What was your first train set (or locomotive)? Meet Jason Shron: My first train set was a Tyco “Canadiana” set with an Alco C430 decorated in a fantasy Canadian paint scheme. This was soon joined by the Tyco Freight Unloading Boxcar and the Life-Like Operating Logging Mill. In 1979, when I was 4 years old, […]
LeCLAIRE, Iowa — Another eastern Iowa community has approved an agreement with Canadian Pacific over the railroad’s planned merger with Kansas City Southern, while a city which rejected an earlier offer is now on record opposing the merger. KWQC-TV reports that LeClaire, Iowa, will receive $750,000 to address impacts of the merger under an agreement […]
WASHINGTON — Waste shippers have complained to federal regulators regarding deteriorating service on CSX Transportation in the Northeast. The National Waste & Recycling Association, a trade group representing 70% of the private sector’s waste and recycling market, told the Surface Transportation Board that its members prefer to reach commercial solutions with their rail carriers. “However, […]
ALEXANDER, W.Va. — West Virginia’s Beech Mountain Railroad, operated by United Coal subsidiary Carter-Roag Coal Co., is still hauling Sewell coal, despite the loss of the usual destination for its coal because of the war in Ukraine. United Coal supplies the mammoth Azovstal steel plant in Mariupol, Ukraine, but the plant was devastated by Russian […]
NEW YORK — Equipment from New York Transit Museum’s collection of vintage subway cars will be operation Sept. 17-18 at the Brighton Beach station in Brooklyn as part of the museum’s Parade of Trains, offering round-trip shuttle rides with a regular subway admission. The Parade of Trains will operate each day from 11 a.m. to […]
JONESBORO, Ark. — Eleven cars of a Union Pacific train derailed early Tuesday morning, closing two streets in central Jonesboro, the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette reports. The derailment occurred about 3:30 a.m., leading to a coal spill, but involved no hazardous materials. No injuries were reported. The Jonesboro Police Department reported on its Facebook page that the […]
24-foot wood tank car Scale: HO (1:87.1) Price: No trucks or couplers, $40; Tichy Train Group archbar trucks and Kadee No. 148 couplers, $45; Kadee No. 509 archbar trucks and No. 148 couplers, $50. Manufacturer: Conowingo Models; conowingomodels.com 24-foot wood tank car features: Bands with 3-D printed hose clamps Metal tie rods 3-D printed valve Tichy Train […]
WASHINGTON — Five of the seven Class I railroads operating in the U.S. were revenue adequate in 2021, the Surface Transportation Board said on Tuesday. Being revenue adequate means a railroads achieved a rate of return equal to or greater than the board’s calculation of the average cost of capital to the freight rail industry. […]
INDEPENDENCE, Ohio — BNSF Railway has reached a tentative agreement with the union representing 500 of regional Montana Rail Link’s 1,200 employees. MRL announced on Jan. 10 that it was terminating its lease with BNSF and that the Class I railroad would resume operations and maintenance of the former Northern Pacific main line [see “Montana […]
WASHINGTON — The Surface Transportation Board has extended the deadline for environmental comments on the proposed Canadian Pacific-Kansas City Southern merger. The comment period now will run through Oct. 14 instead of Sept. 26, the STB announced on Tuesday. The STB said no further extensions would be permitted. The board granted the extension to allow […]
Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe double-sheathed caboose Scale: Large scale (1:24) Price: $104.99 Manufacturer: PIKO America, LLC, 4610 Alvarado Canyon Rd., Ste. 5, San Diego, CA 92120; piko-america.com Caboose features: Molded sheathing with woodgrain detail Factory-applied brake wheel, brake cylinder, piping, smokejack, running boards, ladders, and stirrup steps Plastic wheelsets Hook-and-loop couplers Minimum recommend radius, 23.6” […]
30,000-gallon ethanol tank car Scale: HO (1:87.1) and N (1:160) Price: Single car (HO, $52.99; N, $38.99); three-pack, (HO, $131.99; N, $96.99). Add $5 to $13 for Primed for Grime models. Era: 1999 to present Manufacturer: Athearn Trains, 2904 Research Rd., Champaign, IL 61822; 800-338-4639; athearn.com 30,000-gallon ethanol tank car features: Separate, factory-applied brake wheel, walkway platform, manway, […]
