New Mexico’s Rail Runner extends fare discount, will add trains

SANTA FE, N.M. — The New Mexico Rail Runner Express commuter-train service has extended a fare discount that began in April, as well as announcing a forthcoming service expansion. The Albuquerque Journal reports that Gov. Michelle Luhan Grisham announced Wednesday that the 75% fare reduction — which lowered tickets to $2.50 for a day pass […]

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State Department of Transportation joins Montana passenger rail agency

Logo of the Big Sky Passenger Rail Authority

MISSOULA, Mont. — The agency seeking to revive Amtrak service through southern Montana has added a significant new member — the state’s Department of Transportation. The Missoula Current reports that the department has joined the Big Sky Passenger Rail Authority as an ex officio member, a move described by authority Chairman Dave Strohmaier as “a […]

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U.S. rail traffic remains below 2021 figures

Weekly table showing U.S. rail traffic by commodity type, plus total intermodal traffic

WASHINGTON — Weekly U.S. rail traffic remains below 2021 figures in the latest statistics from the Association of American Railroads. Both carload and intermodal traffic were down for the week ending July 9, with 207,450 carloads, a 1.3% decline from the corresponding week in 2021, and 230,150 containers and trailers, a 4.7% drop. The combined […]

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General Electric ES44 Evolution Series diesel from Walthers

black, gray, and red illustration of a locomotive

General Electric ES44 Evolution Series diesel Scale: HO (1:87.1) Price: Direct-current model with 21-pin DCC plug, $169.98; with dual-mode ESU sound decoder, $219.98. Era: 2003 to present Manufacturer: Wm. K. Walthers Inc., 5601 W. Florist Ave., Milwaukee, WI 53218, 414-527-0770, walthers.com Two- or four-vent dynamic brake vent as appropriate Six powered axles Light-emitting diode headlights […]

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Amtrak urges regulators to reject CN’s request to gain control of KCS’s former Gateway Western trackage

Passenger train passes freight

WASHINGTON – Amtrak has urged federal regulators to reject Canadian National’s quest to obtain Kansas City Southern’s former Gateway Western trackage as a condition of the proposed Canadian Pacific-KCS merger. CN aims to create a new single-line route dubbed the Springfield Speedway that would link Kansas City and St. Louis with Chicago, Detroit, and Eastern […]

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Athearn Pullman-Standard 5,277-cubic-foot capacity boxcar

brown boxcar illustration

Pullman-Standard 5,277-cubic-foot capacity boxcar Scale: HO (1:87.1) Price: $39.99 Era: 1975+ to present (varies depending on paint scheme). Manufacturer: Athearn Trains, 2904 Research Rd., Champaign, IL 61822, 800-338-4639, athearn.com Pullman-Standard 5,277-cubic-foot capacity boxcar features: 10-foot Pullman-Standard doors Body-mounted McHenry scale couplers Injection-molded plastic body Machined metal wheels with RP-25 contours Minimum radius: 18” Photo-etched metal crossover platforms Separate, […]

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Atlas International Car Co. NE-6 center-cupola caboose

red caboose

International Car Co. NE-6 center-cupola caboose Scale: N (1:160) Price: $33.95 (undecorated, $23.95) Era: 1940s to 1980s+ (varies depending on paint scheme) Manufacturer: Atlas Model Railroad Co., 378 Florence Ave., Hillside, NJ 07205, 908-687-0880, shop.atlasrr.com PHOTO CAPTION Atlas Model Railroad Co. N scale Master Line Chicago, West Pullman & Southern International Car Co. NE-6 center-cupola caboose no. 207. International […]

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CP-KCS merger will snarl key Chicago rail junction, CN tells regulators

Container train under overhead signals

WASHINGTON – The Canadian Pacific-Kansas City Southern merger will snarl rail traffic in Chicago, particularly at a key junction where CP operates on trackage rights over Canadian National and Metra, CN has told federal regulators. CP says the merger will generate significant growth in intermodal and automotive traffic that will be sorted at its Bensenville […]

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Gas station manager pleads guilty to fraud involving fuel charges for Amtrak vehicles

U.S. Department of Justice seal

NEWARK, N.J. —  The manager of a New Jersey gas station has pleaded guilty in a case in which admitted to billing approximately $78,000 in fraudulent fuel charges to Amtrak and more than a dozen other customers. The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of New Jersey said in a press release that Umer Hassan […]

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Tourist railroads navigate higher fuel costs amid economic uncertainty

Steam locomotive next to blue high-nosed diesel

CHICAGO — Tourist railroads continue to see strong summer demand despite record inflation and high fuel prices. Railroads note, however, that the tide may be turning as mounting economic uncertainty may change consumer buying decisions. According to the U.S. Travel Association, American consumers reached a new pandemic high of $101 billion in travel spending in […]

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Canadian government, short line combine on improvements at Port of Windsor

Logo of Essex Terminal Railway

WINDSOR, Ontario — The Canadian government and Essex Terminal Railway will combine on a project to expand warehouse capacity and improve transloading at the Port of Windsor, officials announced Tuesday. The government will provide C$5 million in funding for the project, which Transport Minister Omar Alghabra said in a press release is “critical to maintaining […]

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Cuyahoga Valley Scenic Railroad to resume normal operations

Cuyahoga Valley Scenic Railroad logo

INDEPENDENCE, Ohio — After a lengthy period of modified operations because of riverbank erosion along its route, the Cuyahoga Valley Scenic Railroad will return to its regular schedule this Saturday, July 16. Since March, the railroad had been running 16-mile trips instead of offering its full 52-mile round trip, and departing only from its Rockside […]

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