After finishing “Rosy,” my sugar cane train saddle tank engine, I decided to kitbash large-scale sugar cane cars. I started with Hartland Locomotive Works (HLW, now out of business—Ed.) flatcars and added solid square posts (Evergreen Styrene #196) into the holes in the car. I also added a small piece .10” flat styrene into the […]
Canadian Pacific Kansas City was the only Class I railroad that was able to eke out higher volume last year. CPKC’s traffic was up a scant 0.1% in 2023, which was a down year for North American freight volume. Rail traffic in the U.S., Canada, and Mexico was down a combined 2.1% last year, according […]
PORT CLINTON, Pa. — Reading & Northern saw double-digit growth in both freight and passenger traffic in 2023, the second consecutive year with such increases, the railroad said in a year-end business review. The Pennsylvania regional railroad handled more than 37,000 cars of freight, up from 33,000 in 2022. Growth was boosted in particular by […]
WASHINGTON – U.S. rail traffic declined 2.3% in 2023, with intermodal down 4.9% and carload traffic up 0.7% compared to 2022, the Association of American Railroads reported today. “Total U.S. rail carloads were up 2% in the fourth quarter of 2023 over the fourth quarter of 2022, while U.S. intermodal was up 5.5% over the […]
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – CSX’s eighth heritage locomotive is a salute to the New York Central. The ES44AH, which carries No. 1853 for the Central’s founding year, made its debut today. It took the Waycross, Ga., paint shop crew 22 days to adorn the locomotive with the Central’s classic lightning stripe scheme. The New York Central […]
Why is it that no one notices railroads until there’s a derailment, blocked grade crossing, or a massive supply chain problem like we saw in 2022? If it weren’t for bad press railroads wouldn’t get any at all. It’s as if the railroad industry – all 140,000 miles of it – is invisible until things […]
News & Products for the week of January 3rd 2024 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 3rd […]
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Genesee & Wyoming has a new partner in its CG Railway joint venture, which ferries freight cars across the Gulf of Mexico between Mobile, Ala., and Coatzacoalcos, Mexico. Grupo Mexico Transportes will purchase SEACOR Holdings’ 60% stake in CGR pending regulatory approval, G&W announced today. G&W initially formed a joint venture with […]
FORT WORTH, Texas — Montana Rail Link officially became a fallen flag on Jan. 1 when the regional railroad ceased operations and became BNSF Railway’s MRL Subdivision. Burlington Northern leased the former Northern Pacific main line from Jones Junction, Mont., to Sandpoint, Idaho, in 1987. In January 2022 BNSF and MRL announced an agreement to […]
Europe’s biggest rail freight companies are facing major challenges in 2024, despite efforts by politicians to encourage more freight movement by rail and less by road. In some countries, new ownership or new companies are challenging established operators and providing business opportunities for smaller companies. In most of Europe, the biggest rail freight company is […]
Welcome to 2024, News Wire readers. There’s no predicting what the new year has in store for us, but in case you’ve been otherwise occupied over the holiday season, here’s a chance to review our recent history of top News Wire stories of the year, as well as this year’s Top 10 (actually 11) topics, […]
Norfolk Southern’s disastrous hazardous materials wreck in East Palestine, Ohio — which put the railroad industry’s safety record under a withering spotlight — is Trains News Wire’s top story for 2023. The Feb. 3 derailment near the Ohio-Pennsylvania border likely was caused by the catastrophic failure of a wheel bearing on a covered hopper carrying […]
