In the 20th century, short lines and branches brought forth coal for use nationwide, and one of the primary locations was Stearns, home of the Kentucky & Tennessee short line. The coal is gone now, but the K&T has been reborn as the Big South Fork Scenic Railway. Choices The Big South Fork Scenic Railway […]
OMAHA, Neb. — Union Pacific has become the second Class I railroad to reach an agreement offering paid sick days to some employees, the railroad has announced. “Union Pacific remains committed to addressing our employees’ concerns and signed a deal with the National Conference of Firemen and Oilers (NCFO) and Brotherhood of Railway Carmen (BRC),” […]
ORLANDO, Fla. — Brightline has received the last of the 10 trainsets for its Florida operation, and the last of the five ordered for its upcoming expansion of service to Orlando. The “Bright Orange 2” train arrived at the company’s Vehicle Maintenance Facility in Orlando on Sunday, Feb. 19, after a 10-day trip from the […]
The Bluegrass Scenic Railroad and Museum offer 90-minute, 11-mile round-trip excursions over the former Southern Railway through the heart of Kentucky’s Bluegrass region. Choices On the Bluegrass Scenic Railroad and Museum, the diesel-powered trains are made up of vintage coaches from the 1920s and 1930s. Accommodations include four commuter-style coaches with vinyl bench seating and […]
FRONTENAC, Quebec — The town of Frontenac has voted in resounding fashion against the planned bypass to remove Canadian Pacific’s rail line from Lac-Mégantic, Quebec, but the results of the referendum apparently will not change the plans for the project. The CBC reports 92% of those in the community of 1,600 who cast ballots in […]
Genset locomotive Everything has an origin. For the modern genset it is Union Pacific UPY 2005. Coming in a variety of designs and sizes, gensets are designed around the concept of “power on demand.” With few exceptions, humming under their long hoods are multiple diesel truck engines — usually two or three. These engines are […]
ROCKHILL FURNACE, Pa. — East Broad Top Railroad’s freshly restored 2-8-2 Mikado locomotive No. 16 delighted admirers over the weekend by pulling a full schedule of eight passenger trains and two photo freights for the road’s annual Winter Spectacular. All trains were sold out. The event was a landmark in several ways. First, No. 16 […]
WASHINGTON — U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg will ask Congress to increase the maximum fine for railroad safety violations, Buttigieg said Sunday in a letter to Norfolk Southern CEO Alan Shaw. In another development stemming from the Feb. 3 derailment and fire of a NS train in East Palestine, Ohio, the chair of the Senate […]
PHOENIX — A bill to limit the length of freight trains in the state of Arizona has cleared its first legislative hurdle, advancing through the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure on Friday by a 10-0 vote with one abstention. HB 2531 would limit trains to 8,500 feet. Capitol Media Services reports that Rep. Consuelo […]
EAST PALESTINE, Ohio — The state of Ohio will open a medical clinic this week in the village of East Palestine to evaluate those concerned about symptoms or otherwise worried about the aftereffects of the Feb. 3 Norfolk Southern derailment, Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine announced on Friday. The Associated Press reports that DeWine also said […]
WASHINGTON — Four federal legislators from Illinois have repeated a call for the Surface Transportation Board to delay a decision on the Canadian Pacific-Kansas City Southern merger until the STB undertakes a separate assessment of the merger’s impact on the Chicago area. That decision could come as soon as the end of this month. The […]
OTTAWA — Transport Canada is defining the process to “qualify and identify” no more than three private firms to participate in the Request For Proposals to develop the Quebec City-Montreal-Ottawa-Toronto “High Frequency Rail” passenger corridor, the agency announced Friday, Feb. 17. The announcement the agency is working to define the Request For Qualifications protocols as […]
