Union Pacific coal train derails in Iowa

Union Pacific logo without slogan. UP Bailey Yard explosion appear to be accidental.

MARSHALLTOWN, Iowa — Thirty-eight cars of a Union Pacific coal train derailed about 2 miles east of Marshalltown on Sunday evening, Aug. 4, KCCI-TV reports. The derailment occurred about 5:30 p.m. No injuries were reported. Marshalltown is about 148 miles west of Clinton, Iowa, on UP’s Clinton Subdivision. It is about 70 miles west of […]

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Clifton Forge hump yard

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A string of coal hoppers crests the hump at Chesapeake & Ohio’s yard in Clifton Forge, Va., in June 1955. The cars are bound for C&O’s Atlantic Ocean docks at Newport News. W. A. Akin Jr. photo […]

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Why do railroads use catenary?

Orange, black, and white model electric locomotive running under catenary.

When you think about electrified rail lines today, the first thing that probably comes to mind is Amtrak’s Northeast Corridor. But in the first half of the 1900s, before the start of the diesel era, railroads used electrified lines to move freight and passengers. Examples in the east included the New York, New Haven & […]

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Fourteen cars of UP train derail at North Little Rock yard

Aerial view of derailed cars on wye

NORTH LITTLE ROCK, Ark. — Fourteen cars of a Union Pacific train derailed and overturned this morning (Thursday, Aug. 1) in North Little Rock, KATV-TV reports. No injuries were reported in the incident that occurred about 7:45 a.m.; all of the cars involved were empty, a UP representative told the station. The incident occurred on […]

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U.S. grain shippers say Ferromex lacks capacity to handle traffic growth in Mexico

WASHINGTON — A number of U.S. agricultural shippers are raising concerns about inadequate capacity on Mexican railroad Ferromex, which they say has struggled to handle grain trains since late last year as cross-border rail traffic has grown. A coalition of agricultural groups yesterday asked Surface Transportation Board Chairman Robert Primus, Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack, and […]

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