SAN CARLOS, Calif. — Caltrain’s electrified equipment is performing far more efficiently than expected, the agency announced at its month board meeting, which could result in $3 million annually in electric savings. The regenerative braking on Caltrain’s Stadler trainsets is sending approximately 23% of the energy consumed by the system. Electric use is averaging 207 […]
NEWPORT BEACH, Calif. — Dreamstar Lines, which hopes to launch luxury overnight train service between San Francisco and Los Angeles, has released conceptual renderings of Art Deco-inspired interiors for its equipment. The company commissioned Designworks, a BMW Group company, to create initial concepts for its plan to retrofit cars with four types of accommodations, in […]
Q: Was there ever an article on converting old railcars to accept modern trucks and couplers? I have a few HO Tyco cars that need to be converted. — Jason Trew A: Jim Kelly and Andy Sperandeo co-authored “Kadee couplers” in the May 1981 issue of Model Railroader. The article covered both N and HO […]
News & Products for the week of January 21st 2025 Model railroad operators and builders can get the latest information about locomotives, freight cars, passenger cars, tools, track, and more by reading Model Railroader’s frequent product updates. The following are the products Model Railroader editors have news on for the week of January 21st, […]
FORT WAYNE, Ind. — The Fort Wayne Railroad Historical Society has purchased Pullman car Kitchi Gammi Club from the car’s owners and operators for more than three decades. The heavyweight car built by Pullman in 1923 and long assigned to Nickel Plate Road service, is already in use at the Indiana Rail Experience, the excursion […]
WASHINGTON — A federal court has struck down a Department of Transportation rule on transportation of liquefied natural gas enacted in 2020, saying the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration did not sufficiently consider the safety risks involved. Specifically, the decision by a three-judge panel of the Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia […]
TORONTO — Ontario transit agency Metrolinx has signed an agreement with Alstom to overhaul 181 bilevel railcars for Toronto-area commuter rail operator GO Transit. The agreement, valued at approximately Ca$500 million ($347 million U.S.), calls for overhauls and modernization of the Series VIII cars to be conducted at Alstom’s Thunder Bay, Ont., plant beginning by […]
The Lionel 2025 Volume 1 catalog was recently published on the manufacturer’s website. Highlights include Lionel Lines Vision Hudson prewar sets, Vision Commodore Vanderbilt locomotives, a 20th Century Limited set, a 125th anniversary Lighted Station Platform, an expanded “battery O” line, exclusive anniversary products, and much more. View the catalog at lionel.com. […]
The Atlas Winter 2025 catalog was recently published on the manufacturer’s website. Highlights include a U30C diesel locomotive, a hot metal car, new GP40 paint schemes, new paint schemes for their 40-foot tank car, an upgraded Dash 8-40CW with Proto-Sound 3.0, and much more. View the catalog at shop.atlasrr.com Read more news in our news […]
SUNBURY, Pa. — After 27 years of running holiday passenger trains, fund-raising excursions, and shipper specials, owner Jeff Pontius of Penn Valley Railroad LLC has sold his fleet of seven passenger cars to the Reading & Northern Railroad. R&N announced that it would receive the cars today (Jan. 14, 2025) and outlined the planned move […]
News & Products for the week of January 13th 2025 Model railroad operators and builders can get the latest information about locomotives, freight cars, passenger cars, tools, track, and more by reading Model Railroader’s frequent product updates. The following are the products Model Railroader editors have news on for the week of January 13th, […]
Modern O scale rolling stock takes leaps and bounds in the level of detail and playability provided. Manufacturers roll out high end-looking models with some featuring not only traditional lighting, but also sound and smoke effects to further replicate real-life railroading. But what hasn’t fallen into the realm of head-spinning complexity is lubricating these 1:48-scaled […]
