MINNEAPOLIS – The Federal Transit Administration has approved plans for the Twin Cities Metropolitan Council to begin construction on the Southwest Light Rail project, which would be the third light rail line to serve the Minneapolis/St. Paul area. On Wednesday FTA granted the Council what is known as a Letter of No Prejudice, a critical […]
Amtrak’s ACS-64 Cities Sprinter has been rushing passengers up and down the Northeast Corridor for nearly five years, including a stretch not far from the Bachmann Industries headquarters in Philadelphia. Now you can add it to your layout with Bachmann’s latest sound-equipped HO scale release. The prototype. The Amtrak Cities Sprinter (ACS) 6,400kW (the -64 […]
MRC Synchro Sound2 To get truly big sound out of your Digital Command Control-equipped locomotive, you need a big speaker. Unfortunately, that’s just not possible in smaller scales. Model Rectifier Corp. has addressed this problem with the Synchro Sound2, a standalone speaker equipped with a DCC sound decoder. The Synchro Sound2 is meant to be […]
Menards HO Wally’s Service Station Price: $59.99 Manufacturer Menards 5106 Menard Dr. Eau Claire, WI 54703 www.menards.com/trains Era: 1955 to 1960s (as decorated) Comments: Menards has added Wally’s Service Station to its rapidly growing line of HO scale structures. The factory-assembled model features more than 20 light-emitting diodes (LEDs); a weathered base; and an assortment […]
Atlas Master Line HO scale Pullman 10-1-1 sleeper Price: $64.95 (undecorated, $54.95) Manufacturer Atlas Model RR Co. 378 Florence Ave. Hillside, NJ 07205 www.atlasrr.com Era: 1930 to 1950s Road names: Pullman; Chicago, Burlington & Quincy; Chicago & North Western; Norfolk & Western; Northern Pacific; Pennsylvania RR; Southern Pacific; and Union Pacific. Also available undecorated. Comments: […]
HAVRE, Mont. — BNSF Railway may expand a groundbreaking pilot program that uses drones to conduct track inspections along remote sections of its main line. Since 2015, the railroad has been using drones to take detailed photos of the tracks along three different subdivisions that can later be analyzed by computers to find defects, such […]
TORONTO — Canadian National has completed its $400 million in capacity projects in Western Canada. As a result, CN’s key operating metrics are improving and costs are being reduced as trains move faster and cars spend less time in yards, Chief Financial Officer Ghislain Houle told an investor conference on Tuesday. CN has returned two […]
Murals inside a restored Cincinnati Union Terminal. The art deco train station will have a grand re-opening for the public on Saturday, Nov. 17. David T. Rohdenburg CINCINNATI — One of the best known railroad landmarks in the Midwest, Cincinnati’s grand art deco masterpiece, Union Terminal, is re-opening this week after a 30-month, $228-million restoration […]
Canadian National power leads a westbound empty oil unit train through River Forest, Ill., on the Union Pacific on Aug. 25, 2018. CN is seeing increased crude-by-rail business. TRAINS: David Lassen TORONTO — Shipments of Canadian crude oil to the U.S. — already moving at record levels — are likely to increase further in the […]
Atlas N scale Alco C628 diesel Big Alcos are back in N scale from Atlas Model Railroad Co. We reviewed a direct-current (DC) version from an earlier production run in the August 2004 Model Railroader. The latest run is available with a factory-installed ESU LokSound decoder that operates on Digital Command Control (DCC) as well […]
An interior image of Buffalo Central Terminal’s partly restored main concourse. Stephan M. Koenig BUFFALO, N.Y. — The art deco castle of a depot has needs aplenty, but with thousands of square feet to speak for and only $5 million extra, leaders responsible for Buffalo Central Terminal are being careful about how to spend a […]
One car in the Kansas City Southern Holiday Express consist in 2015. Hayley Enoch Holiday Express schedule Kansas City Southern KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Kansas City Southern announced today that its 18th annual Holiday Express will distribute a total of $171,756 in gift cards to The Salvation Army at stops along the route. The gift […]
