TACOMA, Wash. — Sound Transit has approved plans to build a new Tacoma Dome station for its Link light rail system, a plan which would require the demolition of the Freighhouse Square market dating to 1909. The choice was part of the Sound Transit board’s selection of a final route for its Tacoma Dome Link […]
COOS BAY, Ore. — The Oregon legislature has approved $100 million in funding for the Port of Coos Bay project to develop a new ship-to-rail container terminal, the port announced this week. The Pacific Coast Intermodal Port would see containers loaded directly from ships on to trains, which would then move via the port’s Coos […]
SAN FRANCISCO — New York’s Metropolitan Transportation Authority and its commuter railroads received six of the 12 honors in the American Public Transportation Association’s Rail Safety, Security, and Emergency Management Awards, handed out at APTA’s annual rail conference on Tuesday (July 1), 2025. In Rail Safety, the MTA’s New York City Transit received a gold […]
In this episode, David shares a proven technique for adding and shaping a rustic course of ballast along the rails of the Olympia & Sand Creek On30 logging layout. But first he works to complete several scenery details, including realistic fencing, water effects, muddy cow paths, and more along the terrain and trackwork too! View […]
ELBE, Wash. — The last few weeks have been devastating for the Mount Rainier Scenic Railroad. And yet, the heritage line about 45 miles south of Tacoma, Wash., is not only continuing to operate, but finding reasons to be positive. On the evening of April 30, the railroad’s largest wooden bridge — a 400-foot-long, 70-high […]
When Trains Magazine author Lou Maxon was invited by the Mt. Rainier Scenic Railroad and Museum in Mineral, Wash. to experience steam railroading from the cab, he knew he was in for a special treat, a peek into a world few non-railroaders will see. He watched as the crew went through their pre-departure routine for […]
It’s 7:30 a.m. and our Trains crew has arrived at the Mt. Rainier Scenic Railroad and Museum in Mineral, Wash. for a steam engine cab ride. It’s about a two-hour plus drive from Carnation, Wash. where I run, own and operate my own short line electrified private railway. Today though, I’m a guest crew member […]
OLYMPIA, Wash. — A bill calling for major expansion of Amtrak Cascades service, as well as improved travel times, is awaiting the signature of Washington Gov. Bob Ferguson after its passage by the state legislature. House Bill 1857 sets a target of a minimum of 14 daily round trips between Seattle and Portland, Ore., and […]
Now it’s time for scenery on David Popp’s Olympia & Sand Creek On30 display layout to take shape! In this episode, the efforts begins by adding a few more details, before David works to cover new ground with static grass and a variety of turf and brush materials. View the complete Olympia series exclusively on […]
Seattle’s Sound Transit recently opened a 3.4-mile extension of the 2 Line to downtown Redmond, Wash. The extension includes two new stations, at Marymoor and downtown Redmond, as well as 1,400 new parking spaces at Marymoor Village. Voters approved funding for the extension in 2016 as part of the Sound Transit 3 ballot measure. The […]
SALEM, Ore. — Oregon’s legislature has passed a bill seeking to expand the state’s collaboration with Washington state and other entities to improve passenger and freight rail operations in the Cascades Corridor. HB3233 was passed by a 16-12 vote of the state Senate on Tuesday, April 29, after the House passed it by a 44-12 […]
ELBE, Wash. — A major wooden trestle on the Mt. Rainier Scenic Railroad has been destroyed in a potential arson fire, a major blow that has the operation asking for financial support. The heritage railway, in a Facebook post, says a fire at a 28-span bridge between Mineral and Morton, Wash., was reported about 6:40 […]
