WASHINGTON — Short line railroads across the United States will be able to lay more welded rail, replace more crossties, add sidings and build bridges as a result of $2.4 billion in funding through the Federal Railroad Administration’s Consolidated Rail Infrastructure and Safety (CRISI) grant program for fiscal years 2023-2024 [see “FRA awards $2.4 billion […]
MONTREAL — Opening of the largest portion of Montreal’s light rail network has been pushed back to fall 2025, the head of the company building the system has said. A 16.6-kilometer (10.3-mile) segment of the Réseau express métropolitain, serving five stations,opened in July 2023. At that time, most of the rest of the 67-km (41.6-mile), […]
WASHINGTON — The federal government will provide $1.5 million in funding for 19 projects along the Northeast Corridor, the Federal Railroad Administration announced today (Friday, Nov. 15). Leading the list of projects to be funded under the Federal-State Partnership for Intercity Passenger Rail is almost $400 million for a project to replace and upgrade the […]
LONGUEUIL, Quebec — The remaining portion of a shelter-in-place order following a Canadian National derailment has been lifted. The Canadian Press reports the lockdown area south of a Thursday morning derailment that led to a chemical spill was lifted at 4:30 a.m. today (Friday, Nov. 15). Eight cars of a CN train derailed in Longueuil, […]
SAN CARLOS, Calif. — The first full month of electrified service on Caltrain’s San Francisco-San Jose route spurred significant ridership growth, the commuter rail operator says. All-electric operations began Sept. 21. In October, Caltrain carried more than 753,000 passengers, a 54% increase from October 2023. That included average weekday ridership of about 27,000, up 38%, […]
FRANKFORT, Ky. — The Commonwealth of Kentucky is providing $7.5 million in grant funding for eight infrastructure projects on short lines, Gov. Andy Beshear announced on Thursday (Nov. 14). R.J. Corman Railroad Group, Transkentucky Transportation Railroad, and the Paducah & Louisville Railway each received funding for two projects, while the Tennken Railroad Co. and Louisville […]
LONGUEUIL, Quebec — Eight cars of a Canadian National train derailed today (Thursday, Nov. 14) in suburban Montreal, releasing a cloud of a potentially hazardous material and leading to a shelter-in-place order for nearby residents as well as area schools. The derailment occurred after 8 a.m. in the community of Longueuil, on Montreal’s south shore, […]
NEW YORK — New York City’s congestion tolling plan, which will provide funding for the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, is back on — although it now faces opposition from the President-elect, as well as existing legal challenges. New York Gov. Kathy Hochul said today (Nov. 14) that she would support the plan with a new, lower […]
ARLINGTON, Va. — The National Carriers Conference Committee has announced a third tentative national agreement, this time with SMART-MD, the International Association of Sheet Metal, Air, Rail and Transportation Workers-Mechanical Department. The NCCC is the negotiating unit for the National Railway Labor Conference, which represents U.S. Class I railroads and some smaller operations. It opened […]
WASHINGTON — The Surface Transportation Board has taken Union Pacific to task for an ongoing lack of cooperation in a new decision regarding an issue with the railroad’s effort to construct a 6-mile rail line in Arizona’s Maricopa and Pinal counties. The primary matter concerns UP’s request for an exemption for construction of the Pecos […]
The prospect that German’s Harz Railway might end steam operations prompted me to dig out photos from a 2015 visit to the railroad as part of a Trains Magazine/Special Interest Tours trip, the thought being that readers might like to see a little more from this unique operation. Perhaps a few of you might even […]
Locomotives in the scrapyard Sitting switchers The switcher is a rapidly-dying species on American railroads. Pushed out of yard duties on the Class I railroads by demoted road units (like ex-BNSF No. 2224, at top), they soon became most noticeable on industrial sites, switching cars for grain elevators and warehouse complexes. However, the proliferation of […]
