BOSTON — The Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority has removed its new Orange Line transit railcars from service while engineers investigate an “uncommon noise” coming from beneath the cars. MBTA spokeswoman Lisa Battison told Streetsblog Massachusetts in an email that the cars were removed from service “with safety as a top priority and out of an […]
Metro-North holiday special set for first trips (updated) NEWSWIRE
On Tuesday, the two-engine, three-car Metro-North Holiday Train awaits the start of employee thank-you trips at Grand Central Terminal in New York City. P32AC-DM No. 229 is at the front. Each of the three passenger car is at least 70 years old. Ralph Spielman Metro-North car No. 2 was built by Budd in 1949 as […]
Virginia Museum of Transportation hunting for new executive director NEWSWIRE
ROANOKE, Va. — The Virginia Museum of Transportation is searching for a new executive director for the third time in less than two years. On Nov. 27, Bob Sigman stepped down as the head of the museum after six months. In May, Sigman had replaced Lisa Sphar, who had been on the job for just […]
CSX joins Maersk-led blockchain group for freight and shipping data NEWSWIRE
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — CSX Transportation is the first North American railroad to join TradeLens, a blockchain platform developed by international container carrier Maersk and by IBM. TradeLens is an open, neutral platform that includes data on half the world’s container cargo, CSX officials say. “Joining TradeLens is a further demonstration of our commitment to providing […]
JB Hunt executives say railroads need to change pricing policies to help promote rail intermodal NEWSWIRE
NASHVILLE — Railroads need to change their pricing if J.B. Hunt is going to increase its intermodal business. “We always want to market and sell intermodal when that’s the best solution,” says Darren Field, J.B. Hunt executive vice president of the company’s intermodal operations, which provide more than half of Hunt’s revenue. J.B. Hunt in […]
North Shore Scenic Railroad marks 30 years NEWSWIRE
Soo Line FP7 2500A pulls a train on the North Shore Scenic Railroad at Palmers, Minn., on Sept. 6, 2019. Steve Glischinski DULUTH, Minn. — The Lake Superior Railroad Museum marked 30 years of operation of its North Shore Scenic Railroad at its volunteer appreciation dinner in November. NSSR operates 27 miles of former Duluth, […]
Open houses bring proposed Metra extension to the public NEWSWIRE
The westbound California Zephyr blasts through Plano, Ill., on Dec. 2, 2019. Plano’s Amtrak station could become a station for an extension of Metra’s BNSF line into Kendall County, Ill. TRAINS: David Lassen PLANO, Ill. — The opportunity has begun for the public to inspect and consider aspects of the proposed extension of Metra commuter […]
Pittsburgh neighborhood’s dispute with NS over line improvements appears bound for mediator NEWSWIRE
PITTSBURGH — Norfolk Southern and groups representing residents of Pittsburgh’s North Side will go to a mediator to address concerns about the railroad’s plans to upgrade a route to handle double-stack container trains. The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports that an attorney representing the Northside Leadership Conference says that he and the railroad are choosing a mediator […]
Report: NJ Transit won’t restore Pascack Valley express trains until engineer shortage eases NEWSWIRE
TRENTON — NJ Transit will not restore express service on its Pascack Valley line until the commuter railroad has more engineers available, NorthJersey.com reports. The express trains are part of a dispute between NJ Transit and Metro-North, which pays the New Jersey agency to operate some services extending into New York state. [See “Metro-North to […]
Senators request Amtrak eliminate arbitration requirement for ticket purchases
WASHINGTON — A group of 13 U.S. Senators, all Democrats, have written Amtrak CEO Richard Anderson requesting that the passenger railroad do away with its recent move requiring passengers to accept arbitration rather than being able to sue — a request Anderson quickly turned down. In January, Amtrak changed the contract language accompanying its tickets […]
AAR: Freight traffic for the week of Nov. 23 is significantly up compared to 2018 NEWSWIRE
Association of American Railroads WASHINGTON — The Association of American Railroads today reported U.S. rail traffic for the week ending Nov. 23, 2019. For this week, total U.S. weekly rail traffic was 521,927 carloads and intermodal units, up 10.6% compared with the same week last year. Total carloads for the week ending Nov. 23 were […]
Amtrak offers ‘surprise and delight’ gift box for railfans; appears sold out in hours NEWSWIRE
Amtrak Store website screen image WASHINGTON — You might be too late to grab a “Surprise and Delight” railfan gift box Amtrak offered for sale on Monday. A National Railroad Passenger Corp. representative confirmed to Trains on Monday afternoon that the railroad’s online store offered a limited set of 50 surprise boxes to customers — announcing […]