Amtrak’s printed timetable days are finished NEWSWIRE

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Amtrak’s last printed time table. Bob Johnston WASHINGTON — Although it will continue to be available as a downloadable file from Amtrak’s website, the national timetable with every train on every route at every station — and all of the Amtrak Thruway bus connections — will no longer be printed. In a statement released this […]

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Prince, W.Va., loses Amtrak station agent NEWSWIRE

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An empty coal train rolls by the 1946-built Prince, W.Va., station while three passengers wait for the arrival of Amtrak Cardinal No. 51 in Prince in February 2012. Chase Gunnoe PRINCE, W.Va. — A popular train station among railroad enthusiasts in southern West Virginia will no longer be staffed by an Amtrak ticket agent, the […]

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VIA reverses decision on ‘Park’ car access NEWSWIRE

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A Prestige class “Park” car brings up the rear of a westbound Canadian in November 2014, at Jasper, Alberta. Bob Johnston Passengers relax in the Park car’s bullet lounge. VIA Rail Canada briefly restricted access to Canadian passengers who paid for service less than the railroad’s top, Prestige, class. Bob Johnston VANCOUVER, B.C. — VIA […]

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GO, west

  A former GO Transit locomotive that once plied freezing-cold rails near Toronto, Ontario, cozies next to palm trees in Riverside, Calif., in October 2013. Photo by Steve Sweeney […]

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VIA sets new rules for ‘Park’ car access NEWSWIRE

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‘Yoho Park’ brings up the markers on the eastbound ‘Canadian’ at Fenwood, Saskachewan, in December 2012. Thomas R. Schultz TORONTO – In an apparent effort to mediate access to its popular Park-series observation cars on its famed Canadian, VIA Rail Canada has announced new rules for passengers traveling in two sleeping-car classes. Travelers in Prestige […]

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Popular railroad plates

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This Chicago Railroad Fair plate commemorates the 1949 industry gathering in Chicago. It is popular, but worth less than $50. Two photos, Peter Smith Q I have been given a nice dining-type plate commemorating the 1949 Chicago Railroad Fair. It is cream-colored with red-brown single-color images of seven period locomotives (for example: Minnetonka, Tom Thumb, […]

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White Pass & Yukon travel options

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Cruise passengers’ Summit train departs from Skagway’s Broadway dock in 2015. Five photos, Bob Johnston “Narrow Gauge History, Ready to Ride” on pages 40-47 of Trains Magazine’s May 2016 issue explores the 85-car treasure trove of 3-foot gauge passenger cars that Alaska’s White Pass & Yukon Route deploys during its summer excursion season. The most […]

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PRR’s first passenger diesel

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Pennsylvania E7A 5901, one of the units constituting the big road’s first passenger diesel, teams up with an E7B and another E7A on a “Blue Ribbon” limited departing Chicago. This historic unit is preserved at the Railroad Museum of Pennsylvania. PRR photo […]

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A South Shore derailment photo gallery NEWSWIRE

FULL SCREEN Bruce Stahl Shortly after 10 a.m. on March 12, wreck crews had Car No. 40 hooked and ready to move. FULL SCREEN Bruce Stahl About 10:30 a.m. on March 12, crews on cranes were still working to get the train derailment clear. FULL SCREEN Bruce Stahl South Shore train 600 dead on the […]

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Don’t look down

  The Mount Washington Cog Railway in New Hampshire puts on a show for visitors on July 27, 2014. Seen here is Jacob’s Ladder, the steepest part of the route at 37.4 percent. Photo by Ryan Trela […]

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