Trains Presents: Inside Brightline’s new trains

Man in a bright yellow vest walking down the aisle inside of a passenger car

Join us at Brightline’s Workshop B in West Palm Beach, Fla., for a look inside one of its new Siemens-built passenger trains. You’ll tour the cab and the engine room, and see the coaches before the first paying passenger ever stepped on board! Only from Trains Magazine! Read more about Brightline from passenger correspondent Bob […]

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Trains Presents: Peru 2017 tour, day 6

We wake up en route between Arequipa and Puno, spy Alco diesel locomotives, and end up at the dock where a multi-gauge car ferry offers intrigue. You’ll see and hear the rare Alco diesels that pull our train. Then it’s off once more into the night. Follow along: Peru day 1 Peru day 2 Peru […]

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Trains Presents: Peru 2017 tour, day 8

A PeruRail EMD GR12 brings a train into the station.

Join us on the ultimate train ride to the ancient ruins of Machu Picchu. Enjoy the spectacular scenery as we travel to the base camp. Then ride with us on a bus to the lost city high in the mountains! Follow along: Peru day 1 Peru day 2 Peru day 3 Peru day 4 Peru […]

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Trains Presents: Peru 2017 tour, day 5

Passengers board the Belmond Andean Explorer train

Join us as we travel with Special Interest Tours to Peru! We visit the southern Peru city of Arequipa for a look around its historic site. Then we board the luxury “Belmond Andean Explorer.” A nighttime departure awaits! Follow along: Peru day 1 Peru day 2 Peru day 3 Peru day 4 […]

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Big Boy No. 4014 restoration update

Man with hardhat looking to interviewer in large industrial workshop.

Trains visits Union Pacific’s steam shop in Cheyenne, Wyo., for an update on the restoration of Big Boy No. 4014. Join us on a tour of the shop and hear Ed Dickens, senior manager of heritage operations, describe the project’s status and the effort to have the engine back in steam in 2019! Be sure […]

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Taking Care of Business: Copper Basin Railway, Part 1

Two diesel locomotives appear backlit in a rail yard with sunlight glinting off from a low angle.

With Charlie Conway behind the cameras, discover what makes the Copper Basin Railway shine brightly in the Arizona desert. In part 1 of 2, you’ll make a mine run with the crew in the cab of a Geep, take a hammer to hard iron rails, and then get to know president “Jake” Jacobson, right along […]

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‘X’ locomotive number

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Southern Pacific cab-forward 4-8-8-2 No. 4219 leads an extra train at Dunsmuir, Calif., in August 1948. Guy L. Dunscomb, Martin E. Hansen collection Q On some early Union Pacific and Southern Pacific steam and diesel locomotives there is an “X” in front of the number. Why is this done? – Leon Bassik, Langhorne, Pa. A […]

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Polishing the rails for General Electric

nyc9363

New York Central S3 No. 9363 stands on the West Side line in Manhattan in 1967. Thirteen years earlier and 150 miles to the north, the road used another Alco switcher in a novel attempt to capture special-train business. Elliot Kahn, Louis A. Marre coll. In a lifetime of reading about railroading, I’ve seen the […]

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