NS and train dispatchers’ union agree to join FRA’s close call reporting program

ATLANTA — Norfolk Southern and the American Train Dispatchers Association today agreed to join the Federal Railroad Administration’s Confidential Close Call Reporting System. Under the one-year C3RS pilot, NS dispatches can report safety concerns with the certainty that such reports will not result in discipline. Submitted safety concerns are made anonymous by NASA and provided […]

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Indiana Rail Road names Gioe as CEO

Man in light blue coat and tie

INDIANAPOLIS — The Indiana Rail Road has named Joseph Gioe as its new president and CEO, replacing Dewayne Swindall, who left the company in May after three years. Gioe will begin the new position on Aug. 12. Gioe most recently was vice president of transportation at Norfolk Southern. Prior to joining NS in 2022, he […]

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CSX reports flat earnings amid freight doldrums

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — CSX reported second-quarter financial results that were flat compared to a year ago as gains in intermodal and merchandise volume were not enough to offset declines in domestic coal shipments. “Overall this was a good quarter that was right in line with our expectations,” CEO Joe Hinrichs told investors and analysts on […]

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News & Products for the week of August 5th 2024

A red and white model locomotive

News & Products for the week of August 5th 2024   Model railroad operators and builders can get the latest information about locomotives, freight cars, passenger cars, tools, track, and more by reading Model Railroader’s frequent product updates. The following are the products Model Railroader editors have news on for the week of August 5th […]

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CN, CPKC to resume negotiations with Teamsters Canada

GATINEAU, Quebec — With the threat of a national strike looming, Canadian National, Canadian Pacific Kansas City, and the Teamsters Canada Rail Conference will resume negotiations on Wednesday, Aug. 8, with the assistance of federal mediators, Labor Minister Steven MacKinnon said today. MacKinnon and Transport Minister Pablo Rodriguez today met with CN, CPKC, and Teamsters […]

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Norfolk Southern, CSX monitor east’s first tropical storm (updated)

Radar image of large storm over Florida

LAKE CITY, Fla. — Eastern railroads have marked the beginning of another hurricane season, as Hurricane Debby hit the made landfall between Tallahassee and Jacksonville, Fla., today (Monday, Aug. 5) and subsequently was downgraded to a strong tropical storm. The storm brought 70-mph winds and heavy rains across Pinsley Railroad Corp.’s Florida Gulf & Atlantic […]

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Union Pacific coal train derails in Iowa

Union Pacific logo without slogan. UP Bailey Yard explosion appear to be accidental.

MARSHALLTOWN, Iowa — Thirty-eight cars of a Union Pacific coal train derailed about 2 miles east of Marshalltown on Sunday evening, Aug. 4, KCCI-TV reports. The derailment occurred about 5:30 p.m. No injuries were reported. Marshalltown is about 148 miles west of Clinton, Iowa, on UP’s Clinton Subdivision. It is about 70 miles west of […]

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Clifton Forge hump yard

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A string of coal hoppers crests the hump at Chesapeake & Ohio’s yard in Clifton Forge, Va., in June 1955. The cars are bound for C&O’s Atlantic Ocean docks at Newport News. W. A. Akin Jr. photo […]

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Why do railroads use catenary?

Orange, black, and white model electric locomotive running under catenary.

When you think about electrified rail lines today, the first thing that probably comes to mind is Amtrak’s Northeast Corridor. But in the first half of the 1900s, before the start of the diesel era, railroads used electrified lines to move freight and passengers. Examples in the east included the New York, New Haven & […]

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