WASHINGTON — Class I railroads this week disagreed with Amtrak’s contention that its passenger trains should enjoy absolute and unlimited priority over freight trains. Amtrak, as part of its complaint over Union Pacific’s handling of the Sunset Limited, told the Surface Transportation Board earlier this year that every individual dispatching decision must result in the […]
WASHINGTON — U.S. weekly rail traffic remains ahead of 2023 levels for the week ending Dec. 21, 2024. According to statistics from the Association of American Railroads, overall traffic for the week was 523,912 carloads and intermodal units, up 7.8% from the same week a year ago. That includes 230,857 carloads, up 0.3%, and 293,055 […]
OKLAHOMA CITY — An Oklahoma state legislator has announced plans for a bill to limit train lengths within the state. State Rep. Ty Burns (R-Pawnee) says the legislation, to be introduced at the start of the upcoming legislative session in February, will seek to cap train length at 8,500 feet, KOKI-TV reports. “The infrastructure that […]
ASHEVILLE, N.C. — Railroads on the Gulf Coast and in the East are familiar with hurricane preparedness and plan accordingly for wind, storm surge, and flooding. But they cannot prepare for a hurricane causing an unprecedented, once-in-a-thousand-years event. That’s what happened about 24 hours after Hurricane Helene made landfall on Sept. 26, 2024, as a […]
NEW YORK — The Metropolitan Transportation Authority has not done enough in streamlining its procurement process to make it more efficient, better serve customers, and save money, the New York State Comptroller’s Office says in an audit report issued on Thursday, Dec. 26, 2024. In a response to legislation passed in April 2019, the MTA […]
Groundbreaking in Watertown, Tenn., for new turntable, yard WATERTOWN, Tenn. — The city, along with the Nashville Steam Preservation Society, the group restoring Nashville, Chattanooga & St. Louis 4-8-4 No. 576, and the Tennessee Central Railway Museum, broke ground for the Watertown rail yard and turntable installation in mid December 2024. The new facility will […]
Pennsylvania Railroad T1 technology The Pennsylvania Railroad had a reputation for blazing its own path, setting a standard different from the rest of the railroad community. Such is the case with its T1 class 4-4-4-4 duplex locomotives. In spring 1942, prototypes Nos. 6110 and 6111 were quietly rolled from the Baldwin Locomotive Works. The Pennsy […]
ATLANTA, Ga. — Norfolk Southern has supported more than 5,500 first responders with specialized training and resources this year through its Operation & Awareness Response (OAR) program, which included hands-on events across 20 cities with the railroad’s Safety Train. The OAR program is designed to educate and train first responders on responding to rail-related incidents. […]
Since 2019, Union Pacific has been in the steam spotlight with its restored 4-8-8-4 Big Boy No. 4014. In 2024, CPKC stole some of 4014’s thunder with its “Final Spike Tour” using Canadian Pacific 4-6-4 No. 2816. From April to July, No. 2816 operated from Canada through the central U.S. and through Mexico to Mexico […]
ALBANY, N.Y. — New York state legislative leaders have rejected a $65 billion capital plan for the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, citing a major funding shortfall. The website Gothamist reports that State Senate Majority leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins and Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie notified MTA CEO Jannon Lieber of the rejection in a Christmas Eve letter. The […]
WASHINGTON — Five members of California’s congressional delegation have written U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, urging approval of a $536 million grant request by the California High-Speed Rail Authority for tunnel design work. U.S. Sens. Alex Pedilla and Adam Schiff, and U.S. Reps. Pete Aguilar, Jim Costa, and Zoe Lofgren — all Democrats — said […]
GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — A former Amtrak station in Grand Rapids is for sale, but if you’re interested in buying, be prepared for a big dent in your budget. The news site Mlive.com reports the building, on a 0.6 acre lot, is being offered for $1.5 million by developer Jonathan Bryant of the firm Underground […]
