Belt Railway of Chicago locomotives: I recently photographed an ex-Belt Railway of Chiacgo Alco in, of all places, Olean, N.Y., on the Western New York & Pennsylvania. That old Alco and I go back to the mid 1980ss when I first laid eyes on her and a stable of other exotic beasts at BRC’s Clearing […]
Cowl locomotives: Six-axle cowl locomotives purchased for freight service have been rostered continuously on Class I railroads since Santa Fe first purchased EMD’s F45 model in 1968. More than a half century later, the industry is down to a single Class I railroad operating this locomotive design, Canadian Pacific. Although cowls have been hauling freight […]
40-foot double-door express boxcar Scale: HO (1:87.1) Price: $36.99 Era: 1940s+ to 1960s+ (varies depending on paint scheme). Manufacturer: Athearn Trains, 2904 Research Rd., Champaign, IL 61822, 800-338-4639, athearn.com 40-foot double-door express boxcar features: 33” machined metal wheels with RP-25 contours Body-mounted McHenry scale couplers Double Youngstown doors Injection-molded plastic body Minimum radius: 18” Separate, factory-applied brake wheel […]
WASHINGTON — Canadian Pacific and Kansas City Southern — responding to critics, skeptics, and opponents — told federal regulators this week that their proposed merger is in the public interest and should be approved. The railroads, in a three-volume, 4,374-page filing, argued that the first merger of Class I railroads in two decades should sail through […]
A Kansas City Southern intermodal train heads for the Union Pacific Brownsville Subdivision at Robstown, Texas, in November 2017. Bill Stephens WASHINGTON – Projected traffic increases from the Canadian Pacific-Kansas City Southern merger will put the critical Houston terminal into gridlock, BNSF Railway has warned federal regulators this week, citing a new analysis. CP and […]
WASHINGTON — Canadian Pacific believes concerns by Chicago’s Metra over its proposed merger with Kansas City Southern are largely unfounded, based on erroneous analysis, and involve unreasonable requests for conditions to the merger. But for all that, CP says it is committed to supporting Metra operations and improving its relationship with the commuter agency. The […]
General Electric ES44 Evolution Series diesel Scale: HO (1:87.1) Price: Direct-current model with 21-pin DCC plug, $169.98; with dual-mode ESU sound decoder, $219.98. Era: 2003 to present Manufacturer: Wm. K. Walthers Inc., 5601 W. Florist Ave., Milwaukee, WI 53218, 414-527-0770, walthers.com Two- or four-vent dynamic brake vent as appropriate Six powered axles Light-emitting diode headlights […]
WASHINGTON – Amtrak has urged federal regulators to reject Canadian National’s quest to obtain Kansas City Southern’s former Gateway Western trackage as a condition of the proposed Canadian Pacific-KCS merger. CN aims to create a new single-line route dubbed the Springfield Speedway that would link Kansas City and St. Louis with Chicago, Detroit, and Eastern […]
WASHINGTON – The Canadian Pacific-Kansas City Southern merger will snarl rail traffic in Chicago, particularly at a key junction where CP operates on trackage rights over Canadian National and Metra, CN has told federal regulators. CP says the merger will generate significant growth in intermodal and automotive traffic that will be sorted at its Bensenville […]
Canadian National was the only one of the big six railroads to gain traffic in 2022’s second quarter. CN’s traffic was up 0.4%, essentially flat compared to last year’s second quarter. CSX Transportation was flat, too, but its volume was down 0.1%. Canadian Pacific’s traffic was down 1.5%. Union Pacific’s declined 2% for the quarter, […]
68-foot Railgon gondola Scale: HO (1:87.1) Price: $31.98 (undecorated, $29.98) Era: 2010 to present Manufacturer: Wm. K. Walthers Inc., 5601 W. Florist Ave., Milwaukee, WI 53218, 414-527-0770, walthers.com 68-foot Railgon gondola features: See-through square load tie-downs along top chord 17-exterior post sidewalls Straight sill Detailed brake gear 100-ton trucks 36” turned-metal RP-25 wheels Proto-Max metal […]
In this week’s Midday Modeler — 07-06-2022 episode, David Popp hosts an all-star cast showing off model buildings or out trackside! Guest stars include Jenny Freeland and Nastassia Putz discussing their kitbash contest buildings. Meanwhile, Kent Johnson and Brian Schmidt were LIVE by remote from the crossroads of Canada Duplainville, Wis., at the diamond intersection […]
