WASHINGTON — The Surface Transportation Board has granted a request by the parties in the Amtrak Gulf Coast dispute to extend board-sponsored mediation for an additional 30 days. Amtrak, CSX Transportation, Norfolk Southern, and the Alabama State Port Authority and Terminal Railway Alabama State Docks had filed the request on Aug. 24, saying they agreed […]
Railroad: Norfolk Southern
Athearn Genesis Electro-Motive Diesel SD70ACU diesel locomotive
Electro-Motive Diesel SD70ACU diesel locomotive Scale: HO (1:87.1) Price: Direct-current model with 21-pin NEM connector, $259.99; with dual-mode SoundTraxx Tsunami2 sound decoder, $359.99. Add $10 for Primed for Grime. Era: 2016 to present Manufacturer: Athearn Trains, 2904 Research Rd., Champaign, IL 61822; 800-338-4639; athearn.com SD70ACU diesel locomotive features: Body-mounted McHenry knuckle couplers Celcon handrails Detailed cab interior Die-cast metal […]
St. Louis Merchants Bridge project reaches final major milestone
ST. LOUIS — The culmination of the Merchant’s Bridge rebuild project, which began in 2018, is scheduled to take place today (Friday, Aug. 26), with the third and final new span being floated into place on the Mississippi River. Terminal Railroad Association of St. Louis (TRRA) owns the bridge. The 4,340-foot-long bridge, completed in 1889, […]
Freight railroads, Amtrak ask for more time for Gulf Coast mediation
WASHINGTON — The parties in the dispute over Amtrak’s effort to launch Gulf Coast service have asked the Surface Transportation Board to extend the period for board-sponsored mediation by 30 days. In a joint motion filed Wednesday, Aug. 24, by CSX Transportation, Norfolk Southern, Amtrak, and the Alabama State Port Authority, the parties say “an […]
General Electric ET44 diesel locomotive from ScaleTrains
General Electric ET44 diesel locomotive Scale: HO (1:87.1) Price: Direct-current model with 21-pin NEM connector, $174.99; with dual-mode ESU LokSound 5 sound decoder, $269.99 Era: 2014-present (depending on paint scheme) Manufacturer: ScaleTrains, 7598 Highway 411, Benton, TN 37307; 844-987-2467; scaletrains.com Features: Road-number-specific details Factory-installed details including wire grab irons, m.u. clusters, uncoupling levers, windshield wipers, and […]
Despite historically poor rail service, J.B. Hunt remains bullish on intermodal growth
NEW YORK — Domestic intermodal service is running at historically low levels, with trains routinely arriving a day or two behind schedule, J.B. Hunt executives say. “We never saw numbers like this before the pandemic,” Darren Field, J.B. Hunt’s intermodal president, told an investor conference this week. “It’s really a labor and crew issue for […]
CSX and NS optimistic as operations slowly improve with new conductors entering service
NEW YORK — Norfolk Southern and CSX Transportation executives say their railroads are slowly on the mend as more conductors begin active duty and start to ease the crew shortages that have caused widespread service problems. Neither railroad has been able to handle freight demand and both have lost traffic to trucks as on-time performance […]
Georgia environmental agency calls on NS to clean up soybeans from derailment
GAINESVILLE, Ga. — The Environmental Protection Division of Georgia’s Department of Natural Resources has ordered Norfolk Southern to remove soybeans that ended up a waterway because of a derailment, or face penalties as high as $50,000 a day. The Times of Gainesville, Ga., reports the agency informed the railroad in an Aug. 17 letter that […]
Presidential Emergency Board issues rail contract recommendations meant to avert strike
WASHINGTON — The Presidential Emergency Board charged with making recommendations to resolve the longstanding contract differences between the U.S. Class I railroads and their unionized workforce today submitted its report to the White House, railroads, and organized labor. The board recommended a 22% wage increase, along with $5,000 in service recognition bonus payments, over the […]
American Car & Foundry 50-foot exterior-post boxcar from Walthers
American Car & Foundry 50-foot exterior-post boxcar Scale: HO (1:87.1) Price: $34.98 Era: 1974 to present Manufacturer: Wm. K. Walthers Inc., 5601 W. Florist Ave., Milwaukee, WI 53218; 414-527-0770; walthers.com 50-foot American Car and Foundry exterior post boxcar features: Plate B dimensions 33” turned-metal wheelsets with RP-25 contours Proto-Max metal couplers Road names: Burlington Northern […]
NS train derails in Ohio after collision with truck
NORTH LAWRENCE, Ohio — Nineteen cars of a Norfolk Southern train derailed in North Lawrence on Monday morning after the train hit a truck at a grade crossing, the Canton Repository newspaper reports. No injuries were reported after law enforcement and fire agencies responded to the collision at about 7:45 a.m. The accident occurred at […]
Crew members sue NS over derailment caused by rockslide
PITTSBURGH — The engineer and conductor of a Norfolk Southern train derailed by a rockslide last year are suing the railroad, arguing the railroad’s negligence led to the accident. The Pittsburgh Tribune-Review reports engineer Matthew Marchionda and conductor Edward Mansfield were the crew of the train en route from Chicago to New Jersey when it […]