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Norfolk Southern’s business cars
Q What happened to the permanently coupled two business cars, the “Virginia” and the “Carolina,” that the Southern Railway provided for its president and chairman?— Bob Sewell, Marysville, Wash. A The Virginia (NS 1) and the Carolina (NS 2) have been paired since they were built in 1928. Pullman originally constructed them for Southern Railway. […]
Waiting on go
An Amtrak AEM7 rests between assignments at Washington Union Station on Jan. 14, 2009. Those motors don’t stay idle for long, and soon enough she’ll be racing along at up to 135 mph. Photo by Matt Van Hattem […]
AM radio antenna
It may look like a tiny handrail, but this is actually an AM antenna installed on some 1940s-era passenger cars. Michael Belcher Q What is the pipe on part of the roof of some 1940s-era diner and lounge cars as shown in Michael Belcher’s photo on page 90 of the April 2011 issue?— Randall Keils, […]
Track signs
The black-and-white sign with dots tells the plow operator to raise flanges prior to crossings, switches, etc. Greg McDonnell Q What does a whiteboard sign with black circles mean? It’s near grade crossings and sometimes has one black circle, and sometimes two.— Mike Cough, Kemptville, Ont., Canada A That board (which can also be black […]
Alternatives in railroad preservation
FULL SCREEN Davidson Ward A Deutsche Bahn intercity train whizzes past a steel boardwalk in Natur-Park Südgelände. FULL SCREEN Davidson Ward Tracks disappear into the forest, with a well-groomed hiking trail solidly established between the rails. FULL SCREEN Davidson Ward Here you can clearly see the delineation of path and nature, as bound by two […]
Last Rio Grande SD9 scrapped NEWSWIRE
CANON CITY, Colo. – Canon City & Royal Gorge Railroad has scrapped the last remaining Denver & Rio Grande Western EMD SD9, No. 5305. It was cut up as part of a deal the tourist line made for a newer locomotive. No. 5305 was built in July 1957, part of an order for 10 SD9s, […]
Waiting is the hardest part
A Canadian National train rolls south through the diamonds at Trenton, Mich., while a Conrail local waits for its turn across on May 18, 2012. Photo by Matt Van Hattem […]
The Belt Railway: A Railroad’s Railroad
In the November 2012 issue of Trains, Sayre C. Kos describes The Belt Railway Company of Chicago’s monstrous hump yard operation, in which cars weave their way from one end to the other. Workers there call it “feeding the Beast.” For another in-depth look at The Belt Railway, download the free PDF below of “A […]
The Belt Railway’s hump yard
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Trains, September 2012
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Caterpillar-painted SD70ACe unveiled at Las Vegas mine show NEWSWIRE
EMDX on the floor at MINExpo 2012 during setup of the Caterpillar booth. Dan Morrison Dan Morrison LAS VEGAS – A specially painted EMD SD70ACe was unveiled this week at MINExpo International 2012 in Las Vegas. The locomotive is painted yellow for Electro-Motive Diesel’s parent company Caterpillar. The 850,000 square foot event features 1,800 exhibitors […]
