Digital or film railroad photography? Before the advent of digital technology, the photographic standard of our hobby was transparency, or slide film. While multiple manufacturers guaranteed the user the desired color temperature and punchiness, the preferred emulsions were the various flavors of Kodachrome and Fujichrome. The former was prized for its “pop,” particularly on bright, […]
HOMEWOOD, IIl. — Bringing Amtrak’s more than 500 stations into compliance with 1990’s Americans with Disabilities Act has been on Amtrak’s to-do list since the legislation was passed, but only with recent, specifically designated funding has the company prioritized the transformations. One such project was celebrated Saturday, June 25, in Homewood, Ill., with Amtrak brass […]
Former Santa Fe bicentennial diesel No. 5704 is on its way to its new home in California. Photographer William Tollett caught the SD45-2, restored to its mid-1970s paint scheme earlier this year, on Thursday, June 23, at Panhandle, Texas, on BNSF Railway train ZPLKLAC6-22. The locomotive was donated to the Southern California Railroad Museum in […]
Changing a locomotive headlight: Everything we do on the railroad is guided by FRA standards and practices. According to the portion of federal law that governs railroads – 49 CFR § 229.125 – every lead locomotive used in road service shall illuminate its headlight while the locomotive is in use. If a road unit is […]
FORT WORTH, Texas — BNSF Railway’s decision to meter a broad range of carload traffic bound for California beginning next week is aimed at preventing congestion from worsening on the busy Southern Transcon during the Fourth of July holiday period when many crews mark off. The west end of the Southern Transcon, which carries 80 […]
Join me in early mid-March, beside Amtrak City of New Orleans at Chebanse, Ill., a few weeks ahead of farmer’s spring planting — about 70 miles south of Chicago. It’s a breezy, crisp early morning before sunrise. The camera’s ISO is notched up to 2500. A lamp brightens the interior of the Chebanse depot, but […]
MONTREAL – Canadian National has added a second pair of intermodal trains linking the Port of Halifax, Nova Scotia, with points in Eastern Canada and the U.S. Midwest. The railway launched trains Q122 and Q123 this month, joining existing trains Q120 and Q121 that serve Atlantic Canada’s busiest containerport. “Working with our partner PSA, this […]
NEWARK, N.J. — Four people have been arrested and charged for their roles in a health-care fraud scheme that resulted in Amtrak paying at least $9 million in medical claims to those associated with the scheme. A press release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of New Jersey says Muhammad Mirza, 50, of […]
Silence on railfan photo lines is growing in importance as technology evolves and we find new, exciting ways to capture the essence of railroading when participating in rail photography charters. Those of us more enamored with still photography than videography may need to dial in on our photo line etiquette in consideration of how these […]
FORT WORTH, Texas — BNSF Railway will limit carload traffic bound for California through the end of July as it struggles to overcome congestion related to crew shortages and bad weather along portions of its Southern Transcon. The railroad made the permit embargo announcement in a Thursday advisory to customers. It will take effect on […]
Governments in Europe have been turning to discounted and almost-free train travel for those facing huge rises in energy costs following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, which has pushed gas and electricity prices to levels never seen before. The aim of such policies, happening at the same time European economies are seeing near double-digit inflation for […]
BOSTON — The Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority has suspended some service on its Orange and Green Line subway lines in downtown Boston after the discovery of what the agency termed “a structural issue” with a parking garage being demolished. The MBTA said in a Thursday press release that the company demolishing the Government Center Parking […]
