News & Products for the week of September 11th 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 September 11th […]
Type of Train: Passenger/Transit
MARTA commuter railcars heading for Atlantic Ocean
ATLANTA – The Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority (MARTA) has begun shipping old rapid transit MU cars to the Georgia coast and eventually the Atlantic Ocean. MARTA is partnering with the Georgia Department of Natural Resources Reef Project to contribute cars from MARTA’s original fleet as they are replaced by new CQ400 railcars in coming […]
Chicago’s Red Line Extension receives $1.9 billion federal commitment
CHICAGO – The Federal Transit Administration has committed $1.947 billion in federal funding for the Chicago Transit Authority’s Red Line Extension Project. The 5.6-mile extension of the CTA’s Red Line to Chicago’s southern border is the first rail transit extension since the Orange Line, running southwest to Midway International Airport from the Loop opened in […]
Georgia Railroad mixed train
Editor’s Note: Former Classic Trains Senior Editor J. David Ingles rode the Georgia Railroad mixed train with his wife, Carol, on Oct. 22, 1975. Wednesday morning was dawning clear but crisp as we left the motel, and our taxi driver had no trouble making the 7-mile trip to the Harrisonville Yard “passenger station” […]
Swiss Spectacular, Part 3: Finding freight
OLTEN, Switzerland — Just about every railfan knows what it’s like to have one of those days when you’re in the wrong place at the wrong time. So it was for me today in Olten. This is not a city high on the must-see list for most vacationers. It doesn’t even warrant a mention in […]
Gulf Coast service awaits Mobile station track, PTC gap closure
POINT CLEAR, Ala. —The launch of two daily Amtrak round trips between New Orleans and Mobile, Ala., depends on when design and construction of a pocket track at Mobile is completed and 3 miles of positive train control is installed through CSX’s Gentilly Yard east of New Orleans. But that means service will not come […]
France to launch German-style low-cost monthly rail pass
PARIS — In an effort to encourage greener travel, Clément Beaune, France’s transport minister, announced a new reduced-price monthly rail pass to be introduced in summer 2024 across the country, according to a story in the Guardian. The pass, modeled after the similar and highly successful program offered in Germany, will cost around €49 (US […]
Austria’s KlimaTicket offers unique summer promotion for public rail travel
Public rail travel AUSTRIA – When marketing public transportation to new patronage, especially when it comes to rail travel, sometimes promotions must include thinking outside the box. That’s exactly what happened during two summer festivals in Austria as free KlimaTicket passes were given to six participants in exchange for a specific tattoo. The promotion was […]
Swiss Spectacular, Part 2: Panoramas galore
ST. GALLEN, Switzerland — You ride the Gotthard Panorama Express for the big attractions: the fantastic scenery, the panoramic cars — almost dome-like — that help you take in that scenery — and the honest-to-goodness sliding-window coach that lets you take pictures without a glass reflection. But SBB, the Swiss Federal Railways, has made sure […]
Amtrak IG assesses company’s spending plans
WASHINGTON — Amtrak’s Office of Inspector General on Wednesday released a report detailing the steps the company says it is taking to use, account for, and report on the $22 billion it is slated to receive directly from Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) funding [see “Infrastructure bill addresses Amtrak priorities, congressional requirements,” News Wire, […]
TurboTrain
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Swiss Spectacular, Part 1: Tunnel(s) Vision
LOCARNO, Switzerland — The trains are new, modern, run on time, and everyone uses them to go everywhere. Clearly, I’m not at home. In fact, and as the dateline has given away, I am in Switzerland. This is night two of my second trip here, this time a three-week adventure. And while I am badly […]
