ARLINGTON, Va. — The Commonwealth of Virginia and CSX Transportation have reached a deal on a $3.7-billion plan that will address rail congestion south of Washington D.C. by separating passenger and freight operations, allowing for a significant expansion of passenger and commuter rail services. The agreement announced Thursday will create a new, state-owned Long Bridge […]
MARTINSBURG, W.Va. — MARC commuter trains will continue to serve West Virginia, after Gov. Jim Justice dipped into his office’s civil contingency fund to provide the final $1.1 million to keep trains running. Justice’s chief of staff, Mike Hall — filling in for the ailing governor — announced the funding Thursday in Martinsburg, the Charleston […]
Trains editors talk about the news that’s fit to talk about for the week of Dec. 20, 2019. This week, Jim and Steve talk about how Union Pacific’s Big Boy drew more than a million visitors in 2019, the last D&H dispatcher retires from Canadian Pacific, Norfolk Southern F units have tied down in a […]
TRENTON — A bill requiring NJ Transit to address restoration of one-seat-ride service to Manhattan from its Raritan Valley Line has passed both houses of the state legislature and now goes to Gov. Phil Murphy for his signature. The Bridgewater Courier News reports the bill, which passed the state assembly 76-0 on Monday after being […]
Two of Central Maine & Quebec’s repainted GP38-2s lead the local freight eastbound at Sherbrooke, Quebec, on Sept. 24, 2018. A Canadian Pacific filing with the Surface Transportation Board has outlined the railroad’s plan for the short line once its purchase of the CM&Q is approved. Scott A. Hartley BANGOR, Maine — The Canadian Pacific […]
CHICAGO — The family of a Chicago police officer killed when struck by a train while pursuing a suspect last year has filed a wrongful death lawsuit against parties including Metra and the South Shore Line. The Chicago Sun-Times reports that the family of officer Eduardo Marmolejo filed the suit over the Dec. 17, 2018, […]
Displaying its original British Rail paint scheme is this HST, at Peterborough on the East Coast route in August 1984. Keith Fender In its final livery – for the new London North Eastern Railway franchise — a London Kings Cross-to-Aberdeen HST heads north near Stonehaven, Scotland, on Aug. 17, 2019. The trains are about to […]
New York F Train riders await an approaching Queens-bound train at 23rd Street. The Metropolitan Transportation Authority has passed its 2020 budget, including a provision to hire 500 new police officers. Ralph Spielman NEW YORK — While a provision for the hiring of police officers led to a split vote, the Metropolitan Transportation Authority’s board […]
Association of American Railroads WASHINGTON — The Association of American Railroads today reported U.S. rail traffic for the week ending Dec. 14, 2019. For this week, total U.S. weekly rail traffic was 520,589 carloads and intermodal units, down 8.5% compared with the same week last year. Total carloads for the week ending Dec. 14 were […]
UP 4014 on display in West Chicago in July. Trains: Jim Wrinn OMAHA, Neb. — How many people saw Union Pacific Big Boy No. 4014 run in 2019? That is a question whose answer we’ll never know with full certainty, but estimates are coming in. UP says it counted 115,000 visitors who went through its […]
WASHINGTON — Dedicated money from highway tolls could help fund improvements to the DC Metro rail system and Virginia Railway Express commuter rail line, WTOP radio reports. The station reports that funds from Interstate 66 tolls inside the Capital Beltway could allow the state of Virginia to sell bonds to finance construction of a new […]
CHARLESTON, W.Va. — The state may sell a failed West Virginia intermodal hub, built for $32 million, for as little as $1 million — a prospect that drew objections Tuesday from legislators. The Heartland Intermodal Gateway in Prichard, W.Va., opened in December 2015 with the goal of handling 15,000 containers a year, the Charleston Gazette-Mail […]
