AUGUSTA, Maine — Maine Switching Services, the freight operator on the state-owned Belfast & Moosehead Lake Railroad, has been selected by the Maine Department of Transportation to operate and maintain the state’s Rockland Branch, a 57-mile former Maine Central line. However, a pilot program to test passenger service on the route, in coordination with the […]
PORT CLINTON, PA. — Almost 340,000 riders took part in Reading & Northern excursions in 2024, surpassing the previous mark of more than 322,000 in 2023 by 5%, the railroad has announced. The year included the opening of the new Nesquehoning Regional Railroad Station on the railroad’s Nesquehoning campus, which includes the railroad’s new shops […]
WASHINGTON — Ron Batory, K. Earl Durden, and Henry Posner III will be inducted into the Short Line Railroad Industry Hall of Fame at this year’s American Short Line and Regional Railroad Association Annual Conference, the organization has announced. The induction will take place April 8, 2025, in Denver. Durden’s induction will be posthumous. “The […]
CORVALLIS, Ore. — A bridge collapsed under a Portland & Western train crossing Mary’s River in Corvallis today (Saturday, Jan. 4, 2025), sending at least one car into the river. KPTV-TV reports the incident occurred around noon PT near Avery Park in Corvallis. A Portland & Western representative told the station a 19-car train was […]
INDEPENDENCE, Ohio — Train and engine service workers at the Utah Central Railway have voted to join the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen, the union has announced — the seventh short line to join the union since 2023. The vote, certified by the National Mediation Board in December, was unanimous, the union said in […]
SALT LAKE CITY — Jeff Roberts has become CEO of Savage Cos., the multifaceted supply-chain company whose businesses include short line railroads and other rail operations and logistics. Roberts becomes just the fourth CEO in the history of the privately held company established in 1946. He replaces Kirk Aubry, who announced plans to retire in […]
INDEPENDENCE, Ohio — Members of the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen have ratified a five-year contract with Genesee & Wyoming’s Berkshire & Eastern Railroad, the union announced this week. The contract, ratified unanimously, includes wage increases totally 22.5% over the life of the contract: 5% at signing, 5% in 2025, 4% in 2026, 4% […]
PORT CLINTON, Pa. — The first winter “Iron Horse Ramble” will provide an early start to the 2025 steam excursion schedule for the Reading & Northern, the railroad announced today (Dec. 28, 2024). In all, four steam excursions are planned, with tickets on sale at this Friday, Jan. 3, 2025, at 9 a.m. The season […]
ASHEVILLE, N.C. — Railroads on the Gulf Coast and in the East are familiar with hurricane preparedness and plan accordingly for wind, storm surge, and flooding. But they cannot prepare for a hurricane causing an unprecedented, once-in-a-thousand-years event. That’s what happened about 24 hours after Hurricane Helene made landfall on Sept. 26, 2024, as a […]
The Santa train season is nearing its end — which may be just as well, considering a weekend with minor mishaps involving three such trains, from one side of the country to the other. On Friday, the Polar Express operated by the California State Railroad Museum from its station in Old Sacramento was involved in […]
Several freight rail business developments did not rank among our Top 10 stories of the year — but were still important in the grand scheme of things. They include: New Southeast-Mexico corridor CSX and Canadian Pacific Kansas City on Dec. 1 began service over the former Meridian & Bigbee short line that serves as a […]
MOLINE, Ill. — An exceptionally long-running effort to launch Amtrak service to the Quad Cities of Illinois and Iowa may be extended even longer, if some federal lawmakers have their way. Three members of Illinois’ congressional delegation — U.S. Sens. Dick Durbin and Tammy Duckworth, and U.S. Rep. Eric Sorensen — have written Transportation Secretary […]
