WASHINGTON – The big four U.S. Class I railroads have told federal regulators that their service is at or near pre-pandemic levels thanks to improved train crew staffing levels. BNSF Railway, CSX Transportation, Norfolk Southern, and Union Pacific each pointed to improvements in their key operating metrics in updated reports filed on Friday with the […]
WEST CHESTER, Pa. — The West Chester Borough Council is calling for use of the Pop Up Metro concept, instead of conventional rail service, to connect the borough to downtown Philadelphia. The Daily Local News reports that the borough council has passed a resolution supporting a study by the Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority and Chester […]
NEW ORLEANS — Two short lines will each receive $1.5 million grants from the Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development under its Class II and III Rail Infrastructure Improvement Program, the department has announced. The New Orleans Public Belt Railroad will receive funds toward construction of the NOPB Transloading Industrial Park in New Orleans East, […]
LOS ANGELES — The LA Metro Board has selected the route for Phase 2 of the Eastside Transit Corridor project, which will extend the L (Gold) light rail line from East Los Angeles to Whittier. The selected route will extend the line by 9 miles from its current terminus at Pomona/Atlantic in East Los Angeles […]
Louisville & Nashville class M-1 No. 1988, one of 42 “Big Emma” 2-8-4s Baldwin and Lima built for the road during 1942–49, rests between runs at Corbin, Ky., in May 1952. Ed Theisinger photo […]
Should you include graffiti on your layout? When we set out to build our model worlds, one of the questions we end up answering is how realistic we want to be. This answer is defined by what we decide to include, and what we chose to ignore. Most of these choices will create little controversy, […]
The Polar Express train set from Lionel in O gauge (and S, for that matter) evolves with the technology. The train itself, celebrating the Christmas book and movie, has been in the catalog for years. The train maker continues to find ways to keep it fun and fresh with each iteration. The latest version of […]
Pacific Car & Foundry 50-foot boxcar from Athearn Genesis Scale: HO (1:87.1) Price: $49.99 Era: 1960s+ (varies depending on paint scheme) Manufacturer: Athearn Trains, 2904 Research Rd., Champaign, IL 61822; 800-338-4639; athearn.com Pacific Car & Foundry 50-foot boxcar features: Separate wireform grab irons, etched metal coupler platforms, and/or etched metal roofwalk as appropriate Underframe detail including […]
NEW YORK – Investors who have launched shareholder resolutions seeking paid sick time for railroad employees say that the lack of paid sick days endangers workers’ health, threatens the economy, and has made it harder for railroads to retain their unionized employees. Activist investors today filed the non-binding shareholder resolutions requesting that Union Pacific and […]
SPRINGFIELD, Mass. — The Massachusetts Department of Transportation, Amtrak, and CSX Transportation are seeking $108 million in federal grants to improve the rail line between Springfield and Worcester, Mass., as part of the proposed East-West Rail project. The three entities announced the grant application Friday, MassLive.com reports, with the goal of adding two daily Amtrak […]
A single Siemens Venture car, part of the Amtrak Midwest operations, traveled over Canadian Pacific and Canadian National lines in Ontario on Saturday, Dec. 3., en route from Sacramento, Calif., to Canada’s National Research Uplands Campus in Ottawa for testing The special train, Union Pacific SD70ACe No. 8821 and the Siemens car, SIIX 4301, is […]
PRINCETON, N.J. — NJ Transit would replace its current “Princeton Dinky” operation using Arrow III electric-multiple unit cars with light rail service, as well as buses extending the operation into central Princeton, under the preferred alternative outlined in a study released last week. The website Walkable Princeton reports the preferred alternative — among four options, […]
