HARMAR TOWNSHIP, Pa. — An oil spill from a Norfolk Southern derailment on Thursday has led to the closure of the nearby Allegheny River to boating for the Memorial Day weekend as well as an ongoing road closure. The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports that Thursday afternoon’s derailment in Harmar Township, on the northwestern edge of Pittsburgh, […]
WASHINGTON — Members of Congress have begun announcing Consolidated Rail Infrastructure and Safety Improvements, or CRISI, grant awards from the Federal Railroad Administration, with funding for projects in Pennsylvania and Kentucky announced Thursday. Two awards announced in Pennsylvania U.S. Sen Bob Casey (D) announced CRISI awards of $14.7 million for the Berks County Rail Project […]
BOSTON — Seven more of the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority’s newest rapid-transit railcars have been found to have improperly installed bolts in brake assemblies, the agency’s board of directors learned Thursday. The Boston Herald reports MBTA General Manager Steve Poftak told the board that six Orange Line cars and one Red Line car had the […]
EDGELEY, Saskatchewan — A Canadian National train derailed after striking a road grader near the community of Edgeley on Thursday afternoon, CKRM radio reports. The CBC reports the driver of the vehicle, a 57-year-old man from the rural municipality of Lajord, Sask., was pronounced dead at the scene. Global News reports officers from three detachments […]
SAN JOSE, Calif. — One year after a disgruntled employee killed nine Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority light rail coworkers and himself, the family of one of the victims has filed suit against the transit agency, the Santa Clara County Sheriff’s Office, and a private security firm for failing to prevent the mass shooting. Courthouse […]
GOTHENBURG, Neb. — An estimated 30 cars of a Union Pacific coal train derailed Thursday morning two miles southeast of Gothenburg, KOLN/KGIN radio reports. The accident about 7:30 a.m., involving a train eastbound from Wyoming, blocked all three tracks of the UP main line about 35 miles southeast of North Platte, with the railroad working […]
HARMAR TOWNSHIP, Pa. — A Norfolk Southern train derailed after a grade crossing accident with a construction vehicle in a Pittsburgh suburb Thursday afternoon, injuring the driver and both members of the train crew. Seventeen cars derailed, with several going into a tributary of the Allegheny River, WTAE-TV reports, and a railroad bridge was damaged. […]
The 2021 Lionel American Flyer catalog announced the production of a Legacy-equipped light 4-6-2 Pacific locomotive. It was exciting to hear the tooling for it was going to be used again; the company produced a number of models of these United States Railroad Administration-designed engines from 2006 to 2008 as well as a light 2-8-2 […]
WASHINGTON — Rail unions are again seeking to declare an impasse in negotaitions with U.S. railroads, a move which could eventually lead to intervention by President Joe Biden and Congress. Bloomberg reports that three days of meetings between the two sides with the National Mediation Board will conclude today, with labor unions renewing a request […]
UXBRIDGE, Ontario — A tourist railway is among the locations sustaining severe damage from a May 21 tornado that struck the community of Uxbridge in south-central Ontario. The Uxbridge Times-Journal reports the York-Durham Heritage Railway sustained about C$750,000 in damage to its station, equipment, and grounds, and is closed until further notice. “After the railway […]
CHICAGO — Depending on the route, Amtrak trains can either offer a welcome alternative to record high gas prices or no relief at all. That’s because where sufficient capacity exists, fares remain flexible, but where Amtrak management has failed to marshal the resources to return sidelined equipment to duty, the traveling public suffers. Corridors offer […]
WASHINGTON — The freight railroads involved in the Surface Transportation Board’s proceeding over Gulf Coast passenger service have again asked that the matter be sent to mediation — and Amtrak is again opposing that request. In a May 19 filing, CSX Transportation, Norfolk Southern, and the Alabama State Port Authority and its its short line […]
