MONTREAL — Canadian National plans to spin off 850 miles of low-density routes in Wisconsin, Michigan, and Ontario, the railway said today while announcing its quarterly financial results. Railroad officials did not specify which lines will be marketed for sale to short line operators. But executives say the bulk of the routes on the block […]
Section: News & Reviews
Digest: Two tourist railroads cancel 2020 operations
More Monday morning rail news: Oregon excursion train cancels season Northeast Oregon’s Eagle Cap Excursion Train has cancelled its 2020 season after previously delaying opening because of the coronavirus pandemic. The operation based in Elgin, Ore., made the decision based on the risk involved in operating, given the age of passengers and volunteers and the […]
Digest: Legislators decry new Caltrain funding proposal
Monday morning rail news: Change to ballot initiative could cut Caltrain funding, may be illegal, legislators say A proposed change to a ballot initiative meant to generate tax support for Caltrain could mean the San Francisco Bay commuter railroad receives little or no revenue from the tax, according to a group of legislators. The San […]
New model trains for the week of July 23, 2020
See the latest model railroad products from Atlas, Broadway Limited Imports, Kalmbach Hobby Store, and more! HO scale locomotives Siemens ACS-64 electric locomotive. Amtrak (“Reliability, Efficiency, Mobility and Travelmark schemes) and Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority. One road number per scheme. Dual-mode TCS WOWSound electric locomotive sound package; fully remappable light functions, including blinking ditch lights, […]
Garden Railways Product Review LGB Construction Site Starter Set
Check out this Märklin/LGB large scale Construction Site Starter Set demo, as presented by Editor Hal Miller (and his dog Finn). Of course, you can read a complete review of the model in the Fall 2020 issue of Garden Railways magazine! […]
Digest: Wheeling & Lake Erie shops damaged in fire
Saturday rail news in brief: Damage to W&LE shops could reach $3 million The Wheeling & Lake Erie shops in Brewster, Ohio, sustained damage estimated at close to $3 million in a fire that broke out Thursday evening and was not fully extinguished until early Friday morning. The Wooster Daily Record reports that 23 fire […]
Surface Transportation Board asserts jurisdiction over Texas Central project
Texas Central’s regulatory path to the start of high speed rail service between Dallas and Houston has become more complex. Reversing an earlier decision, the Surface Transportation Board has ruled that the proposed service will qualify as part of the interstate rail network and therefore is under to the board’s jurisdiction, and that the company […]
Digest: Shortline company seeks to end California operating contract
Friday morning rail industry news: Progressive Rail seeks to end 10-year deal to operate line in Santa Cruz, Calif. Minnesota-based shortline company Progressive Rail wants out of its 10-year contract to operate a 32-mile line serving Santa Cruz, Calif., after just two years, according to the government agency that owns the line. The Aptos Times […]
Digest: Construction of new South Shore branch could begin in October
More Friday morning rail news: South Shore aims for October start to West Lake extension work Construction on the South Shore Line’s West Lake Corridor extension, an 8-mile commuter rail branch between Hammond and Dyer, Ind., could begin in October. The Times of Northwest Indiana reports. That date reflects an expectation that the Northern Indiana […]
Digest: NJ Transit board approves locomotive purchase
More Thursday rail news in brief: NJ Transit board approves purchase of eight Bombardier locomotives NJ Transit’s board of directors has approved the purchase of eight Bombardier ALP-45A dual-mode locomotives, adding to a purchase of 17 of the locomotives that was approved in 2017. The new order will cost approximately $70.5 million, with delivery expected […]
Digest: Judge turns down Durango & SIlverton request to resume fire mitigation, washout repairs
Thursday morning rail news in brief: Durango & Silverton mitigation, repair projects still stalled after judge declines to intervene A federal judge has denied the Durango & Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad’s request to resume fire-mitigation efforts along its right of way, as well as its repairs on a bridge washed out during heavy rains earlier […]
News Wire Digest third section for July 16: BNSF tests automated container handler; TTX signs lease for new Joliet facility
Still more Thursday morning rail news: Age of Steam acquires Camelback 0-4-0 The Age of Steam Roundhouse Museum in Sugar Creek, Ohio, has acquired a rare Camelback steam locomotive in a sealed-bid auction held Wednesday at the Strasburg Rail Road in Pennsylvania. Former Philadelphia & Reading 0-4-0 No. 1187 was built in 1903 to burn […]