Grand Canyon No. 4960 labors through Saturday excursion

GC4960

WILLIAMS, Ariz. — Grand Canyon Railway and Hotel’s No. 4960 was at the head of Sept. 2’s round trip from Williams to the south rim of Grand Canyon National Park. The busy Labor Day weekend resulted in a 16-car excursion train that maxed out the platform length at the Williams Station, according to Eric Hadder, […]

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Atlas enters Z scale freight car market

Illustration of two-tone green boxcar with white and orange graphics.

In late August 2023, Atlas announced that it is entering the Z scale freight car market. The company’s debut car will be the Evans 53-foot double-plug-door boxcar, which it also offers in N, HO, and O scales. The Master Line model is scheduled for release in the second quarter of 2024. Road names in the […]

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Lionel Husky-Stack Cars

model of Husky-stack car

Lionel Husky Stack-Cars are now available. For the modern-day modeler, a hole in the market for the better part of the last decade would be the availability of scale intermodal cars. Atlas’s Gunderson well cars are next to impossible to find on the secondhand market, and previous releases by Lionel lacked details. Many were not […]

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News & Products for the week of September 5th 2023

A model boxcar

News & Products for the week of September 5th 2023   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 September 5th […]

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Union Pacific, EPA to conduct soil testing near former SP tie treatment plant in Houston

Union Pacific logo with Building America slogan

HOUSTON – Union Pacific and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency are seeking residents’ permission to conduct soil testing on their properties this month as part of the railroad’s ongoing effort to clean up contamination from the former Southern Pacific crosstie treatment plant in the Fifth Ward. The Houston Health Department independently conducted some additional soil […]

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Waterloo Central Railway begins Sunday Dayliner Service

yellow and white unit with smoke

WATERLOO, Ontario — On Sept. 3, heritage operator Waterloo Central Railway (WCR) officially launched their Sunday Dayliner Service with RDC1 No. 9114. The trains are scheduled to operate between the Northfield station in north Waterloo, Ontario, and the town of Elmira on the Waterloo Spur. RDC1 No. 9114 last operated under its own power in […]

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The quest to counteract ‘loss of shunt:’ Special Report

Amtrak train with Charger locomotive and Superliner cars

First of two parts EFFINGHAM, Ill, —What happens when electrical current connected with signal systems doesn’t reliably travel from one rail to another when a train passes? Dispatchers “lose” the train — it disappears from their screens — and warning lights don’t flash or gates don’t lower at highway crossings as the train approaches. The […]

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Steamtown announces ticket for 2023 autumn excursions

Passenger train rounding bend during a fall day.

SCRANTON, Pa. — Tickets for Steamtown National Historic Site’s upcoming schedule of autumn excursions are now available for purchase online. Selected days in September and October will see diesel-powered, full-day trips depart from the National Park to Gouldsboro, Carbondale, Tobyhanna, or Cresco. Autumn excursion schedule includes these dates. Tickets can be purchased at recreation.gov: Sept. […]

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