Southern Get-Together event announced

overview of garden railway

The Georgia Garden Railway Society (GGRS) announces a Southern Get-Together event. This regional event will take place August 23-25 and includes self-guided tours to garden railways, tours of the Trainz.com’s new warehouse facility, and large-scale vendors at the Atlanta Model Train Show in Duluth, Ga. Also available is a custom steel boxcar, made by USA […]

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Regional Rail acquires Cincinnati Eastern Railroad

KENNETT SQUARE, Pa. — Regional Rail LLC has added to its holdings in the Midwest with acquisition of the Cincinnati Eastern Railroad, a 70-mile Ohio short line, the company has announced. The company now has seven railroads in Ohio, Indiana, and Illinois. “The Regional Rail team and I are delighted to partner with the team […]

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MBTA Orange Line work removes six more speed restrictions

Equipment and men working on rail line under bridge

BOSTON — The Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority announced it eliminated six speed restrictions during the latest service shutdown on its rapid transit network, suspensions of Orange Line service between North Station and Oak Grove June 22-23 and between North Station and Wellington June 24-30. “We continue to accomplish long deferred maintenance, repairs, and full-depth track […]

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Durango & Silverton operations again disrupted by slide

Steam locomotive leads train onto dirt street

DURANGO, Colo. — For the second time in less than two weeks, the Durango & Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad has been hit by a rock slide, cutting off service to Silverton. A post on the railroad’s Facebook page says the slide occurred Monday night at milepost 486.0 north of Needleton, and has covered the rail […]

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Former UP and Conrail locomotives in Estonia go to scrap

A fleet of GE-built former Union Pacific and Conrail locomotives exported to Estonia two decades ago are now mostly out of service, with many cut up for scrap earlier this year. A handful remain in service, and some, heavily rebuilt, remain in use in Estonia and have been exported to nearby Finland for use there. […]

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Plans for a masonry depot

Color image of weather-beaten masonry depot

Harold W. Russell’s illustrations have been appearing in Model Railroader magazine since the mid-1960s. He has more than 150 bylines to his credit. In the July 2024 issue he shared plans for a masonry depot on the Lehigh Valley in Gorham, N.Y. Click on the link below to download Harold’s plans. Use this link to […]

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An engineer’s life: Free steak and eggs

train in snow

Steak and eggs I was working a westbound over the Scenic Subdivision as the conductor on a Wenatchee-to-Seattle drag freight. The East pool ran from our home terminal of Seattle (Balmer Yard) east of the Cascade Mountains to Wenatchee, our away-from-home terminal. This was in December of 1983. It was very cold that day. The […]

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BNSF has yet to set timeline to replace North Sioux City bridge

BNSF Railway logo

NORTH SIOUX CITY, S.D. — BNSF Railway says it has not determined a timeline for replacing the bridge between North Sioux City and Sioux City, Iowa, that collapsed June 23 as a result of flooding, and continues to re-route traffic through Creston, Iowa. KTIV-TV reports that railroad spokeswoman Kendall Sloan said the railroad is coordinating […]

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First Tri-Rail express train disrupted by pedestrian accident

View from bridge of commuter train at station

PEMBROKE PARK, Fla. — The launch of a new express service on South Florida commuter rail operator Tri-Rail was disrupted Monday when another train struck and killed a pedestrian, halting operations and forcing the commuter operator to provide buses on the inaugural train of the service. The South Florida Sun-Sentinel reports a northbound Tri-Rail train […]

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Menards Sunoco Station

model Sunoco station with two vehicles

When I was a kid, we’d drive 3 ½ hours north to the Upper Peninsula of Michigan to visit my grandparents a couple of times per year. Of course, that long of a drive necessitated one or two pit stops. Most were at tiny gas stations in small towns. Menards Sunoco Station  (275-9288) reminds me […]

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Metrolink set for significant service expansion this fall

Commuter train arrives at station

LOS ANGELES — Metrolink plans to offer expanded service this fall as part of its efforts to move from commuter-oriented service to a “regional rail” concept, KTLA-TV reports. The agency has also hired a new “Chief People Officer,” Metrolink announced Monday. Systemwide, the plan calls for about a 30% increase in service under the fiscal […]

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Mexican president again says Maya Train will be completed by September

Two women and two men on passenger train

CANCÚN, Mexico — Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador has again promised the Maya Train project will be completed by mid-September, before he leaves office, while President-elect Claudia Sheinbaum has endorsed the controversial project on the Yucatan Peninsula. Mexico News Daily reports that López Obrador and Sheinbaum traveled on two segments of the Maya Train […]

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