seymour, Conn., after a major storm Aug. 18 have prevented any train operations. During an examination […]
HAMMOND, Ind. — The South Shore Line is opening its new Hammond Gateway station as of today (Friday, Oct. 18) and closing the existing Hammond station. The relocation will accommodate the West Lake Corridor line between Hammond and Dyer, Ind., currently under construction. “We sincerely appreciate our passengers’ patience and cooperation through this stage of […]
WINNIPEG, Manitoba — Passengers on VIA Rail Canada’s Canadian who found their trip disrupted by a freight-train accident in Saskatchewan on Wednesday were eventually taken to Winnipeg, but left to find their own way home from there, the CBC reports. The collision between a CN freight train and a farm tractor killed the driver of […]
RICHMOND, British Columbia — An error in canceling a track occupancy permit led to a Canadian Pacific train striking a track supervisor’s hi-rail vehicle in a Dec. 29, 2022, incident, the Transportation Safety Board of Canada said in an investigation report released on Thursday, Oct. 17. No one was injured in the incident near Kamloops, […]
MONTREAL — When safety is on the table, there can be no debate about measures taken to ensure it. So when Canadian National informed VIA Rail Canada last Friday that all Venture trainsets of less than 32 axles could not operate at track speed across highway crossings equipped with warning devices triggered by Grade Crossing […]
