Railroads and shippers criticize proposed reciprocal switching rule that takes aim at inadequate service

WASHINGTON — The Surface Transportation Board received numerous comments on its proposed reciprocal switching rule this week, with predictable results: Railroads say the rule goes too far. Shippers say it doesn’t go far enough. And rail labor says reciprocal switching threatens their seniority rules. The proposed rule, which regulators released in September, sets minimum service […]

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Herington pusher

Rock Island train 39 heads west from Kansas City, Kans., on UP trackage rights (as far as Topeka) on March 2, 1963. Tagging along behind the Southern Pacific coach for Los Angeles at the rear of the train is RDC3 9016, the “Herington pusher.” At that Kansas junction, it will uncouple and go 73 miles […]

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CN earnings fall on lower volume, but executives say traffic rebound is under way

MONTREAL — Canadian National’s third-quarter profits tumbled on lower freight volume, the railway reported today, but most business segments are bouncing back. “I believe we’ve seen the bottom on volumes,” CEO Tracy Robinson told investors and analysts on the railway’s earnings call this afternoon. CN’s third-quarter operating income sank 21%, to $1.5 billion, as revenue […]

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News & Products for the week of October 16th 2023

News & Products for the week of October 16th 2023   Model railroad operators and builders can get the latest information about locomotives, freight cars, passenger cars, tools, track, and more by reading Model Railroader’s frequent product updates. The following are the products Model Railroader editors have news on for the week of October 16th […]

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News & Products for the week of October 9th 2023

News & Products for the week of October 9th 2023   Model railroad operators and builders can get the latest information about locomotives, freight cars, passenger cars, tools, track, and more by reading Model Railroader’s frequent product updates. The following are the products Model Railroader editors have news on for the week of October 9th […]

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Genesee & Wyoming upgrades fleet

Genesee & Wyoming is undergoing the largest-ever transformation of its corporate locomotive fleet. A consent decree announced in January between the Environmental Protection Agency and G&W requires the company to remove and destroy 88 older locomotives, replacing them with locomotives meeting EPA emission standards [see “Genesee & Wyoming agrees to settlement …,” Trains News Wire, […]

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Five mind-blowing facts — Cabooses

Mind-blowing facts — cabooses Cabin, cabin car, waycar, brake van, van, crummy, crum box, birdcage, boneshaker, brain box, shack, shanty, parlor, hack, zoo, or caboose, regardless of what you name the car that concluded American freight trains from the 1830s until the mid-1980s, it remains a railroading icon. The first caboose can be traced to […]

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The quest to counteract ‘loss of shunt:’ Special Report

First of two parts EFFINGHAM, Ill, —What happens when electrical current connected with signal systems doesn’t reliably travel from one rail to another when a train passes? Dispatchers “lose” the train — it disappears from their screens — and warning lights don’t flash or gates don’t lower at highway crossings as the train approaches. The […]

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Tourist railroads in the Southwestern United States

Southwest tourist railroads you must visit include a museum dedicated to the history of Harvey Houses, an excursion that takes you to one of the worldwide scenic wonders, and everything in between. From Trains Magazine’s Tourist Trains Guidebook, here’s our list of tourist railroads, museums, and displays to experience in the region. Southwest Tourist Railroads […]

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