WASHINGTON – Maybe Amtrak loves the Southwest Chief after all. Despite the recent dust-up over creating a “bus bridge” between Kansas and New Mexico, the passenger railroad is featuring the train on its 2019 wall calendar. The calendar photo shows a nine-car westbound No. 3 passing red rock mesas at Mesita, N.M., on the Laguna […]
A streetcar tests on the streets of El Paso earlier this year. The city’s streetcar system, brought back after being shut down in 1974, opened on Friday. El Paso Streetcar via Facebook EL PASO, Texas — After offering limited free operation during its grand opening weekend, the 4.8-mile El Paso Streetcar system begins full operation […]
Passenger car end details were pretty standard and most followed the pattern used on sleeping cars built by the Pullman Co. The car in the photo is Crystal Point, a Pullman 3-compartment, 2-drawing-room, observation lounge assigned to the Milwaukee Road’s Olympian Hiawatha in 1947. A number of details are visible that appear on most cars […]
The westbound Canadian is running 15 hours late on Oct. 14, 2018, as it meets its eastbound counterpart in this shot from the eastbound train. VIA Rail Canada has again adjusted the 2019 Canadian, addressing sightseeing and intermediate-stop issues. Bob Johnston A comparison of VIA’s current and 2019 schedules for the Canadian (click to enlarge). […]
NEWARK, N.J. — Thousands of people have applied to become locomotive engineers for NJ Transit, addressing the transit agency’s shortage of people to operate its commuter trains. But relief will be far from immediate. NJ.com reports that more than 5,000 people have already applied to become engineers, with the deadline for applications arriving on Friday. […]
NICHOLASVILLE, Ky. — R.J. Corman’s family of shortline railroads now includes a significant part of Nashville’s shortline railroading scene. R.J. Corman announced this week it has finalized an agreement to purchase the Nashville & Eastern Railroad Corp.; Nashville & Western Railroad Corp.; Transit Solutions Group, the operator of Nashville’s Music City Star commuter railroad; and […]
SACRAMENTO, Calif. — California’s bullet train dodged its second fatal projectile Tuesday in less than a week when voters overwhelmingly elected Democrat Gavin Newsom as high-speed rail champion Jerry Brown’s successor as governor. With 53 percent of precincts reporting early Wednesday, Newsom held a 58 percent to 42 percent lead over Republican candidate John Cox, […]
Passengers de-train from the New River Train as it makes its second station stop in Hinton, W.Va., in October 2015. Chase Gunnoe HUNTINGTON, W.Va. — West Virginia’s annual New River Train could come to a halt because of Amtrak plans to increase private car rates and tighten policies. The 52-year-old annual excursion through West Virginia’s […]
THE PAS, Man. — Although Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau promised full passenger and freight service restoration to Churchill, Manitoba, “by the end of November”, Trains News Wire has learned that full service could begin within the next few weeks and the tracks should be secure through the winter. Last Friday, the two SD50 and […]
F59PHI No. 84 shows its new lettering in late October. Metra CHICAGO – Metra’s newest locomotives are being prepped for service by the company’s mechanical forces. The agency has purchased 21 former Amtrak F59PHIs previously operated on Amtrak’s West Coast routes. The purchase eliminates the model from Amtrak’s roster and makes the Chicago commuter agency […]
A Metra worker was killed in an accident near the Grayland station on Saturday. Google Maps CHICAGO — One Metra worker was killed and another seriously injured in an explosion during track maintenance work on Saturday. The accident occurred near the Grayland station on the Milwaukee District North line, and is being blamed on a […]
WASHINGTON — The maker of Washington Metro’s troubled 7000-series railcars may exit the car-building business, the Washington Post reports. The Post cited a Jiji Press report in which Kawasaki Heavy Industries CEO Yoshinori Kanehana said the company may restructure or close the rail business if it does not improve. The Lincoln Journal Star reported that […]
