Metrolink, Surfliner expand codeshare agreement

Passenger train with cab car leading passing through rocky hillside

LOS ANGELES — Commuter operator Metrolink and the LOSSAN Rail Corridor Agency, which oversees Amtrak’s Pacific Surfliner, have expanded their codeshare program, allowing ticketholders to ride either train service between Los Angeles and Ventura. The new program, which began Monday, Nov. 6, is a pilot program currently scheduled to run through June 30, 2024. It […]

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News & Products for the week of November 6th 2023

An image of a model freight car in a yellow paint scheme

News & Products for the week of November 6th 2023   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 November 6th […]

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President Biden announces $16.4 billion in funding for Northeast Corridor projects (updated)

Map of infrastructure projects on Northeast Corridor

BEAR, Del. — President Joe Biden announced that 25 Northeast Corridor projects will receive a total of $16.4 billion in funding in an appearance today at Amtrak’s maintenance facility in Bear, Del., near Wilmington. The funding comes from the Federal Railroad Administration’s Federal-State Partnership for Intercity Pasenger Rail Program. It includes $4.7 billion for the […]

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City of Mobile sends lease for Gulf Coast stop to Amtrak

Two women holding signs supporting Gulf Coast Amtrak service

MOBILE, Ala. — After months of waiting for completion by city of Mobile attorneys, an agreement has been sent to Amtrak for a land lease that would provide a stop for two daily passenger round-trips to New Orleans. The delay in finalizing the agreement, sent to Amtrak last week, is one factor that has pushed […]

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LA’s Metrolink plans four-day shutdown in December

Commuter train passes under signal bridge

LOS ANGELES — LA-area commuter rail operator will shut down all service for a four-day period at the end of December to allow for installation of a new signal system and other work. The service suspension is set for Tuesday, Dec. 26, through Friday, Dec. 29, and will cover the entire seven-line, five-county system, including […]

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Cab-forward conundrum

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A 4200-series 4-8-8-2 cab-forward steam locomotive is cut in behind a 4-8-4 to double-head Southern Pacific’s Overland Limited upgrade out of Colfax, Calif., in April 1950. The cab-forwards were a special design unique to the Southern Pacific to spare head end crews from the accumulation of exhaust in the railroad’s lengthy and frequent tunnels and snowsheds. That […]

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The history of Railway Post Offices

black and white photo of railway post office

Railway Post Offices Mail moves by train In the 1830s, shortly after the establishment of the first railroads in the U.S., the Post Office Department began to ship mail by rail. The year 1838 saw some sorting of mail en route between Washington and Philadelphia, but the first Railway Post Office car is generally thought […]

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Republicans delay House vote on transportation spending bill

Trains Washington Watch logo

WASHINGTON — The House of Representatives has delayed its planned vote on an appropriations bill for the Department of Transportation amid Republic concerns the bill would not pass, the website The Hill reports. House Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-La.) said during Thursday’s session that the House would try next week to pass H.R. 4820, to […]

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