MBTA extends contract of commuter operator Keolis by one year

Commuter train at station platform

BOSTON — The Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority has extended the contract of Keolis Commuter Services, which operates the agency’s commuter trains, by one year to mid-2027, the CommonWealth Beacon reports. The agency said the extension allows time to develop a new contract arrangement for its future operator that would help provide private-sector funding to help […]

Read More…

MBTA extends current Blue Line maintenance closure

Portion of MBTA rail transit map

BOSTON — The Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority will extend the current maintenance closure of the Blue Line by two days, to April 30, to complete work needed to eliminate 16 speed restrictions, the agency announced Thursday at a board of directors meeting. The current Blue Line project began April 17, first involving a closure between […]

Read More…

New York MTA releases ‘Climate Resilience Roadmap’

Commuter train rounds sharp curve

NEW YORK — The Metropolitan Transportation Authority on Thursday released its Climate Resilience Roadmap, outlining steps the agency has identified to protect New York’s transit system from the effects of climate change. The 130-page report, unveiled in an event at Metro North Railroad’s Mott Haven Yard, outlines 10 goals to address the impacts of flooding, […]

Read More…

BNSF dispatchers join FRA’s Confidential Close Call Reporting System

FORT WORTH, Texas — BNSF Railway’s train dispatchers will participate in the Federal Railroad Administration’s Confidential Close Call Reporting System under an agreement announced today. BNSF becomes the second Class I railroad to participate in the Confidential Close Call Reporting System, or C3RS. Norfolk Southern joined the program in March. The American Train Dispatchers Association, […]

Read More…

Completion of Maya Train pushed back to September

Passenger train on bridge

CANCÚN, Mexico — Completion of Mexico’s Maya Train, originally touted as coming in February and subsequently projected for April or May, has been pushed back to September after a decision to modify plans to avoid further damage to underground caverns along the incomplete section of the 950-mile tourist rail system. The work in the 120-kilometer […]

Read More…

FRA issues safety bulletin following death of maintenance-of-way worker

Logo for Federal Railroad Administration

WASHINGTON — The Federal Railroad Administration issued a safety bulletin today in the wake of a fatal accident involving a maintenance-of-way worker who was pinned by an excavator’s bucket. “FRA is actively investigating this accident, and is issuing this bulletin to remind railroads, railroad employees, and railroad contractors of the importance of ensuring proper safety […]

Read More…

UP train derails in central Texas (updated)

Union Pacific logo without slogan. UP Bailey Yard explosion appear to be accidental.

TRENT, Texas — About two dozen cars of a Union Pacific train derailed east of Trent on Tuesday, April 23, KTXS-TV reports. The derailment occurred about 8 p.m.; a UP spokesman said there were no injuries and no releases of hazardous materials. Images on the station website show derailed double-stack containers. KTAB/KRBC-TV reports that high […]

Read More…

Last chance to ride VIA’s Budd RDCs

Under overcast skies a silver and blue two car passenger train reverses past a red brick depot

The days of the five serviceable Budd RDCs (Rail Diesel Cars) remaining on VIA Rail Canada’s roster may be numbered. As Siemens Venture equipment displaces the stainless and LRC coaches (and F40s and P42 locomotives) on the Windsor-Quebec City corridor, the aging RDC fleet assigned to train Nos. 185 and 186 between Sudbury and White […]

Read More…

Freight locomotives can’t always pull modern passenger trains

A black model diesel locomotive pulls a modern passenger train down a grade

If you’re new to the hobby, you might be wondering if you can operate any locomotive on an everyday commuter, intercity, or high-speed passenger train. If you’re looking for prototypical operations on your layout set in the modern era, the short answer is usually no. However, there are many factors which go into this simple […]

Read More…

Fiery CPKC train rolls through London, Ontario

Night fire scene along railroad tracks. Fiery CPKC train rolls through London, Ontario

The Canadian Transportation Safety Board is investigating a bizarre fire aboard a Canadian Pacific Kansas City Railway freight train in a London, Ontario residential neighborhood around 10:49 p.m., April 21, according to reports from numerous news agencies and the London Fire Department. Witnesses reported seeing the CPKC train moving through the city as flames shot […]

Read More…