California High Speed Rail plan releases environmental document for San Jose-San Francisco route

California High Speed Rail Authority logo

SAN JOSE, Calif. — The California High-Speed Rail Authority has released the final environmental report for the San Jose-San Francisco section of the project, moving closer to receiving environmental clearance for the entire San Francisco-Los Angeles route. The authority board of directors will consider the Final Environmental Impact Report/Environmental Impact Statement at its meeting in […]

Read More…

House subcommittee sets Tuesday hearing on rail safety

Logo of the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure

WASHINGTON — The House Subcommittee on Railroads, Pipelines, and Hazardous Materials will hold a hearing on freight rail safety on Tuesday, June 14. The hearing, announced by Rep. Peter Defazio (D-Ore.), chair of the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, and Rep. Donald M. Payne (D-N.J.), chair of the subcommittee, is set for 10 a.m. […]

Read More…

Southern Railway passenger trains remembered

A black and white profile view of two trains with workers nearby

Southern Railway passenger trains remembered All through June 2022, Classic Trains editors are celebrating the history and heritage of the Southern Railway. Please enjoy this Southern Railway passenger train photo gallery selected from the files in Kalmbach Media’s David P. Morgan Library. This gallery was first published in March 2019. Only from Trains.com! […]

Read More…

CSX, UP trains derail in yard incidents

CSX logo

CSX Transportation and Union Pacific both had trains derail Friday morning, with no injuries in either incident. An estimated 12 to 15 cars of a CSX train derailed at the CSX yard in Augusta, Ga., the Augusta Chronicle reports. The Richmond County Sheriff’s Office reported no hazardous materials were involved. A CSX release said the […]

Read More…

STB grants Amtrak access to NS, CSX data, orders mediation

Passenger station with wooden platform

WASHINGTON — The Surface Transportation Board will allow a limited number of Amtrak personnel access to raw train data used by CSX Transportation and Norfolk Southern so the passenger operator can run its own Rail Traffic Controller capacity modeling study. In a decision issued Friday, the STB also ordered board-sponsored mediation to address the differences […]

Read More…

Norfolk Southern warns that CP-KCS merger would hurt service on Meridian Speedway

NS9656

WASHINGTON — The Canadian Pacific-Kansas City Southern merger threatens to degrade intermodal service on the Meridian Speedway that serves as a shortcut between the Southeast and Southwest, Norfolk Southern told federal regulators this week. NS and KCS currently operate interline intermodal trains over the Meridian, Miss.-Shreveport, La., joint venture. KCS handles the NS trains over […]

Read More…

FRA releases new rule on fatigue management

Federal Railroad Administration logo

WASHINGTON — The Federal Railroad Administration has issued its new rule on railroad fatigue management, set for formal publication on Monday, and at least one rail union leader has offered a positive response. The final rule, “Fatigue Risk Management Programs for Certain Passenger and Freight Railroads,” is available here for public inspection. Following its publication […]

Read More…

Athearn HO scale Ford F-850 boom truck

yellow truck

Ford F-850 boom truck Scale: HO (1:87.1) Price: $34.99 Era: 1960 to 1980+ (varies depending on paint scheme) Manufacturer: Athearn Trains, 2904 Research Rd., Champaign, IL 61822, 800-338-4639, athearn.com Ford F-850 boom truck features: Factory-assembled injection-molded plastic model Positionable boom and outriggers Molded cab interior with separate, factory-applied steering wheel Clear window glazing Rubber tires Available […]

Read More…

Ways to turn a train

A pencil sketch on graph paper lists pros and cons of using a wye, a turnback loop, and a turntable to turn trains

Unless you’re content with watching your trains go around and around a simple loop, eventually you’re going to be looking for ways to turn a train. Don’t get me wrong, it’s entirely possible to go through your entire train-operating career and never have to turn a train; maybe you always play the yardmaster, or your […]

Read More…

Union Pacific sued over thefts from trains in Los Angeles

Pink and white intermodal containers, with tractor lifting one box in center of photo

OMAHA, Neb. — A Singapore-based shipping firm, Ocean Network Express, is suing Union Pacific over the thefts of packages it says were stolen from UP trains during a widely reported series of break-ins to intermodal trains in Los Angeles. The Omaha World Herald reports ONE has filed suit over the theft of $166,000 worth of […]

Read More…

Pittsburgh introduces new name, color scheme for transit system

Logo of Pittsburgh Regional Transit

PITTSBURGH — Pittsburgh’s public transit has a new name. The Port Authority of Allegheny County has rebranded itself as Pittsburgh Regional Transit, the agency announced in a Thursday press conference at its Gateway light rail station in downtown Pittsburgh. Along with the new name comes a new logo: the letters PRT in yellow circles. The […]

Read More…