CONNERSVILLE, Ind. — The Whitewater Valley Railroad, a museum and heritage railway in Connersville, has debuted restored 1949 Lima-Hamilton LS1000 switcher in excursion service. The locomotive spent its career at Armco Steel Corp.’s Middletown and Miami Works before being donated to the museum by Armco in 1987. It operated at the Whitewater Valley until 1989, […]
Magazine: Trains Magazine
Mobile, Ala., council votes to approve Amtrak funding, station lease
MOBILE, Ala. — The Mobile, Ala., city council today (Aug. 6) approved a long-sought funding agreement to support Amtrak Gulf Coast service, as well as a lease for use of city land for Amtrak’s stop in Mobile. Those agreements, as well as approval of a deal with the Alabama Port Authority regarding funding, passed by […]
Norfolk Southern names chief technology officer
ATLANTA — Norfolk Southern has named Anil Bhatt to lead its technology endeavors. Bhatt will become executive vice president and chief information and digital officer, reporting to CEO Alan Shaw, when he joins the railroad on Aug. 19, NS announced today. “Anil has a successful track record and reputation for working across teams to deploy […]
NS and train dispatchers’ union agree to join FRA’s close call reporting program
ATLANTA — Norfolk Southern and the American Train Dispatchers Association today agreed to join the Federal Railroad Administration’s Confidential Close Call Reporting System. Under the one-year C3RS pilot, NS dispatches can report safety concerns with the certainty that such reports will not result in discipline. Submitted safety concerns are made anonymous by NASA and provided […]
‘Through running’ concept not enough to address Penn Station growth, officials say
NEW YORK — Reorganization of commuter rail service with through running — in which Penn Station would no longer be a terminus for NJ Transit and MTA commuter operations, but see trains serve both commuter networks — would not be enough to address future needs transit needs at the station, officials told a Monday forum […]
Indiana Rail Road names Gioe as CEO
INDIANAPOLIS — The Indiana Rail Road has named Joseph Gioe as its new president and CEO, replacing Dewayne Swindall, who left the company in May after three years. Gioe will begin the new position on Aug. 12. Gioe most recently was vice president of transportation at Norfolk Southern. Prior to joining NS in 2022, he […]
Five mind-blowing facts — Velocipedes
Mention the word velocipede to a few folks. I bet the reaction is: “A veloci–what?” Talk to a few of your fellow train enthusiasts and they will most likely think you are describing some kind of railroad handcart. An argument could be made that they are correct. That, however, leaves out most of the interesting […]
CSX reports flat earnings amid freight doldrums
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — CSX reported second-quarter financial results that were flat compared to a year ago as gains in intermodal and merchandise volume were not enough to offset declines in domestic coal shipments. “Overall this was a good quarter that was right in line with our expectations,” CEO Joe Hinrichs told investors and analysts on […]
CN, CPKC to resume negotiations with Teamsters Canada
GATINEAU, Quebec — With the threat of a national strike looming, Canadian National, Canadian Pacific Kansas City, and the Teamsters Canada Rail Conference will resume negotiations on Wednesday, Aug. 8, with the assistance of federal mediators, Labor Minister Steven MacKinnon said today. MacKinnon and Transport Minister Pablo Rodriguez today met with CN, CPKC, and Teamsters […]
Norfolk Southern, CSX monitor east’s first tropical storm (updated)
LAKE CITY, Fla. — Eastern railroads have marked the beginning of another hurricane season, as Hurricane Debby hit the made landfall between Tallahassee and Jacksonville, Fla., today (Monday, Aug. 5) and subsequently was downgraded to a strong tropical storm. The storm brought 70-mph winds and heavy rains across Pinsley Railroad Corp.’s Florida Gulf & Atlantic […]
Union Pacific coal train derails in Iowa
MARSHALLTOWN, Iowa — Thirty-eight cars of a Union Pacific coal train derailed about 2 miles east of Marshalltown on Sunday evening, Aug. 4, KCCI-TV reports. The derailment occurred about 5:30 p.m. No injuries were reported. Marshalltown is about 148 miles west of Clinton, Iowa, on UP’s Clinton Subdivision. It is about 70 miles west of […]
Petroleum products a bright spot for North American carload traffic: Analysis
CHARLESTON, W.Va. — Traffic in petroleum products is on the rise across North America’s Class I rail networks, as five of the six Class I railroads see an uptick in petroleum product carloads compared to last year. Association of American Railroads data shows shipments of petroleum products are up 8.6% for the year, the biggest […]