CASS, W.Va. — The Mountain State Railroad & Logging Historical Association, founded in 1982, which played a key role in support of the Cass Scenic Railroad, will conclude operations, its president has announced. Association president Matt Wilson informed members in a Nov. 24 letter that the organization will become part another group, Friends of Cass […]
WASHINGTON — Amtrak has launched a “free companion” sale for roomettes on its long-distance routes, allowing two people to travel in one of the two-bed sleeping-car accommodations for the price of one. The sale began Thursday, Nov. 30, and runs through Friday, Dec. 8, and is good for travel between Wednesday, Jan. 3, and Wednesday, […]
DENVER, Colo. — Tickets are now on sale for the 2024 season of Amtrak’s Winter Park Express ski train service, which will operate on weekends beginning Jan. 12. Trains will operate Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays on weekends beginning Jan. 12-14 and concluding the weekend of March 29-31. Added this year are service on two holiday […]
ST. PAUL, Minn. — Railroading Heritage of Midwest America’s Milwaukee Road 4-8-4 No. 261 made its second run of 2023 today (Thursday, Nov. 30) operating from its home base in Minneapolis to St. Paul Union Depot. Friday through Sunday, Dec. 1-3, the locomotive will run short “North Pole Express” trips at the depot in what […]
TORONTO — Canada’s VIA Historical Society has launched a major fundraising campaign to acquire its first locomotive, former VIA Rail Canada FP9A No. 6539, to be used as part of the organization’s touring exhibition train to celebrate VIA’s 50th anniversary in 2028. The organization is seeking to raise C$250,000 to purchase, move, restore, repaint and […]
Metra’s new six-axle power CHICAGO — Metra has used one of its SD70MACH locomotives to lead a revenue service train for the first time, with locomotive No. 507 powering train No. 2135 on the evening of Wednesday, Nov. 29, from Chicago Union Station to Fox Lake on the Milwaukee District North line. Metra F59PHI No. […]
WASHINGTON — More than 28 million passengers rode Amtrak in its 2023 fiscal year, the company today in announcing results for the year that ended Sept. 30. “Amtrak ridership continues to set post-pandemic records thanks to our customers who were anxious to travel again and attracted to the many benefits of train travel,” CEO Stephen […]
OLYMPIA, Wash. — Amtrak Cascades service between Seattle and Portland, Ore., will expand by two daily round trips as of Monday, Dec. 11, increasing service to six daily round trips between the two cities, as well as changes to service to Eugene, Ore., and Vancouver, British Columbia. Under the new schedules, the first trains each […]
NEW YORK — The National Transportation Safety Board will investigate a Wednesday accident in the New York Subway system that killed a track worker, the agency said in a social media post. Hiliarian Joseph, 57, was serving as the flagger at a track project near the 34th Street-Herald Square subway station when he was struck […]
MOOREFIELD, W.Va. — OmniTRAX will take over management of West Virginia’s South Branch Valley Railroad this Friday, Dec. 1, the company has announced. The transportation affiliate of The Broe Group said Wednesday that it had entered into “a definitive agreement with the West Virginia Deparment of Transportation to operate and grow” the 52.4-mile railroad, a […]
WASHINGTON — Weekly U.S. rail traffic again was up for the week ending Nov. 25, the third straight week with a volume increase over the same week in 2022. According to statistics from the Association of American Railroads, total traffic was 415,332 carloads and intermodal units, up 2.4%. That included 195,948 carloads, down 2.5%, and […]
WASHINGTON — Austin, Texas, Mayor Kirk Watson expressed strong support for expanded rail service in the San Antonio-Dallas-Houston “Texas Triangle” at a hearing of the U.S. House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee’s rail subcommittee in Washington today (Wednesday, Nov. 29). The session, however, primarily provided a platform for critics of the California High-Speed Rail Authority to […]
