STB announces investigation on Sunset Limited timekeeping, sets procedure

Passenger cars at station with baggage being unloaded onto trailer and passengers walking on platform. Image of the Sunset Limited.

WASHINGTON — Responding to an Amtrak request from late last year, the Surface Transportation Board announced today (July 11) it will open an investigation into Sunset Limited timekeeping issues. Today’s board decision also outlines the framework for the process — a detailed procedure that will continue well into 2024. Establishment of that framework is necessary […]

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Minor Amtrak derailment disrupts service south from Washington

WASHINGTON — Amtrak service between Washington Union Station and Alexandria, Va., has been suspended following the low-speed derailment this morning in a tunnel to the station, the Washington Post reports. The derailment of the locomotive and a coach of Northeast Regional train No. 86 from Norfolk, Va., occurred at 8:47 a.m. One Amtrak employee was […]

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Are slugs locomotives?

slug1

Slugs What are slugs, what do they do You’re at trackside, eyeing an approaching CSX train. The roar of working diesels increases, but it’s oddly distant, given that the engines are so close. The lead unit grinds by, eerily silent but for the humming of its traction motors, followed by two others making all the […]

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Alberta to fund study of rail link to Calgary airport

Light rail train at station next to roadway

CALGARY, Alberta — The Province of Alberta will provide C$3 million in funding for a study of a rail link between Calgary’s downtown and airport, the Calgary Herald reports. The study will consider alternatives including a long-discussed extension of Calgary Transit’s light rail Blue Line and the proposed service that would link the airport, downtown, […]

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Record number of short lines earn Jake Safety Awards

American Short Line and Regional Railroad Association logo

WASHINGTON — The American Short Line and Regional Railroad Association has recognized a record number of its member railroads for a 2022 Jake Safety Award, as well as for the award “with distinction” for zero reportable injuries. The ALSRRA announced Monday that 383 railroads had qualified for the Jake Award and 350 for the award […]

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UP coal train derails in Wyoming

Union Pacific logo without slogan. UP Bailey Yard explosion appear to be accidental.

BILL, Wyo. — Twenty-one cars of a Union Pacific coal train derailed today (July 10), blocking UP’s route to ship coal out of the Powder River Basin. Cowboy State Daily reports the derailment occurred about 6:30 a.m. approximately 4 miles southeast of Lusk, Wyo., which is 130 miles north of Cheyenne. No injuries were reported. […]

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Building a train schedule

An image of two black locomotives pulling a long train of Triple Crown railcars

Did you ever wonder how a railroad goes about building a train schedule? It’s more complex than you may think. Train schedules have intrigued me since my father returned from a 1966 business trip with a present of current public timetables from 13 railroads. To 11-year-old me the timetables were like windows to a new […]

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Flooding halts Amtrak, Metro-North, CSX operations in Hudson Valley

Water rushing down hillside behind undermined railroad tracks

CROTON-HARMON, N.Y. — Flooding in New York’s Hudson River Valley has disrupted Amtrak, Metro-North, and CSX Transportation operations today (Monday, July 10). An alert on the Amtrak website says service between New York and Albany is suspended for at least the remainder of today as the Metro-North Railroad repairs tracks damaged by flooding. The New […]

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Finger Lakes Railway launches excursions for 2023

People board Rail Diesel Car

CANANDAIGUA, N.Y. — Central New York’s Finger Lakes Railway resumed its public excursion program on July 8, offering trips between Canandaigua and Clifton Springs, N.Y., using Budd RDC-1 AEAX 2012. Two round trips operated from Canandaigua, offering a 2½ layover in Clifton Springs; one round trip was also offered from Clifton Springs with a short […]

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