CHICAGO — This morning, Amtrak Hiawatha train No. 329 departed Chicago Union Station for Milwaukee behind a new SC-44 Charger locomotive, No. 4620. This is the first solo revenue trip for the Illinois Department of Transportation’s SC-44 locomotives since arriving in the Windy City this spring. This locomotive and its counterparts are owned by a […]
Type of Train: Passenger/Transit
Bachmann HO scale lighted passenger cars

Bachmann HO scale lighted passenger cars Bachmann’s smooth-side passenger cars have surface-mount light-emitting diode illumination. To remove the shell, spread the body over the truck and lift it off. A pair of smooth-side, full length, lighted passenger cars with interiors is new from Bachmann. The coach and observation are based on New York Central and […]
Coast-to-coast passenger train

Amtrak’s westbound ‘Sunset Limited’ pauses for a station stop in Atmore, Ala., at sunrise in January 1995. It was the nation’s first and only transcontinental passenger train. Bob Johnston Q There were numerous named passenger trains that spanned distances beyond the reach of a single railroad, such as the California Zephyr between Chicago and Oakland, […]
‘Canadian’ passengers suffer timekeeping woes this summer

Westbound passengers have missed Canadian Rockies scenery at Jasper, Alta., on a 6 hours-late Canadian on Nov. 21, 2014 Bob Johnston VANCOUVER, B.C. — If you had any doubt that VIA Rail Canada trains are suffering schedule setbacks, look no further than the Aug. 6 Canadian that arrived in Vancouver nearly 24 hours late. The […]
Union Pacific Challenger on the move

Union Pacific’s roving goodwill ambassador, 4-6-6-4 No. 3985, rolls through Cole Junction, Mo., while pulling the Missouri River Eagle special west of Jefferson City, Mo., on Oct 4, 2010. Peter N. Davis photo […]
NCDOT adds two refurbished locomotives to passenger fleet NEWSWIRE

The two refurbished NCDOT locomotives are former GO Transit commuter rail units. North Carolina Department of Transportation RALEIGH, N.C. — A pair of former Toronto GO Transit locomotives will now haul passengers between Raleigh and Charlotte for the North Carolina Department of Transportation. Elected officials, rail representatives, and North Carolina First Lady Kristin Cooper gathered […]
Amtrak ‘Capitol Limited’ schedule modified after Sand Patch grade derailment NEWSWIRE

A CSX Transportation freight train derailed at least 32 cars near Hyndman, Pa. on Wednesday morning impacting both freight and passenger railroads. MP208 HYNDMAN, Pa. — Amtrak’s Capitol Limited between Washington and Chicago will be running on a modified schedule for the next four days after a CSX Transportation freight train derailed more than 30 […]
Amtrak trains to Grand Central Terminal NEWSWIRE
NEW YORK CITY — Inbound Amtrak Albany-to-Grand Central Terminal Train No. 242 is passing through Marble Hill in the Bronx at 4:55 p.m. on July 26, 2017, as one of three Monday through Friday round trips from Albany, due to track work reconstruction at New York Penn Station. Led by non-dual power mode P42DC No. […]
Connecticut to run more than 30 trains a day on ‘Hartford Line’ NEWSWIRE

Connecticut Gov. Dannel P. Malloy, left, speaks to media at Wallingford, Conn., on July 24, as Lt. Gov. Nancy Wyman and Commissioner of Transportation James P. Redeker look on. Scott A. Hartley WALLINGFORD, Conn. — The long-anticipated commuter rail service on Amtrak’s 62-mile New Haven, Conn.-Springfield, Mass., line is expected to become a reality in […]
The Roundhouse: Episode 7

Having trouble viewing this video? Please visit our Video FAQ page Classic Trains editor Rob McGonigal and former Trains magazine publisher Kevin Keefe join Hal Miller for episode 7 of The Roundhouse. Topics for discussion include bankrupt railroads, best railroad photographers, and whether or not Amtrak can ever be considered cool. […]
The Roundhouse: Episode 7

Having trouble viewing this video? Please visit our Video FAQ page Classic Trains editor Rob McGonigal and former Trains magazine publisher Kevin Keefe join Hal Miller for episode 7 of The Roundhouse. Topics for discussion include bankrupt railroads, best railroad photographers, and whether or not Amtrak can ever be considered cool. […]
Amtrak inspection train travels ‘Montrealer’ route NEWSWIRE

ST. ALBANS, Vt. — An Amtrak inspection trip ran today from St. Albans to Montreal over the normally freight only Swanton Subdivision of both New England Central and Canadian National. Montrealer service ended in 1995 and more than two dozen rail and government officials were aboard the consist of Amtrak P42 101, Amcafe 43371 and […]