BOSTON — A group of Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority track workers experienced another near-miss incident on March 1, the transit agency reported Thursday, the latest in a series of safety incidents that helped lead to federal oversight of the rapid transit system. The Boston Globe reports that one flagger and four track workers were involved […]
Train Topic: Railroad Operations
Metrolink brings back Angels Express service
ANAHEIM, Calif. — LA-area commuter rail operator Metrolink will revive Angels Express service after a five-year hiatus, offering round-trip service to Friday, Saturday, and Sunday Los Angeles Angels baseball home games, as well as midweek games against the Los Angeles Dodgers on March 26, Sept. 3, and Sept. 4. Round trips will operate from LA […]
Milwaukee County Zoo railroad replacing steam engines
MILWAUKEE, Wis. — Dieselization came late to the Milwaukee County Zoo’s railroad, but it has arrived. The zoo announced today (Thursday, March 14), that it has sold the two steam locomotives for its 1.25-mile, 15-inch gauge railroad — No. 1916, the Henry J. Grant, a 4-4-2 built in 1961, and No. 1924, a 4-6-2 built […]
Orange County agency considers half-mile wall to address San Clemente slide issues
ORANGE, Calif. — The Orange County Transportation Authority is considering a proposal to build a $200 million, half-mile-long wall along the Surf Line right-of-way to address slide issues that have repeatedly closed the rail route since 2021 — but the city of San Clemente has reservations about the idea. Meanwhile, work continues on the temporary […]
Hartford Line schedule changes begin Monday
NEWINGTON, Conn. — Small but long-running adjustments to Amtrak and CTrail schedules on the CTrail Hartford Line will begin Monday, March 18, to accommodate Amtrak’s Continuous Welded Rail project, the Connecticut Department of Transportation has announced. The schedule changes, which will see some schedules adjusted by as much as 12 minutes, will continue through late […]
EPA schedules public hearing on California zero-emissions locomotive regulation
WASHINGTON — The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency will hold a public hearing next week on proposed California regulations that would require the use of zero-emissions locomotives in the state beginning in 2030. The California Air Resources Board approved the so-called in-use locomotive regulation last year. The EPA must review California regulations that exceed federal regulations; […]
Effects of alcohol consumption by controller played role in 2021 CN collision, TSB report says
GATINEAU, Quebec — Effects of alcohol consumption by the rail traffic controller involved were likely a factor in a September 2021 collision between a Canadian National intermodal train and industrial switcher at Prescott, Ontario, the Transportation Safety Board of Canada said in an accident report issued today (Wednesday, March 13). As a result, the TSB […]
Ancora’s safety white paper can’t withstand a simple fact check: Analysis
Ancora Holdings, the activist investor leading a proxy fight against Norfolk Southern, says it’s taking the high road and conducting a fact-based campaign to oust the railroad’s management. The reality is that Ancora is stuck on the misinformation highway with a safety white paper that makes several claims that can’t hold up to scrutiny. Ancora’s […]
Brightline to add Cocoa, Fla., station
COCOA, Fla. — Brightline and local officials announced their intention Tuesday to build a station on over 40 acres of Brightline-owned land near the junction where its trains from Orlando International Airport join Florida East Coast Railway’s north-south main line. The planned Cocoa, Fla., station is 40 miles east of the company’s Orlando terminus, and […]
Minnesota bill seeks to limit train lengths
ST. PAUL, Minn. — A Minnesota bill to limit the length of freight trains has cleared its first legislative hurdle, passing a committee of the state’s House of Representatives on Tuesday. HF3499, introduced by Rep. Jeff Brand (Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party, St. Peter, Minn.), would limit trains to 8,500 feet, with penalties escalating from as little as […]
NTSB releases preliminary report on CSX maintenance worker fatality
WASHINGTON — A CSX maintenance-of-way foreman was killed when he was struck by a ballast regulator while waiting for flaggers to arrive to protect a grade crossing, the National Transportation Safety Board said in the preliminary report issued Tuesday on an accident that occurred Feb. 13 in Roanoke Rapids, N.C. The accident description confirms details […]
Virginia governor vetoes two-person crew bill
RICHMOND, Va. — Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin has vetoed the bill that would have required two-person crews for freight trains within the state, the news website Virginia Mercury reports. Youngkin said in a veto message issued March 8 that he took the action because the actions in the bill “appear premature and lack the necessary […]