Built by Others is an article series showcasing layouts constructed by modelers using plans and projects from the pages of Model Railroader magazine. The Gold Hills Central was a layout built live by staff and MR contributors at Model Railroader’s 50th Anniversary Conference, held in Milwaukee in 1983. The original story and plan ran in […]
WASHINGTON — Expect changes today when the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation votes on the Railway Safety Act, the bipartisan bill introduced in March in the wake of the East Palestine, Ohio, derailment. The American Chemistry Council and Association of American Railroads both issued statements Tuesday in favor of an amended version of […]
TACOMA, Wash. — A 65-year-old man was arrested Tuesday for tampering with railroad equipment, causing a derailment of tank cars carrying oil in Tacoma’s Tideflats industrial area. The Tacoma News Tribune, which reported the arrest, did not report the man’s name or any additional identifying details. The incident occurred about 7:55 a.m. Tuesday and involved […]
MONTREAL — VIA Rail Canada will air its annual public meeting via social media on June 7 at 4 p.m. EDT, the passenger operator has announced. The pre-recorded session will feature board chair Françoise Bertrand and Chief Financial Officer Marie-Claude Cardin. It will be carried on VIA’s YouTube Channel and Facebook page. Members of the […]
MIAMI — Brightline passenger service is now featuring wi-fi service provided by Starlink, the satellite-based high speed broadband internet service engineered by SpaceX. It becomes the first rail operator to use the service, already used by some aviation and marine firms, as well as businesses and residences. “Brightline will be the first train sets in […]
WASHINGTON — Amtrak is preparing plans for new maintenance facilities in Seattle, Boston, New York City, and Washington, D.C., and is providing advance notice of its procurement plans to allow companies time to prepare bids for those projects. The facilities will handle maintenance, repairs, inspections, and cleaning for new Acela, Airo, and long-distance equipment. Each […]
PASCAGOULA, Miss. — A new plant to create feedstock for renewable diesel and sustainable aviation fuel has opened at a Pascagoula site served by CSX Transportation. The Oleo-X facility has the potential to produce up to 300 million gallons of premium feedstock per year. The innovative facility enables the processing of low-carbon, inedible oils, including […]
Given a choice, railroads will always follow a straight, level path. Trains use less energy, speeds are higher, and there’s less wear on equipment when railroads can build on an arrow-straight line. But land rises and falls, obstacles must be avoided, and this requires grades to compensate for changes in elevation and curves to reorient […]
The best-selling early GE diesel locomotives are familiar to fans of mid-century diesel power. General Electric has a long relationship with railroad motive power. The company began building heavy electric locomotives in the 1890s, furnished traction motors and electrical equipment to other builders through the 1950s, and eventually become the dominant diesel-electric locomotive manufacturer […]
Housed in the historic Elmira Station, the Elmira Railway Museum offers a look at railroading on the Prince Edward Island in the early 1900s. Choices The museum features a re-created station master’s office and waiting room inside the station as well as displays and artifacts. A miniature train operates around the museum, and interactive experiences […]
Located in copper country, the MacBride Copperbelt Mining Museum is part of the overall MacBride Museum institution with a focus on the area’s mining and railroad history. Choices The museum’s exhibits provide a focus on the history of copper mining around the Whitehorse region, the Pueblo Mine Disaster, and an interpretive train ride. The train […]
The Cole Land Transportation Museum’s educational mission is to collect, preserve and display a cross-section of Maine’s land transportation equipment from which this and future generations will gain knowledge of the past. The overall collection includes 200 antique land transportation vehicles and 2,000 photographs. Choices The railroading side at the museum is represented by one […]
