WASHINGTON — “Traditional dining” — with chef-prepared meals, glassware and linen tablecloths, and new meal options — has returned to the Silver Meteor, Amtrak announced today. The announcement means both New York-Florida long-distance trains now offer full traditional full dining-car service — albeit only for sleeping-car passengers — and formalizes the “pilot” of traditional dining […]
Zone & Region: Northeast
Norfolk Southern completes soil removal work beneath East Palestine main line
EAST PALESTINE, Ohio — Norfolk Southern has completed removal of soil underneath and between tracks of its main line through East Palestine, the railroad announced Monday, completing a process that had been ongoing since the Feb. 3 derailment. “We promised to listen to residents and support East Palestine for the long haul. Fully cleaning up […]
Genesee & Wyoming to buy 69 locomotives from Wabtec pre-owned program
PITTSBURGH — Genesee & Wyoming will purchase 69 locomotives from Wabtec, the manufacturer’s largest order under its certified pre-owned program. The order includes 35 Dash 9 and 34 Dash 8 locomotives for the Buffalo & Pittsburgh Railroad; Chicago, Ft. Wayne & Eastern Railroad; Connecticut Southern Railroad; Indiana & Ohio Railroad; New England Central Railroad; and […]
Penn Station remodel to move forward without high-rise development
NEW YORK — Plans to remodel Penn Station will move forward without being tied to a controversial plan to build adjacent high-rise office buildings, New York Gov. Kathy Hochul said Monday. Previously, plans had called for up to $7 billion in funding for the station remodel to come from development of 10 skyscrapers — nine […]
Amtrak abruptly suspends ‘Adirondack’ after CN imposes heat restriction
MONTREAL — Following a 47-mile run last week that reportedly took four hours because of a 10-mph speed restriction imposed by Canadian National, Amtrak has suspended operation of the New York-Montreal Adirondack north of Albany-Rensselaer, N.Y., as of Saturday, June 24. The Adirondack — the last Amtrak route to return after pandemic-related cutbacks — had […]
SEPTA adjusts service after I-95 reopens
PHILADELPHIA — The Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority has readjusted commuter rail operations following Friday’s reopening of Interstate following a June 11 bridge collapse. SEPTA will continue to offer two additional morning trains and one additional evening train on its Trenton Line, while maintaining additional seating capacity on that line, as well as the West Trenton […]
MBTA expands commuter-rail fare discounts during Sumner Tunnel project
BOSTON — The Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority and its contract operator, Keolis, will expand planned fare reductions on the Newburyport/Rockport commuter rail line to help address the upcoming Sumner Tunnel reconstruction project, the MBTA announced on Thursday. From July 1 through Aug. 31, the fare for the entire line will be $2.40, the equivalent of […]
First PRR diesel on the Long Branch
E7 No. 5879 had the honors of pulling the first regularly scheduled Pennsy diesel run on the joint PRR-Jersey Central New York & Long Branch in April 1956. Prior to this, K4s Pacifics handled PRR trains on the NY&LB. Don Wood photo […]
Madison Hardware’s gold Lionel EP-5 shells
Madison Hardware’s gold Lionel EP-5 shells are a story akin to getting lemons and making lemonade. The store sold unusual Lionel trains from all periods of production. Lou Shur and Carl Shaw, the brothers who ran the legendary retail outlet in New York City until it closed in 1989, seemed to have endless supplies of […]
Minor leaguer’s home run hits passing train
WORCESTER, Mass. — When Trains Magazine wrote about baseball parks near railroad tracks (“High iron baseball,” June 2023), one of the qualifications for the article was the ability to see trains pass from within the ballpark. Worcester’s Polar Park didn’t make the magazine — although it’s in this Trains.com article — but it’s clear it […]
B&O freight on the old Buffalo & Susquehanna
Consolidation 3127 climbs toward Cutler Summit with the first cut of a train the elderly 2-8-0 is doubling up the hill. This is Baltimore & Ohio’s former Buffalo & Susquehanna line near the New York-Pennsylvania boundary in September 1955. Philip R. Hastings photo […]
A visit to the Train Masters of Babylon layout
The Train Masters of Babylon sounds exotic, but the reality is it’s just a great O gauge club layout in New York. Highly detailed and encompassing more than 2,400 square feet, this 41 x 60 display showcases the railroads of the region. Read more in the July-August 2023 issue. […]