Bowing to pressure from DC, FRA revises Union Station plan

People standing in line in hallway of railroad station

WASHINGTON — Responding to citizen and District of Columbia criticism that its plan for redevelopment of Washington Union Station was too automobile-centric, the Federal Railroad Administration has revised its blueprint by eliminating a six-story, 1,575-space parking garage, according to the Washington Post. More than a year ago, D.C. Mayor Muriel E. Bowser and other city […]

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U.S. rail traffic dips slightly in first week of May

WASHINGTON – For the week ended May 7, U.S. rail traffic registered 504,927 carloads and intermodal units, a 3.5% decline over the same period in 2021. Figures from the Association of American Railroads show the total number of carloads at 231,737, down 1.9% over the same week in 2021, while intermodal volume was 273,190 containers […]

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Lake State buys first comfort cab locomotives

Freshly painted blue and grey locomotive in a rail yard.

Lake State Railway has recently acquired six SD70Ms to add to its all-EMD fleet of power. The Michigan-based railroad operates approximately 375 miles of track in the eastern half of the state. The six units were chosen from a group returned by Union Pacific to the lessor. These units had a solid reliability record on […]

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CN criticized for lack of French-speaking board members

Trains Magazine logo

OTTAWA, Ontario — Canadian Transport Minister Omar Alghabra has criticized Canadian National Railway Co. for maintaining an English-speaking-only board of directors in a bilingual nation where 7.9 million citizens – 22% of the population – speak French as their first language. “It’s unacceptable that the board of directors does not have a francophone representative on […]

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Colorado Railroad Museum’s ‘Colorado Crossings’ event features operating steam locomotives, Galloping Geese

three galloping goose rail vehicles

GOLDEN, Colo. — The Colorado Railroad Museum is bringing back Denver’s largest and most colorful festival of operating trains on May 14-15, 2022. Called “Colorado Crossings: Intersections of History,” the event will feature two coal-fired narrow-gauge locomotives under steam plus three “Galloping Geese” in operation. These beloved self-propelled rail cars once carried mail over Lizard […]

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Secrecy issues dominate as Gulf Coast STB hearing continues: Analysis

Passenger train with theater car at rear stopped at station

WASHINGTON — Cross-examination of Jim Blair, Amtrak’s senior director of host railroads, consumed the full 8-hour, 28-minute session Monday as the Surface Transportation Board’s hearing on the effort to launch passenger service between New Orleans and Mobile, Ala., resumed after an almost three-week hiatus. Blair was questioned by lawyers from Norfolk Southern, CSX Transportation, and […]

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SceniKing announces two new backdrops for water scenes

scenic landscape for layout

Backdrops for water scenes Scale: HO (1:87.1) Price: Water Under the Bridge (HJ44), $26.95; Down by the River (HS48), $41.95 Manufacturer: BPH Enterprises, 4 Palmer Dr., Barrie, ON, Canada L4M 6V9, 705-739-4878, sceniking.com Water Under the Bridge features: Junior Roll Out line Measures 72” x 8” Extendable at either end through more than nine different […]

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Pullman-Standard PS-2CD 4,427-cubic-foot capacity three-bay low-side covered hopper from ExactRail

silver covered hopper

Pullman-Standard PS-2CD 4427 three-bay covered hopper Scale: HO (1:87.1) Price: $54.99 Era: 1964 to 1980s (varies based on paint scheme) Manufacturer: ExactRail, 525 E. 1860 S., Provo, UT 84606, 866-945-1701, exactrail.com Features: CNC-machined 36” metal wheelsets ExactRail 100-ton ASF Ride Control trucks Injection-molded plastic body and underbody Kadee no. 58 scale couplers Minimum radius: 22” […]

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