Trains Magazine columnist Fred W. Frailey takes a look inside BNSF Railway’s busy Willow Springs intermodal yard, near Chicago. In this free download, you’ll get a peek behind the security fence to experience the rush to move priority UPS traffic into and out of the Windy City. […]
Section: Train Basics
Railroad business trains
On June 8, 2015, Montana Rail Link’s business train soars high over the white waters of Fish Creek, near Rivulet, Mont. During this trip, the railroad’s owner, Dennis Washington, hosted business partners aboard the train. Steven Welch Q What is the purpose of railroad business and inspection trains, and who would use them? – Dennis […]
South Dakota rail line
In May 1995, a westbound Dakota Southern freight with a (former Long Island) Alco C420 and an SD7 rolls slowly into the setting sun, west of Chamberlain, S.D. Tom Danneman Q The line in Chamberlain, S.D., was abandoned, I thought, but coal cars with BNSF markings are sitting in various parts of the line. Is […]
PTC and passenger speeds
Amtrak’s ‘Empire Builder’ streaks through Brookfield, Wis. The speed limit for Amtrak on Canadian Pacific’s Watertown Subdivision is 79 mph. Tom Danneman Q Most Amtrak trains have a 79-mph speed limit. Will positive train control systems allow Amtrak to operate faster where track conditions allow? For instance, the Southwest Chief operates to 90 mph in […]
Kentucky diesel paint schemes
Louisville & Nashville adopted Alcos by the 1950s on lines in eastern Kentucky. The railroad first painted RS3s, FA2s, and FB2s in black, cream, and orange, but later opted for simpler schemes. R.D. Sharpless, Louisville & Nashville Historical Society collection Q My family moved from Texas to southeastern Kentucky in the mid-1950s, and I remember […]
Super Streamliners: Dazzling passenger trains from the classic era of rail travel
Long before the advent of diesels and lightweight equipment, streamliners shaped “high-speed rail” in the 1930s, 1940s and 1950s. In this free, 35-page download, we revisit the classic streamliner era. This series includes: The Great Chicago-Twin Cities Speed War: How intense competition between Burlington Route, Milwaukee Road, and Chicago & North Western drastically reduced daytime […]
Coast-to-coast passenger train
Amtrak’s westbound ‘Sunset Limited’ pauses for a station stop in Atmore, Ala., at sunrise in January 1995. It was the nation’s first and only transcontinental passenger train. Bob Johnston Q There were numerous named passenger trains that spanned distances beyond the reach of a single railroad, such as the California Zephyr between Chicago and Oakland, […]
Biodiesel fuel in locomotives
Q Certain states require fueling stations to blend biodiesel into diesel fuel for cars and trucks at different times of the year. Do railroads use biodiesel in their locomotives? – Brett Schmidt, Madison, Wis. A Class I railroads, regionals, short lines, and commuter agencies have tried biodiesel with a variety of blends from a 10-percent […]
Locomotives’ minimum speed
An ammeter in a GP40-2 with the short-time rating plate below. Note the duplicate time chart listed on the gauge as well. Chris Guss Q Why is it that a D.C. traction locomotive can stay below its continuous full-power minimum speed limit for only 30 minutes while an A.C. traction unit can grind away in […]
Rail brands deciphered
This line of numbers and letters is a rail brand. Deciphered correctly, they show railroads the weight, maker, treatment, design, and manufacture date of a rail. Ed Funkhouser Q I saw these numbers and letters on the side of a rail near Mebane, N.C. Can you tell me what they mean? – Ed Funkhouser, Raleigh, […]
Diesel locomotive pooling
Two Canadian Pacific trains, with motive power from CP, CSX Transportation, and Norfolk Southern, meet near Oconomowoc, Wis., in November 2014. Brian Schmidt Q It is common to see a train from one railroad which is powered, partially or fully, by locomotives from another railroad. Why does this happen so frequently and how is the […]
Cabooses, not cabeese
Volunteers at the Whitewater Valley Railroad in Connersville, Ind., prepare a string of cabooses (not cabeese) for an excursion in December 2013. Steve Sweeney Q If the plural of “goose” is “geese,” then is the plural of “caboose,” “cabeese?” What is the proper plural form of “caboose?” – William James, Manchester, N.H. A Our collected […]
