MIAMI — Sir Richard Branson became the media darling of South Florida this week as Virgin Trains USA rebranded MiamiCentral, the massive terminal complex revitalizing a downtrodden area bordering the city’s business district. It was the initial move in the long-expected rebranding of Brightline passenger service. The flamboyant Branson, dressed in white and attracting a […]
Watch as Trains editors discuss all the rail news that is fit to publish! This week, Jim Wrinn and Steve Sweeney talk about who really invented Precision Scheduled Railroading, a California High Speed Rail comeback, the Transcontinental Railroad, and so much more. Only from Trains. […]
The Transcontinental Railroad’s replacement 1,000-mile tree in Utah. Jim Wrinn Of all of the locations that Union Pacific marked either formally or informally in the 1860s as it worked westward toward Promontory, one of the most interesting is the 1,000-mile tree. Nestled next to the tracks in Weber Canyon between Evanston, Wyo., and Ogden, Utah, […]
A view of the Union Pacific main line from Piedmont Road near the Altamont and Alpine tunnels along the Transcontinental Railroad route. The location is where, legend has it, that Union Pacific workers delayed Thomas Durant’s train on his way to the Golden Spike ceremony at Promontory Summit, Utah. Jim Wrinn A tried and true […]
The Ames Brothers monument along the former Union Pacific and Transcontinental Railroad right-of-way in Wyoming. The monument is on the Sherman Hill grade. Richard Koenig OLD SHERMAN, Wyo. — One of my favorite places on the first Transcontinental Railroad is Sherman Hill. It was the first big obstacle in Union Pacific’s way when the railroad […]
Crews work to clear the Norfolk Southern main line in Toledo after a bridge collapsed onto the tracks on Wednesday. Michael D. Harding TOLEDO, Ohio — A bridge collapsed onto a Norfolk Southern main line in Toledo on Wednesday, temporarily shutting down train traffic on the route to Chicago. The Maumee Avenue bridge, undergoing repair […]
The 2014 deadhead move of No. 4014 through Utah’s Echo Canyon created a long line of chasers in vehicles. Trains: Jim Wrinn CHEYENNE, Wyo. — With only one month before Union Pacific Big Boy No. 4014 makes its inaugural run from Cheyenne, Wyo., to Ogden, Utah, law enforcement agencies in both states are reminding fans […]
ALEXANDRA, Va. — Metra, NJ Transit, and TriMet of Portland, Ore., are among the initial members of the Commuter Rail Coalition, a new association formed to advocate for commuter railroads in the U.S. Describing itself as “a single-minded advocate in Washington” for U.S. commuter railroads, the coalition website says it is “a collection of agencies, […]
With overall rail traffic down in the first quarter, only two of the big six Class I railroad systems — Canadian National and Norfolk Southern — managed volume gains through the first three months of 2019. CN’s volume was up 1 percent, while NS eked out a 0.4% gain, according to a review of Association […]
NEW YORK — Some New York City residents will receive discounts on Long Island Rail Road tickets as part of the deal to bring congestion pricing tolls to New York. The New York Post reports that the Metropolitan Transportation Authority will offer 20% discounts on monthly passes to residents of northeast Queens. The discounts, which […]
NORTH WALES, Pa. — For the first time in nearly three decades, steam will traverse SEPTA’s Lansdale-to-Doylestown main line. In recognition of the 150th birthday of the borough of North Wales, Pa., the New Hope Railroad is hosting a series of four excursions on May 18. The excursions will be pulled by Baldwin-built 1925 2-8-0 […]
MIAMI — Virgin Trains USA found strong demand for the bonds to finance it expansion, selling $1.75 billion in private activity bonds this week. Trade publication The Bond Buyer reported that the offering may have received up to $4 billion in orders for the bonds. It quoted Brian Wynne, head of public finance at Morgan […]
