Kauai Plantation Railway profile

Kauai Plantation Railway logo

The Kauai Plantation Railway operates daily on a genuine Hawaiian plantation. Experience plantation life and learn about Kauai agriculture as the train travels through more than 100 acres of unspoiled Hawaii on a 3-foot-gauge train. Passengers enjoy a 40-minute journey through fields of sugar cane, pineapple, banana, papaya, coffee, tropical flowers, and hardwood trees. Choices […]

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Hawaiian Railway Society profile

Diesel pulling passenger train next to the Pacific coast.

The Hawaiian Railway Society operates the only active train on the island of Oahu. It offers regularly scheduled 90-minute, fully narrated rides over 6.5 miles of track. Along the way, you’ll pass a variety of interesting and historical sites, including Fort Barrette. The train stops at Kahe Point, so you can take in the extraordinary […]

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Norfolk Southern and unions team up to focus on safety improvements

Norfolk Southern logo

ATLANTA – Norfolk Southern and the 12 unions that represent the railroad’s employees have agreed to work more closely together to improve safety. “Today, national labor leaders and Norfolk Southern management are committing to work together to enhance rail safety for our people and the communities we serve,” they announced in a letter to employees […]

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Marine Corps base will simulate train derailment

QUANTICO, Va. ­– On May 25, Marines and civilians from Marine Corps Base Quantico will respond to a simulated “derailment” on base, the Marine Corps Times reported. Approximately 180 Marines and 110 to 115 people who work for surrounding Prince William County will be involved in the exercise. Representatives from the county come from the […]

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SMART Train planning budget increase for expansion

Sonoma-Marin Area Rail Transit logo

PETALUMA, Calif. – Sonoma-Marin Area Rail Transit (SMART) is planning to use a budget increase to expand its commuter rail service and adjoining pathways. SMART plans to spend $110 million in the 2023-2024 fiscal year, up from the $77 million in this fiscal year. Most of the increase, $41.6 million, will be used for rail […]

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Construction begins on new SunRail Station

SunRail_logo

DELAND, Fla. – Ground was broken Monday for a new SunRail commuter station in Deland. The station is part of SunRail’s Phase 2 Northern Expansion. Phase 2 will add 12.2 miles to the SunRail corridor, expanding service from the DeBary SunRail Station to the new DeLand Station, with a projected opening in the summer of […]

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NRHS, magazines create new rail preservation award

Boiler of steam locomotive in shop building

  PHILADELPHIA – The National Railway Historical Society has announced a new program to recognize railroads for their efforts in railway preservation. The Society is partnering with Railway Age and Railway Track & Structures magazines to honor and recognize a North American common carrier railroad for a historically significant preservation project completed or put into operation within the last […]

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Michigan Senate advances bill for grade separation fund

Crew members work at railroad crossing gates

LANSING, Mich. – Many states have attempted to address long delays at grade crossings by passing legislation to limit how long a train can hold up traffic. But the Michigan legislature is moving to adopt a different approach: eliminate the crossings altogether. The Michigan Senate has unanimously passed a bill that would create a permanent […]

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Acela first-class menu upgraded: Analysis  

High speed train passing through station

NEW YORK—Amtrak has enlisted the STARR Restaurant Group to enhance food choices aboard its Acela first-class service between New York and Boston. STARR’s corporate umbrella covers 32 separately-branded restaurants representing a wide variety of cuisines. Of these, 19 are located in the Philadelphia area, which is home to the group. The remaining locations are in […]

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Railroad Archaeology 101: Digging up dirt on abandoned routes

black and white photo of abandoned line in Colorado

Abandoned routes It can be disheartening to study a railroad atlas and come across abandoned routes. Nobody wants to realize a line is gone, especially if we had previously witnessed it as an active transportation entity. Well, let’s take a pen and cross off that line. No! It’s rare that the remnants of an abandoned […]

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Work in progress to upgrade BNSF’s old Sandpoint bridge

Train on bridge, with work in progress on adjacent bridge

SANDPOINT, Idaho — With BNSF Railway  and Montana Rail Link trains now using the new 4,873-foot long Lake Pend Oreille bridge opened in late November 2022 outside Sandpoint, Idaho, the adjacent bridge opened by Northern Pacific in 1904 is undergoing reconstruction. BNSF says the work involves “replacing all 59 of the remaining original 1904 bridge […]

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What’s the difference between a locomotive and an engine?

An image of a black-painted modern diesel locomotive leading a long string of tank cars

Railroaders, and railfans, are always talking about engines: How many engines were on that train? Don’t those new engines look good (or bad)? Did you get the number of that engine? So, what’s the difference between a locomotive and an engine? We use both terms to describe the most compelling element of railroading: the machines […]

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