Former BNSF CEO donates mansion to Illinois college

Logo of Lake Forest College

LAKE FOREST, Ill. — Retired BNSF Railway CEO Robert D. Krebs and his wife Anne have donated their Lake Forest mansion, with an assessed value of $5.96 million, to Lake Forest College, the Chicago Tribune reports in a paywalled article. The 9,217-square-foot Italian-villa mansion is on 2.6 acres of land on Walden Road in the […]

Read More…

CP sets grain record in January

Canadian Pacific Railway beaver logo

CALGARY — Canadian Pacific moved 2.29 million metric tons of Canadian grain in January, setting a record for the month, the company said last week. The railroad has now moved more than 15 million metric tons in the 2022-23 crop year, an increase of more than 45% over the same point in the 2021-22 crop […]

Read More…

Vinyl chloride involved in fire from NS derailment, village says

Man speaks at podium facing TV cameras

EAST PALESTINE, Ohio — The chemical burning in the fire resulting from Friday’s derailment of a Norfolk Southern train is the flammable gas vinyl chloride, a potentially carcinogenic substance. The village of East Palestine identified the material in a news release Saturday afternoon, NBC News reports. The Environmental Protection Agency says “cancer is a major […]

Read More…

Amtrak Chicago departure delays mount

Passenger train leaves rooster tail of snow as it runs on three-track main line

CHICAGO — Lack of standby equipment and the inability of Amtrak mechanical forces to sufficiently prepare cars and locomotives for service led to the cancellation of one pair of Chicago-based trains and departure delays to 11 others on Thursday, Feb. 2. The cancellation of one Chicago-Milwaukee Hiawatha round trip, and the cumulative delays to the […]

Read More…

Matt Bumgarner, historian, author, publisher, dies at 56

Man in overalls on steps of railroad car

HICKORY, N.C. — Matt Bumgarner, founding member of the Southeastern Narrow Gauge and Shortline Museum, historian, author, publisher, entrepreneur, and restorer of wooden railroad cars, died Jan. 26 after a brief illness. He was 56. Bumgarner was a director of the museum in Newton, N.C., an organization spearheaded by the Newton Depot Authority, a non-profit […]

Read More…

Norfolk Southern derailment in Ohio continues to burn (updated)

Large fire as seen from a distance

EAST PALESTINE, Ohio — The mayor of the town of East Palestine has declared a state of emergency as a fire continues to burn, following Friday night’s derailment of about 50 cars of a Norfolk Southern train near the Ohio-Pennsylvania state line. WKBN-TV reports Mayor Trent Conaway issued the emergency declaration just before 9:30 a.m. […]

Read More…

New larger, faster ferries boost CG Railway volume

Ship loaded with railcars at dock

CG Railway’s traffic grew 53% last year thanks to the increased capacity of its new rail ferries, the company said this week. The short line, a joint venture of Genesee & Wyoming and SEACOR Holdings, floats freight cars across the Gulf of Mexico. The route links the ports of Mobile, Ala., and Coatzacoalcos in Veracruz, […]

Read More…

Trains LIVE — Articulated locomotives

man crossing arms

Trains LIVE — Articulated locomotives Trains LIVE — 2-1-2023 — Flexible is good, especially when it comes to large steam locomotives negotiating a curve. Today, we are talking about articulated steam locomotives with Trains video producer Kevin Gilliam today. Kevin is currently working on the next DVD in the Great American Steam Locomotive series. This […]

Read More…

Trains LIVE — Articulated locomotives

man crossing arms

Trains LIVE — Articulated locomotives Trains LIVE — 2-1-2023 — Flexible is good, especially when it comes to large steam locomotives negotiating a curve. Today, we are talking about articulated steam locomotives with Trains video producer Kevin Gilliam today. Kevin is currently working on the next DVD in the Great American Steam Locomotive series. This […]

Read More…

Union Pacific named to Fortune’s most admired company list

Yellow locomotives leading train of double-stacked containers over bridge

OMAHA, Neb. — Union Pacific has been named to Fortune magazine’s list of the World’s Most Admired Companies for the 17th time in 21 years. UP is the highest-ranked railroad in the magazine’s Trucking, Transportation, and Logistics category. The annual list is compiled through a survey conducted by global consulting firm Korn Ferry. Executives, directors, […]

Read More…