SPRINGFIELD, Mass. — The Massachusetts Department of Transportation, Amtrak, and CSX Transportation are seeking $108 million in federal grants to improve the rail line between Springfield and Worcester, Mass., as part of the proposed East-West Rail project. The three entities announced the grant application Friday, MassLive.com reports, with the goal of adding two daily Amtrak […]
Zone & Region: Northeast
NJ Transit report calls for replacing ‘Princeton Dinky’ with light rail, buses
PRINCETON, N.J. — NJ Transit would replace its current “Princeton Dinky” operation using Arrow III electric-multiple unit cars with light rail service, as well as buses extending the operation into central Princeton, under the preferred alternative outlined in a study released last week. The website Walkable Princeton reports the preferred alternative — among four options, […]
FBI agent acquitted in shooting aboard DC Metrorail train
ROCKVILLE, Md. — An FBI agent who shot a man in a confrontation aboard a DC Metrorail train in December 2020 has been acquitted of attempted second-degree murder and related charges. A jury returned the verdict on Friday, the Washington Post reports, concluding a four-day trial in Montgomery County Circuit Court. Eduardo Valdivia, 38, had […]
Better than K-rations
Servicemen enjoy a meal on one of Baltimore & Ohio’s elegant colonial-themed dining cars during World War II. B&O photo […]
No injuries in NS derailment on landmark Rockville bridge
MARYSVILLE, Pa. — Six cars of a Norfolk Southern train derailed on the landmark Rockville bridge crossing the Susquehanna River early this morning (Friday, Dec. 2), sending at least one railcar onto a roadway below the bridge. It was one of at least two NS derailments early today. The other, near Hanover, W.Va., involved five […]
Tours of New York’s Grand Central Terminal resume after two-year hiatus
NEW YORK — Tours of Grand Central Terminal are resuming for the first time since being halted because of the COVID-19 pandemic, with global tour provider Walks as the new operator, Metro-North Railroad and City Experiences have announced. Tours will be held starting at 3 p.m. daily, with $35 admission for adults and $30 for […]
New York’s MTA to spend more than $1 billion on accessibility projects
NEW YORK — The Metropolitan Transportation Authority is set to spend more than $1 billion on accessibility projects at New York subway stations and on the Long Island Railroad, the website amNY.com reports. In a series of contracts valued at $965 million, the agency will install 21 new elevators to make eight subway stations fully […]
Alco S5 locomotive — a Diesel That Didn’t
Similar to the EMD RS1325, the Alco S5 locomotive is one of those locomotive designs that seemed like a good idea at the time, was engineered well, ran well, but almost no one wanted to purchase. The manufacturer needed to update its aging lineup of 660-hp S3 and 1,000-hp S4 end cab switchers […]
British passenger equipment company files for insolvency protection
SOUTHAM, England — Vivarail, the British passenger train re-manufacturing company majority-owned by Pittsburgh-based Railroad Development Corp., has announced it is seeking the appointment of insolvency administrators via the British courts while efforts are made to find new investors or owners for the company. The process, similar to Chapter 11 protection in the USA, will allow […]
Biggest steam switcher: Union Railroad’s 0-10-2
The biggest steam switcher stood head and shoulders above the rest. In the steam era, switch engines came in basically three sizes: 0-4-0, 0-6-0, and 0-8-0. They ranged from diminutive shop switchers — typically 0-4-0s, pretty much a pre-1900 machine — to huge switchers such as Indiana Harbor Belt’s three U-4a class 0-8-0s […]
FRA grants safety waiver, aiding effort to open LIRR terminal under Grand Central
NEW YORK — The Federal Railroad Administration will grant a waiver allowing the Long Island Rail Road to open its route to the new Grand Central Madison terminal without installation of equipment to prevent Amtrak trains from inadvertently taking the wrong route, the New York Post reports. The move should allow the long-delayed terminal, some […]
Ball signal at Whitefield, N.H.
As the caboose of a Maine Central train passes, the operator resets the ball signals at the Maine Central/Boston & Maine crossing at Whitefield, N.H., in 1979. This was the last surviving ball signal in commercial use on a U.S. railroad. Ben Bachman photo […]