Utah legislators change funding plan for transit projects Utah legislators have changed plans for funding a series transit projects, although the projects — including double-tracking sections of the Utah Transit Authority FrontRunner commuter rail route — will still get the money they need. The Salt Lake Tribune notes that instead of borrowing more than $1 […]
DC Metro proposal would see 22 stations closed, rail service reduced as of January 2022 The Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority would could close 22 Metrorail stations, reduce rail service to 30-minute intervals on all routes, and shut down nightly at 9 p.m. instead of the current 11 p.m. under the rail component of a […]
San Francisco streetcars to return in May, cable cars back in fall San Francisco will revive its historic streetcar F Line in May and its cable cars this fall — with the latter representing a turnaround from prior suggestions that return of the city’s signature transit system was in doubt because of cost and declining […]
Still more Tuesday morning rail news: Brightline, FDOT resume negotiations on Orlando-Tampa route Brightline has resumed negotiations with the Florida Department of Transportation on a route for Tampa-Orlando service, the Tampa Bay Business Journal reports in a paywalled article, which says negotiations had halted in March 2020 because of the coronavirus pandemic. The railroad has proposed building […]
Additional Tuesday morning rail news: Fire damages BNSF bridge in Bemidji, Minn. A BNSF Railway bridge across the Mississippi River in Bemidji, Minn., suffered “moderate damage” in a Monday afternoon fire, the Bemidji Pioneer reports. The fire was reported about 4 p.m., with Bemidji firefighters working about two hours to extinguish the blaze. The cause […]
Question: In the days when passenger trains carried open-platform observation cars, which passengers were allowed to occupy the platform? Was this subject to permission of the conductor, payment of an extra charge, or was it simply on a first-come, first-served basis? — John W. Eiszner, Indianapolis Answer: Open-platform cars and their successors, the round and […]
More Tuesday morning rail news: Bankruptcy trustee places former Iowa Pacific equipment on sale More than 100 pieces of historic rolling stock, both passenger cars and locomotives, are up for sale as part of bankruptcy proceedings resulting from the receivership of Iowa Pacific Holdings. The equipment belongs to Heritage Rail Leasing; it and the San […]
Tuesday morning rail news: Rail Runner Express to resume limited operation, almost a year after suspension New Mexico’s Rail Runner Express commuter train will resume service March 8, the Rio Metro Regional Transit District has announced, almost a year after service was suspended because of the COVID-19 pandemic. The train will operate on a limited […]
LOS ANGELES — The new owner of Washington state’s two Talgo Series VI trainsets says the equipment is available — but not for long. “It’s a sensitive matter for everyone involved, and it wasn’t supposed to turn into a spectacle,” Noah McCann of NSM Transportation Co. tells Trains News Wire. He adds, “If anyone is interested, they […]
Name: Ray Wheeler Railroad Name: Jericho & Mt Zion Railway Location: Lynnwood, WA Scale: G scale Theme: Tourist railroad with freight operations in the modern era. Description: The Odyssey of UP 2488 on the Jericho & Mt Zion Railway. AristoCraft 2-8-2 live-steam Mikado makes the run with a local freight. […]
History of the Seaboard Air Line The Seaboard’s beginnings date to 1832, when the Portsmouth & Roanoke was chartered to build from Portsmouth, Va., to Weldon, N.C. Opened in 1834 the companies’ backers saw great potential to link the North with the South’s agricultural and forest products and with its developing potential for industry. P&R […]
Canadian Pacific won the Class I railroad operating ratio crown for 2020, the first year that three of the big seven systems reported operating ratios below 60%. CP’s operating ratio, the closely watched measure of railroad efficiency, improved 2.8 points compared to 2019. Following closely behind CP were Union Pacific, at 58.5%, and CSX Transportation, […]
