Sale follows Chooch founder’s retirement earlier in 2020 MILWAUKEE, Wis. — Walthers now owns the well-known Chooch Enterprises model railroading company. In an announcement earlier on Friday, Mike O’Connell, founder of Chooch Enterprises, says he sold his company to Milwaukee-based Wm. K. Walthers Inc. O’Connell had announced his retirement earlier in 2020, along with his […]
Section: News & Reviews
Model Railroader announces the launch of Trains.com
Editor Carl Swanson’s letter to readers about new website and online membership Trains. We love them and so do you. That’s why we at Model Railroader are excited to announce we will be launching an all-new, redesigned website for you in just a couple of weeks. You’ll still be able to access all the content […]
Introducing the all-new Trains.com website
Model Railroader – Trains – Classic Trains – Classic Toy Trains – Garden Railways…All of your favorite brands, under one all-new website! As Executive Producer David Popp explains, that’s what will be arriving soon to help you make the most of your online hobby experience. More videos, layout features, how-to content, and expert insights, will […]
New model trains for the week of October 8, 2020
HO scale locomotives Electro-Motive Division GP39-2 diesel locomotive. BNSF Ry. (Santa Fe patchout in two road numbers, Heritage III in one number), CSX (blue, yellow, and gray scheme in three numbers, Reading Co. patchout in two numbers), Delaware & Hudson (Reading Co. patchout in one number, 1989 rebuild in two numbers), Reading Co. (green-and-yellow scheme), […]
Hitachi Rail lands contract for DC Metro railcars
DC Metro has selected Hitachi Rail to build its next generation of railcars, ending a two-year search for a manufacturer. The Washington Post reports Metro officials sent Hitachi a notice of intent to award the contract — for 256 cars, with options that could boost the total order to 800 — on Sept. 30. If all options […]
New large scale products for October 2020
Large scale locomotives Eggliner motive power. Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe; Denver & Rio Grande Western; fire rescue with flashing roof light; and police with flashing roof light. Self-propelled model with light-emitting-diode headlights and marker lights, two-axle motor block design, and metal wheels. $239. Bachmann Trains, 215-533-1600, bachmanntrains.com Clean Machine Green. General Electric 25-ton diesel […]
Digest: Valley Metro orders Siemens light rail vehicles
Thursday midday rail news: Valley Metro orders 14 new Siemens light rail vehicles Phoenix-area transit agency Valley Metro has ordered 14 S700 light rail vehicles from Siemens Mobility to join 11 of the trainsets already in service. The equipment, to be built in Sacramento, Calif., will help accommodate the needs of an expanding system, and […]
Digest: Engineering organization warns of infrastructure backlog, ‘bleak’ transit outlook
Thursday morning rail news: American Society of Civil Engineers warns of $5 trillion infrastructure funding gap The American Society of Civil Engineers warns that the gap between current spending and the need to maintain the U.S. infrastructure in a state of good repair has reached $5 trillion, measured in 2019 dollars. In preliminary findings for […]
Homewood, Ill., station to get $29 million rebuild
HOMEWOOD, Ill. — Shovels were out Monday, manned for the cameras by masked Amtrak, Metra, and civic officials that helped arrange $29 million of federal and local funding that will enhance the original 1923 Illinois Central Homewood, Ill., facility with features that make it completely accessible to passengers with disabilities. Construction began in July on […]
Biden plans short whistle-stop tour of Ohio, Pennsylvania
Presidential candidate Joe Biden is set to operate a campaign train across Ohio and Pennsylvania and Ohio on Wednesday, following tonight’s first debate with President Donald Trump in Cleveland. After departing Cleveland, Biden’s train is scheduled to stop in Alliance, Ohio, with a tentative time of 11:45 a.m., according to WFMJ-TV. While Biden will make […]
VIA Rail indefinitely postpones restart of Ocean, Canadian
MONTREAL – VIA Rail Canada has postponed resumption of its triweekly Halifax-Montreal Ocean and twice-weekly Toronto-Vancouver, British Columbia, Canadian indefinitely, according to a news release issued last Friday and Trains News Wire reservation center inquiries. This is contrary to the passenger carrier’s addition of trains to its Quebec City-Windsor, Ontario, corridor. Sleeping car service will […]
STB denies Metra request for declaratory order
WASHINGTON – The U.S. Surface Transportation Board has denied Metra’s request for a declaratory order and proceeding in its ongoing dispute with Union Pacific over Chicago area commuter operations. The decision follows a U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois ruling to keep a UP lawsuit against Metra, noting that the court does […]