One thousand issues One thousand issues of Trains Magazine have put tens of thousands of railroad photographs in the public eye. The most memorable of these images do far more than portray a locomotive or a train in motion. They preserve a moment of railroading and capture the spirit of a place, a railroad, and […]
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SPRINGFIELD, Ill. — Completion of work to relocate rail routes through Springfield, as well as building of a new transit center to be used by Amtrak, will be pushed back after the project did not receive any federal funding in 2023, the State Journal-Register reports. The U.S. Department of Transportation turned down a $138 million […]
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Class I railroads operating in the U.S. reached a series of agreements with their labor unions this year that are designed to improve workers’ quality of life. Chief among them: Paid sick time deals. Railroaders’ lack of traditional paid sick time became a flashpoint toward the end of contract negotiations in the fall of 2022. […]
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HAVRE DE GRACE, Md. — Amtrak has selected the contractor for construction of a replacement for the Susquehanna River Rail Bridge in Maryland, and awarded two supporting contracts for the projects, the company announced Friday. The Flatiron/Herzog Joint Venture will be the Construction Manager at Risk contractor for the two new bridges and related track […]
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As always, some notable events did not quite crack our list of the Top 10 stories of the year. And as it happens, the four stories that finished just outside the Top 10 are closely related: Chairman Martin J. Oberman’s forthcoming departure from the Surface Transportation Board; UP’s service issues and change of CEOs; the […]
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Railroading tools Railroads are fixed-guideway systems for transporting goods or people. Its basis is the low friction, and hence high efficiency, of a hard wheel rolling on a hard surface. They are made up of many elements: people doing different jobs, and hardware for them to use. The jobs range from laborer to strategic planner. […]
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NEW SALEM, Ill. — Clean-up is continuing, but Norfolk Southern expected to have its line reopened Wednesday evening following a 20-car derailment Tuesday, Dec. 12, on its main line west of Springfield, Ill. The Quincy Herald-Whig reports the derailment did not involve any hazardous materials. KQHA-TV reports the incident was reported to authorities at 11:44 […]
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WASHINGTON — A pair of rail-related projects are among the 18 selected to receive grants totaling $645 million under the Rural Surface Transportation Grant Program, announced Tuesday, Dec. 12, by the U.S. Department of Transportation. “Rural communities face some of the toughest transportation challenges, yet are often left out of major federal investments, a pattern […]
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WASHINGTON — The National Transportation Safety Board is calling for backup cameras on maintenance-of-way machinery, as well as other safety recommendations, as a result of a fatal accident involving a Norfolk Southern track gang at Reed, Pa., in December 2021. The NTSB issued its final report on that accident on Thursday (Dec. 7). The probable […]
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WASHINGTON — Infrastructure improvements to accommodate a second daily round trip of Amtrak’s Pennsylvanian between Pittsburgh and Harrisburg, Pa., will receive more than $143 million in federal funding, the state’s two U.S. senators have announced, while the Pittsburgh-Philadelphia corridor is among those selected for the Corridor Identification and Development program for a study of increased […]
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Trains Photo Contest 2024 Trains Magazine and the National Railway Historical Society are pleased to present the 2024 photo contest. The NRHS is a nonprofit that promotes the interest and study of the railroad industry, a mission shared by Trains. The NRHS, which was established in 1935, is an excellent partner for a magazine that’s […]
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SAVANNAH, Ga. — The Georgia Ports Authority Board has approved spending $127 million to build the Blue Ridge Connector, an inland rail terminal in Gainesville, Ga., linking Northeast Georgia with the Port of Savannah’s 35 global container ship services. The facility will open in 2026 and serve a region important for the production of heavy […]
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