Travel: A visit to the Berkshire Scenic Railway Museum

silver with red and black train

Berkshire Scenic Railway Museum WELCOME to the first of my monthly travel investigations, where I’ll explore a great railroad journey, a special destination, or a historic experience. I plan to visit some of the most interesting railroads operating today, while also leading Trains readers down less-traveled paths to seek out the hidden gems of railroading. […]

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CSX earnings improve as service improvements boost merchandise traffic

Train with blue and yellow locomotive coming out of tunnel

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Record on-time performance for carload shipments helped CSX Transportation gain merchandise traffic that contributed to higher first quarter revenue and profits. “With sufficient resources in place, we are able to use the benefits of our scheduled railroading model to deliver improvements in our customer service performance that are driving real, tangible financial […]

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Sound Transit to receive $154 million federal loan

Light rail train at elevated station with construction equipment

SEATTLE – Sound Transit will receive a $154 million loan to finance the South Sounder Access Improvement Project, including construction of new parking garages at three Sounder commuter rail stations: Puyallup, Sumner, and Auburn, Wash. The loan comes from the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Railroad Rehabilitation and Improvement Financing (RRIF) program created in 1998 to […]

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Brightline unveils Orlando terminal, fare structure

ORLANDO, Fla. — Although a firm start date for Brightline’s Miami-Orlando revenue service has yet to be firmed up, the company used a Thursday grand opening event at its Orlando International Airport station to release more details about fares and how trains will operate. Brightline says ticket sales will begin next month and revenue service […]

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Coos Bay Rail Line completes bridge project

Blue and green switch engines pulling freight train

  COOS BAY, Ore. – Coos Bay Rail Line has completed construction of a new bridge over Coalbank Slough and has opened it to rail traffic. The project included the dismantling and disposal of the old bridge structure and replacing it with a new fixed span bridge. The former bridge structure was a non-operating deck-plate girder, […]

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Florida’s Tri-Rail to adopt new look

TriRail_logo

MIAMI – The South Florida Regional Transportation Authority (SFRTA) has approved a new look for Tri-Rail trains, changing the “blue skies, white clouds and palm trees” design for the first time since its unveiling on Tri-Rail trains in 2001. “I am excited to announce that Tri-Rail trains will be refreshed with a new design that will […]

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Derailments down on Union Pacific despite use of longer trains

OMAHA, Neb. – Union Pacific’s reportable train derailment rate improved 10% during the first quarter, executives said today while defending the safety record of long trains. “We continue to make great strides on safety,” Eric Gehringer, executive vice president of operations, told investors and analysts on the railroad’s earnings call on Thursday. UP’s goal remains […]

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Thirteen cars of CSX train derail in Blue Island, Ill.

CSX logo

BLUE ISLAND, Ill. — Thirteen cars of a CSX Transportation train derailed Wednesday night in the Chicago suburb of Blue Island, with the railcars damaging several parked vehicles when they overturned on a sharp curve, WLS-TV reports. No injuries were reported. No hazardous materials were involved, and no cargo was spilled or leaked. CSX said […]

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