The first Lionel Conrail cars and engines came shortly after the federal government created the railroad in 1976. Fundimensions, the division of General Mills then licensed to manufacture and market Lionel trains and accessories, announced an O gauge boxcar with Conrail graphics in the 1977 consumer catalog. The quick move was actually atypical. Earlier mergers […]
WASHINGTON — The Federal Railroad Administration today proposed a rule that would require railroads to provide emergency breathing apparatus for locomotive crews who are operating trains carrying hazardous materials that would pose an inhalation danger in the event of a release during a derailment. The proposed rule, the FRA says, would protect crews from inhalation […]
The Lionel X6454 Baby Ruth boxcar is one of the most basic freight cars ever made. It looks unassuming and familiar, but it’s among the toughest postwar cars to find and own. Lionel cataloged this 9¼-inch model only in 1948. It was one of three new single-door boxcars introduced that year, all of them designated […]
An Amtrak Crescent day trip to Birmingham is possible because the Crescent’s schedule offers several daytrip offerings depending on where you are located along its long-distance route. One offering is a roundtrip experience between Atlanta and Birmingham, Ala. The trip starts off at Atlanta’s Peachtree Station at 1688 Peachtree Road Northwest in the city’s Brookwood […]
Amtrak Crescent day trip to Meridian Taking an Amtrak Crescent day trip to Meridian, Mississippi is possible as Amtrak’s Crescent schedule provides a great opportunity for passenger rail fans to experience one of Amtrak’s premier long-distance passenger trains on a day trip originating at New Orleans and traveling northeast to Meridian, Miss., and return. This […]
WASHINGTON — The Surface Transportation Board today approved Montana Rail Link’s plan to terminate its lease with BNSF Railway, paving the way for BNSF to regain control of the former Northern Pacific main line between Jones Junction, Mont., and Sandpoint, Idaho. Although the STB’s decision is effective on April 7, the date for BNSF to […]
Another layer of planning: Perfect model railroaders (of which I suspect there might be three in the entire world) strike a delicate balance between efforts spent planning their layouts and time devoted to building them. Most of us, though, are somewhere on the plan/build continuum. Myself, I’m pretty far over on the “let’s start sawing […]
WASHINGTON — Class I railroads are taking several steps to improve their wayside detection systems — including installing an additional 1,000 hot bearing detectors this year — in the aftermath of the Feb. 3 Norfolk Southern derailment in East Palestine, Ohio. The Association of American Railroads announced a multi-step safety plan this morning, a day […]
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — An empty CSX Transportation coal train struck a rock slide and derailed in Sandstone, W.Va., on Wednesday morning. All four of the train’s locomotives and nine coal hoppers derailed, the railroad said in a statement. The boulders are estimated to be 10 feet high and 25 feet long. “The lead locomotive had […]
The New Hope Valley Railway, part of the North Carolina Railway Museum, offers an hour-long trip through the pine forests south of Raleigh and Durham in central North Carolina. Choices The railway offers 60-minute round trips between Bonsal and New Hill in covered, open-air railcars. The museum features an outdoor exhibit of railroad equipment as […]
PORTLAND, Maine — Alcohol sales on the Northern New England Passenger Rail Authority’s Downeasters will be allowed to continue in New Hampshire while the officials work out a “creative solution” to address a state liquor law, the Associated Press reports. That represents a reversal of a plan by the New Hampshire Liquor Commission to enforce […]
MONTREAL — Residents of the area near the planned Lac-Mégantic bypass, as well as environmental groups, are asking the Canadian government for an environmental impact study of the planned bypass route, citing concerns on drinking water resources and wetlands. The Canadian Press reports the groups and individuals have made the request in a letter to […]
