Railroads are attracted to extremely long trains like a moth to a flame. And sometimes they get burned from this unhealthy obsession. A case in point: In October CSX Transportation ran two overlength merchandise trains at each other on its single-track mainline between Savannah and Augusta, Ga. The plan was to do a double saw-by […]
BOSTON — The Massachusetts Bay Railroad Enthusiasts is sponsoring a winter photo excursion Jan. 7, 2023 on the Conway Scenic Railroad featuring the 470 Railroad Club’s restored Boston & Maine F7A’s Nos. 4268 and 4266. The “Covered Wagons in the Snow” trip will feature multiple photo stops and run-bys. No. 4268 was returned to service […]
ORANGE, Calif. — Jason Jewell has been appointed Managing Director of the Los Angeles-San Diego-San Luis Obispo (LOSSAN) Rail Corridor Agency, the second busiest intercity passenger rail corridor in the nation. Jewell has worked for the LOSSAN Agency for seven years, mainly as the agency’s chief financial officer. He has extensive experience in finance and […]
NEW YORK – Surface Transportation Board Chairman Martin J. Oberman unleashed a barrage of criticism at the big four U.S. Class I railroads during the RailTrends conference on Wednesday, claiming that their crew shortages are self-inflicted and that the resulting service problems are damaging the economy. The service meltdown was brewing long before the pandemic, […]
RICHMOND, Va. — Ridership on the Commonwealth of Virginia’s Amtrak service grew by 37.6% in September 2022 as compared to pre-pandemic September 2019, the Virginia Passenger Rail Authority (VPRA) reported this month. During the month, 105,689 passengers traveled compared to 76,793 during the same month in 2019, before the Covid-19 pandemic. One reason for the […]
QUINCY, Ill. — Amtrak has announced the suspension of two Midwest trains. No. 380, the morning Quincy to Chicago Illinois Zephyr, and No. 381, the morning Chicago to Quincy Carl Sandburg have been cancelled through Jan. 16, 2023, reports KHQA-TV. Passengers holding tickets for these trains will receive full refunds or be able to rebook […]
NEW YORK – Amtrak will operate two additional round trips between New York and Albany/Rensselaer, N.Y., beginning Dec. 5. The new departures will bring the total number of weekday round-trip trains to 12, one fewer than Amtrak’s pre-COVID schedule for the route. A new southbound train will depart Albany/Rensselaer at 11:10 a.m. Sunday through Friday, […]
CHICAGO — It’s been five years since Canadian Pacific and retail giant Canadian Tire Corp. unveiled North America’s first 60-foot intermodal container, and intermodal analyst Larry Gross says the larger container type is probably going to remain exclusive to Canada for the foreseeable future. CP and Canadian Tire launched service with the larger container in […]
Although its tracks didn’t reach the first and last places in its name, the 110-mile Toronto, Hamilton & Buffalo served several important points in southern Ontario. Here, maroon-and-cream GP7 No. 76 and GP9 No. 402 lead a Toronto–Coburg freight on the rails of TH&B parent Canadian Pacific in April 1976. A. J. Sutherland photo […]
OMAHA, Neb. — Union Pacific once again will meter traffic to limit congestion if certain customers don’t voluntarily reduce the number of private freight cars operating on the railroad. UP informed shippers last week, Trains News Wire has learned. “Union Pacific regularly reviews our network to monitor for elevated inventory,” UP spokeswoman Robynn Tysver says. […]
ST. LOUIS – Amtrak has extended to Dec. 4 the suspension of one of the Missouri River Rail Runner round trips between St. Louis and Kansas City. The suspension began Oct. 24 and was scheduled to end Nov. 16. An Amtrak spokesman told the St. Louis Post-Dispatch the suspension is due to continued delays in […]
Get your old trains running again! It’s time to take them out of the boxes and have some fun. In this chapter from Beginner’s Guide to Repairing Lionel Trains, Ray L. Plummer offers advice on how to do it. Get your old trains running again “Old electric train” – that’s what it says on the […]
