Southbound lanes of I-25 reopen in Colorado after derailment

Cars moving on highway past site of railroad overpass

PUEBLO, Colo. — Southbound lanes of Interstate 25 reopened this afternoon (Wednesday, Oct. 18) at the site of Sunday’s derailment and fatal bridge collapse involving a BNSF Railway coal train, the Colorado State Patrol reported on social media. Northbound lanes are expected to reopen Thursday Meanwhile, BNSF says the rail line at the site of […]

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Menards Track Inspection Set

two trucks, a black remote, and 8 sections of track

Menards has started offering starter sets, and their Track Inspection Set is one of the newcomers to that area. But instead of a locomotive and pieces of rolling stock in the box, you’ll find something a little different. This set includes a track maintenance truck and a track inspection vehicle, and no locomotives. Both vehicles […]

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How to build a plywood train table

A finished plywood table without scenery, wiring, or paint.

How to build a plywood train table: The train table is a means to an end. We want to build it carefully and well, but we also want to move on fairly quickly to running some trains. Good, straight, knot-free dimensional lumber (1 x 3s or 2 x 4s) has become expensive and difficult to […]

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Locomotive air horn — a noisy necessity

train going through crossing fast

Locomotive air horn Throughout the United States, there are hundreds of thousands of railroad crossings that require sounding the horn. Federal law dictates that the engineer must blow the locomotive air horn with a sequence of blasts in the fashion of long, long, short, and long, no later than 15 seconds and as early as […]

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CN names two operations executives to succeed retiring chief operating officer

Canadian National logo

MONTREAL — Canadian National today appointed two operations executives to take over for retiring Chief Operating Officer Ed Harris. Patrick Whitehead was named executive vice president and chief network operating officer, while Derek Taylor was named executive vice president and chief field operating officer. Both appointments are effective Nov. 15. Railroads traditionally have a lone […]

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Metra lands federal grant to purchase battery-powered trainsets

Yellow and white multiple-unit trainset on straight track

CHICAGO — Metra will receive a federal grant of almost $170 million — the largest discretionary grant in its history — to buy battery-powered trainsets, the commuter rail operator announced Tuesday. The grant under the Congestion Mitigation and Air Quality Improvement program was approved last week by the Chicago Metropolitan Agency for Planning and the […]

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Staten Island Railway receives first of new railcars

Subway car on truck crossing bridge

STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. — The Metropolitan Transportation Authority’s Staten Island Railway has received its first new railcars in 50 years, with five of the R211 subway cars designated for service on the borough’s transit line unveiled at the railway’s Clifton Maintenance Shop after delivery in a series of nighttime moves. The cars were moved overnight […]

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Fall finale for Nickel Plate Road No. 765’s 2023 season

Steam engine crosses railroad crossing

STEUBEN COUNTY, Ind. — While the 2023 schedule of the Indiana Rail Experience — a partnership between the Fort Wayne Railroad Historical Society and Indiana Northeastern Railroad Co. — will continue with diesel-powered Christmas excursions out of Pleasant Lake and New Haven, Ind., the steam season for Nickel Plate Road No. 765 has concluded in […]

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