Big Blue diesel locomotives were ubiquitous for those living in the Northeast and upper Midwest for many years of the last century. Although Consolidated Railroad Corporation has been gone for over 20 years now, let’s take a look back at 1990s Conrail freights in the state of Pennsylvania! […]
Zone & Region: Northeast
Amtrak to take one track on Hell Gate Line out of service, adjust NEC schedules
NEW YORK — Amtrak will take a portion of one track out of service on of its Hell Gate Line between Penn Station and New Rochelle, N.Y., and adjust most Northeast Corridor schedules as of today (Monday, March 6) as part of its effort to cooperate with the Metropolitan Transportation Authority’s Penn Station Access project, […]
LIRR adds or lengthens trains to address issues with new schedule (updated)
NEW YORK — Responding to complaints resulting from the first week of its massive schedule revision, the Long Island Rail Road is adding morning rush-hour shuttle trains to Brooklyn’s Atlantic Terminal and lengthening trains on some other routes as of Monday, March 6. In a Twitter thread posted Friday, the LIRR said it would add […]
First week of new LIRR schedules brings crowding, complaints
NEW YORK — The first full week of the Long Island Rail Road’s new schedule, offering more trains systemwide and full service to the new Grand Central Madison station, has gone less than smoothly, particularly for those still taking the LIRR to Penn Station. There are now fewer Penn trains than there had been when […]
NTSB expresses concerns about protective covers on tank cars
WASHINGTON — The National Transportation Safety Board says it is “looking closely” at aluminum protective covers on tank cars involved in the East Palestine, Ohio, derailment, over concerns those covers melted on three of the cars, which may have hampered the performance of pressure relief devices. The issue occurred on three of the five cars […]
Genesee Valley Transportation acquires PA locomotive for office car train and excursion operation (updated)
PORTLAND, Ore. — Genesee Valley Transportation has agreed to acquire the Alco PA locomotive restored by preservationist Doyle McCormack and will run the unit on main line passenger excursions, the short line company announced today. McCormack and GVT Rail President Michael D. Thomas finalized the agreement in a meeting Wednesday at the Oregon Rail Heritage […]
Family of man dragged to death by Red Line train sues MBTA
BOSTON — The family of a man dragged to his death by a Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority train last year after his arm became caught in a closing door has sued the transit agency. The Boston Globe reports the family of Robinson Lalin, killed in the April 10, 2022, accident on the Red Line, alleges […]
DC Metro plan to repair wheels of 7000-series cars will take three years, $55 million
WASHINGTON — The Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority will re-press all the wheels on its 7000-series railcars to address a problem with wheel movement, a process that will take as much as three years and cost about $55 million. DC Metro made the announcement Tuesday, saying the plan was based on technical information released that […]
Classic Conrail from Canaseraga
When created in 1976, lowering the flags of several once-proud but troubled Northeastern railroads, it was shockingly new. But that was 44 years ago. Moreover, it’s been more than two decades since Conrail itself became a fallen flag. Here is a photo of classic Conrail. The train is eastbound at Canaseraga, N.Y., 13 miles […]
Largest 2-10-0 Decapod fleet: Pennsy’s I1 ‘Hippos’
The railroad with the largest 2-10-0 Decapod fleet should come as no surprise. Throughout most of its history, the Pennsylvania Railroad called itself “The Standard Railroad of the World,” and yet in so many ways it was anything but “standard.” From position-light signals along its right-of-way to Belpaire boilers for its steam locomotives to […]
Visiting the Strasburg Rail Road
Visiting the Strasburg Rail Road History of the Strasburg Rail Road Visiting the Strasburg Rail Road is on the top of many a railfan’s bucket list. The Strasburg Rail Road, based in Strasburg, Pa., is the oldest railroad in America. It was founded in 1832 and is still running under its original name. It is […]
Summertime era-swapping on the White River Division
It’s been more than a decade since Lou Sassi photographed my HO scale White River Division for a feature in the March 2009 Model Railroader. A lot has changed since then. The track plan has been altered to better view and photograph scenes. I also eliminated the duckunder. Now a point-to-point layout, there’s a yard […]