Shipping container

Boxcars lined up for loading along curved platform

Shipping container New York Central (and subsidiary Michigan Central) had a large fleet of steel auto cars by the early 1920s. These had 10-foot door openings with 6- and 4-foot platesteel doors. New York Central photo […]

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UP service disrupted by fire, weather

Union Pacific logo with Building America slogan

OMAHA, Neb. — Fires and extreme weather are disrupting Union Pacific operations in the West and Midwest, the railroad has informed customers. In Northern California, the Lava fire, in Siskiyou Canyon and the Shasta-Trinity National Forest, is disrupting operations between Redding, Calif., and Eugene, Ore. The railroad is assessing damage to infrastructure including the Dry […]

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Reports say vehicle drove around gates in fatal Metra collision

Metra logo

CHICAGO — Witnesses report a vehicle drove around crossing gates before being struck by a Metra train Sunday evening in an accident that killed three people in the car — including a 5-year-old girl — and injured the train’s engineer, conductor and three passengers while derailing the cab car. The Chicago Tribune reports the collision […]

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Conrail-painted GP10 will operate near Cincinnati

Blue diesel on turntable

LEBANON, Ohio— An Electro-Motive Division GP10 road-switcher painted in blue with authentic Conrail markings will be pulling tourist trains for the Cincinnati Scenic Railway, beginning in August. The unit was built as Illinois Central GP9 No. 9037 in June 1954 and later rebuilt to a GP10 in a capital overhaul program at IC/Illinois Central Gulf’s […]

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Cost rises for Charlotte transit plan

Portion of map showing proposed Charlotte-area commuter rail line

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Estimates for a transit plan including commuter rail service for Charlotte have risen to $13.6 billion and could easily fluctuate over the almost two decades to complete the projects, the Charlotte city council was told at a Monday meeting. The Charlotte Observer reports preliminary estimates from an advisory group had placed the […]

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Cleanup continues after NS derailment in Pennsylvania

Norfolk Southern logo

NEWBERRY TOWNSHIP, Pa. — Cleanup continued Tuesday after 33 cars of a Norfolk Southern train derailed Monday afternoon midway between Harrisburg and York, Pa. The York Daily Record reports plastic PVC pellets spilled from one car, and hazmat teams were part of the initial response to the derailment because some of the cars involved displayed […]

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Center of commerce

Rail yard with cars in front of large brick structure

Center of commerce A Pennsylvania Railroad Geep pulls a string of express cars in front of railroad’s Polk Street freight station near Chicago Union Station. Polk was the country’s largest freight terminal when built in 1918. Ed DeRouin photo […]

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