SCARBOROUGH, Maine — Jerry Angier, a prominent New England-based railroad preservationist and author, primarily involving the Bangor & Aroostook Railroad (BAR), died June 19 at his home near Portland, Maine. He was 82. Born March 1, 1942, in Washington, D.C., Gilman “Jerry” Angier Jr., attended school in Providence, R.I., summered with his family in Hyannis […]
DEL MAR, Calif. — As the San Diego Association of Governments considers potential routes for a rail tunnel to replace the Surf Line route along the Del Mar bluffs, it can rest assured of one thing: Whatever it does, someone will be unhappy. SANDAG recently chose three potential routes for the tunnel in order to […]
DURANGO, Colo. — Trips to Silverton, Colo., on the Durango & Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad could be disrupted until at least Wednesday, June 26, after a rock slide was discovered Saturday morning, the Durango Herald reports. The slide, near Milepost 486 north of Needleton, was reported at 7:30 a.m. Saturday. It occurred sometime after the […]
VIA Rail’s ‘Canadian’ Rarely have I heard such a glowing report from a fellow train rider. Recently, my friend and Conway Scenic Railroad’s bridge inspector Wayne Duffett flew from New England to Vancouver to experience the eastward Canadian. He returned delighted by the experience. Despite a few hiccups on the journey, he was impressed with […]
WASHINGTON — The National Transportation Safety Board has detailed its plans for next week’s return to East Palestine, Ohio, for community meetings and a public meeting to approve its final report on last year’s Norfolk Southern derailment and toxic-chemical release. The board will hold community meetings June 24 and June 25 at East Palestine High […]
FORT WORTH, Texas – BNSF Railway announced two of its automotive facilities, operated by service partner Inter-Rail Group, were recognized as some of the best in North America by the Association of American Railroads. The awards were accepted recently at the Damage Freight Prevention Convention in Minneapolis. In a news release dated June 11, 2024, […]
OWOSSO, Mich. — The 2024 debut of Pere Marquette steam locomotive No. 1225 in June offered multiple firsts for the 2-8-4 and its owner, the Steam Railroading Institute (SRI). Ultimately, it was the first time since 2019 that the Berkshire-type operated for the public outside of its regular holiday-season North Pole Express schedule. But for […]
ORLANDO, Fla. — The James E. Strates Shows carnival train will return to the rails this summer for the first time since 2019. The train — the last of its kind — was sidelined by the pandemic. Strates shifted its traveling midway show entirely to trucks as fairs gradually reopened. This year Strates officials had […]
PENINSULA, Ohio — The Cuyahoga Valley Scenic Railroad announced it has acquired an Alco FPA4 and an FPB4 from the Grand Canyon Railway, and aims to purchase one more of each unit from the Grand Canyon. The two diesels will join three FPA4 units already on the Cuyahoga Valley roster and are part of what […]
WASHINGTON —Weekly U.S. rail traffic continued to show overall gains compared to 2023 in the latest statistics from the Association of American Railroads, thanks to the strength of intermodal volume. For the week ending June 15, overall traffic was 493,138 carloads and intermodal units, a 3.4% increase over the corresponding week a year ago. That […]
EDON, Ohio — In its third year with the Indiana Rail Experience, the 2024 Tri-State Scenic steam excursion had new wrinkles for its Father’s Day weekend treks along the Indiana Northeastern Railroad between Ohio, Indiana, and Michigan. What hasn’t changed was steam locomotive No. 765 as the star for the all-day trips out of Edon. […]
Orphan Trains The orphan train story does not involve a specific train consist, locomotive, route, or even schedule. The story comes from a period that was socially different from today — 1854 to 1930. Attitudes about the idea of family, how parents cared for children, and the dichotomy between well-off and not, were radically different […]
