LOS ANGELES — Amtrak’s Coast Starlight began operating as Los Angeles-Sacramento, Calif., and Seattle-Klamath Falls, Ore., sections linked by an overnight bus ride as of Friday, July 16, but travelers haven’t been able to make new reservations, even on the unaffected parts of the route. The Seattle-Klamath Falls portion had been dropped after a wildfire […]
BNSF Railway ran a special passenger movement between Kansas City and Albuquerque, N.M., last week, via the Raton and Glorieta subdivisions, in anticipation of the return of a weekly freight movement over part of the line. Officially an engineering special, the movement saw CEO Katie Farmer and some of her staff were on board the […]
Sunset on the swamp Framed by trees heavy with Spanish moss, the eastbound Southern Pacific Sunset Limited crosses a bayou near Morgan City, La., about 80 miles west of New Orleans, in 1958. Diesels and streamlined cars came in 1950. Classic Trains collection […]
Introduction to the Matteson, Illinois, railfan hotspot Matteson’s status as a truly significant railroad junction dates only to October 2011, when Canadian National completed a new connection between its north-south former Illinois Central line, and its recently acquired Elgin, Joliet & Eastern, the belt line that gave it a way to avoid much of […]
CUMBERLAND, Md. — As tourist railroads and museums emerge from the COVID-19 pandemic, they are offering new experiences to attract the public. At the Western Maryland Scenic Railroad, this effort has translated into the addition of Amtrak’s last dome car. The Ocean View, built in 1955 and retired by Amtrak in 2019, debuted earlier this […]
DALLAS — Continuing to line up major partners and suppliers for its project, Texas Central Railway this week announced it has signed a contract to have Spanish firm Renfe serve as “Early Operator” for its proposed Dallas-Houston high speed rail line. As early operator, Renfe will be involved in design and development of commercial aspects […]
Altamont Pass(enger) During its 924 miles on the Western Pacific, the westbound California Zephyr passes through the barren hills of Altamont Pass, Calif., on March 15, 1953. W. E. Malloy Jr. photo […]
KINGSPORT, Tenn. — For the second straight year, there will be no CSX Santa Train in the southern Appalachian mountains. Instead, organizers will hold drive-through distribution of gifts at four locations. The train had run for 77 years until it was replaced by the drive-through distribution last year because of the COVID-19 pandemic [see “CSX […]
CALGARY, Alberta — The Canada Infrastructure bank may fund up to half of a proposed passenger rail operation between Calgary’s airport and the popular tourist destination of Banff, an idea promoted by the provincial government and a private firm, Liricon Capital. Canadian Pacific, whose rail line would be involved, is open to the idea, Canadian […]
AUSTIN, Texas — The underground light rail route that is a key part of Austin’s $7 billion plan for transit expansion is facing changes after the Texas legislature failed to pass legislation allowing the route to go under two downtown parks. KUT Public Radio reports Austin Transit Partnership — the agency overseeing the project, combining […]
SAN JOSE, Calif. — The new general manager of the Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority says the agency won’t be restarting light rail this month, as it had previously hoped. Carolyn Gonot, who became the VTA general manager this week, told the San Jose Mercury News the agency is now hoping to resume service in […]
WASHINGTON — The commission that helps fund Amtrak’s Northeast Corridor operations today released a sweeping blueprint that sets goals for passenger rail service improvements over the next 15 years, and the infrastructure investments and funding it estimates will be necessary to implement them. On the surface, “Connect NEC 2035,” or “C35,” might be viewed as […]
