RONKS, Pa. — Strasburg Rail Road 4-8-0 No. 475, damaged in a Nov. 2 collision with a piece of track maintenance equipment, is back in operation on the railroad’s trains today (Monday, Nov. 7), Strasburg General Manager Jim Hager reports in a note to Trains News Wire correspondent Dan Cupper. The locomotive suffered damage to […]
Section: News Wire
Strike begins by GO Transit workers
TORONTO — A strike by 2,200 GO Transit workers began at 12:01 a.m. today (Monday, Nov. 7) after talks broke down over the weekend, halting bus service by the Toronto-area transit agency. The seven GO rail lines and UP Express service to Pearson Airport continue to operate. The strike is by Amalgamated Transit Union Local […]
Lower volume, higher costs weigh on BNSF’s third-quarter earnings
OMAHA, Neb. — BNSF Railway’s profits declined in the third quarter due to a combination of lower volume and higher operating expenses. The railway’s operating income fell 7.1%, to $2.1 billion, on revenue of $6.5 billion, a 16.8% increase, BNSF’s parent company, Berkshire Hathaway, reported on Saturday. Revenue rose due to higher fuel surcharge revenue […]
Coming at East Broad Top: the new Colgate Grove
SHIRLEYSBURG, Pa. — A new generation of facilities is planned for next summer at East Broad Top Railroad’s time-honored Colgate Grove picnic area, the line’s historic tourist-era turnaround point. Sometime during the coming season, the EBT Foundation Inc. will open two small pavilions and restrooms, along with something that the location never had before, a […]
Norfolk Southern trash train derails along Ohio River
COSTONIA, Ohio — Fifteen cars of a Norfolk Southern train carrying trash derailed Sunday morning, Nov. 6, in Jefferson County, Ohio, WTOV-TV reports, sending some containers of refuse into the Ohio River. The derailment was reported to authorities about 7 a.m., Rob Herrington, deputy director of the Jefferson County Emergency Management Agency, told WKBN-TV that […]
Bill Sheffield, governor who engineered state purchase of Alaska Railroad, dies at 94
ANCHORAGE, Alaska — Former Alaska Gov. Bill Sheffield, who was instrumental in the state’s purchase of the Alaska Railroad from the federal government and went on to serve as the railroad’s president, CEO, and board chairman, has died. Sheffield died on Nov. 4. He was 94. “There are just no words to encompass all that […]
UP maintenance worker killed in Texas explosion
SPRING, Texas — A Union Pacific worker was killed Saturday in an explosion during track work in Spring, Texas, KPRC-TV reports. The Harris County Fire Marshal’s Office told the station the accident occurred about 9 a.m. Two workers were welding when gas was ignited, causing an explosion. One worker was taken to an area hospital, […]
Labor secretary expects Congress to block rail strike
NEW YORK — U.S. Secretary of Labor Marty Walsh, credited by unions with a key role in the tentative agreement that averted a railroad strike in September, says he expects Congress will act to block a possible strike later this month. Walsh made his comments on Friday to CNN, prior to the latest vote ratifying […]
Machinists narrowly ratify new deal with railroads
WASHINGTON — Members of the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers, who rejected an earlier agreement with railroads, have narrowly approved a new deal, the union announced Saturday. The union’s District 19, which represents 4,900 rail workers, said 52% of those voting approved the revised agreement with the National Carriers’ Conference Committee. That deal […]
Workers for Toronto’s GO Transit vote down contract offer, prepare to strike
TORONTO — The union representing 2,200 GO Transit workers says they have rejected the latest contract offer from parent transit agency Metrolinx and will strike on Monday. Global News reports Amalgamated Transit Union Local 1587 said 81% of those voting rejected the contract offered last week. The union represents bus trivers, station attendance, maintenance workers, […]
Suits filed over CN derailment and acid spill in Louisiana
ST. JAMES PARISH, La. — Two lawsuits have been filed in state court by residents evacuated because of an acid spill from a Canadian National derailment on Wednesday — even before the evacuation order for the rural community of Paulina had been lifted. Nola.com reports CN or related corporations are the sole defendant in the […]
Arbitration argument continues to hang over Southwest Chief cases in state court
KEYTESVILLE, Mo. — Arguments in federal court over an arbitration requirement included in Amtrak ticket purchases remain a sticking point in state court suits from June’s fatal derailment of the Southwest Chief near Mendon, Mo., KMBC-TV reports. In Thursday arguments in Chariton County Circuit Court, BNSF and Amtrak argued that passengers agreed to settle […]