WASHINGTON — U.S. rail traffic remained below 2022 levels in July, but statistics from the Association of American Railroads provided mixed messages about traffic trends. Meanwhile, traffic for the week ending July 29 continued the recent trend of lesser declines than had been the case for much of the year, with overall traffic down 2.6% […]
Northeast tourist railroads you must visit include premium museums, scenic lines in different gauges, and everything in between. From Trains Magazine’s Tourist Trains Guidebook, here’s our list of tourist railroads, museums, and displays to experience across the region. Northeast Tourist Railroads and Museums Connecticut Essex Steam Train and Riverboat – 1 Railroad Avenue, Essex Where […]
LINCOLN, Neb. — The Brotherhood of Maintenance of Way Employes Division has sued BNSF Railway in federal court, charging that — in reducing its maintenance-of-way workforce while contracting out more work — the railroad has violated its agreements with the union and is therefore in violation of the Railway Labor Act. The BMWED filed the […]
Tons of Black Gold rides the rails under Big Skies. Tom Danneman is frequently there to capture these unit trains, so we’ve compiled this video of heavy haulers working the western main lines. These big trains and even bigger skies are all part of what makes Tom’s brand of contemporary railfanning so compelling to view […]
What was your first byline in Trains? Brian M. Schmidt: In August 2006 I wrote about the state of the South Shore Line commuter service in Indiana, a remnant of the old Chicago South Shore & South Bend interurban. My friend Alexander Craghead was running Trains’ City Rail column at the time and arranged for […]
CHEHALIS, Wash. — A plan announced in April that would have seen the Mt. Rainier Scenic Railroad operate steam excursions on the tracks of the Chehalis-Centralia Railroad & Museum “is not going to be executed this year,” the Chehalis-Centralia Chronicle reports. Instead, the Mt. Rainier Scenic now says it will offer limited steam excursions on […]
LUDINGTON, Mich. — Loading-ramp damage has brought an early end to the 2023 season for Lake Michigan car ferry S.S. Badger. “We have made the difficult, and unfortunately unavoidable, decision to suspend our daily crossings for the remainder of the season,” Mark W. Barker, President of Interlake Maritime Services, parent company of the Lake Michigan […]
MONTREAL — About 25,000 trips were taken on Monday’s first day of paid service for the Réseau express métropolitain light rail service, REM officials said Tuesday. That was despite two incidents that stopped service during Monday’s peak morning commute for more than an hour [see “Montreal’s REM experiences bumpy first day,” Trains News Wire, Aug. […]
CHICAGO — Metra will add four trains — two daily round trips — the weekday schedule for the Metra Electric District’s Blue Island Branch as of Aug. 14, the commuter operator announced Tuesday. Those trains, and adjustments to the current 18 daily trains on the branch, will also address ridership trends and service gaps to […]
OTTAWA — Reopening of Ottawa’s light rail Confederation Line has been pushed back yet again, with Aug. 14 as the new date for the resumption of service. But the Ottawa Citizen reports that Renée Amilcar, the city’s transit services general manager, stressed that is an early estimate and subject to change, saying, “We continue to […]
LOS ANGELES — Santa Fe No. 5704, the SD45-2 locomotive cosmetically restored to its bicentennial paint scheme, will make its California public debut at Los Angeles Union Station’s Train Festival 2023: A Celebration of Past, Present & Future on September 9-10. The locomotive, which was donated by BNSF to the Southern California Railway Museum in […]
CHAMA, N.M. — Cumbres & Toltec Scenic Railroad excursions this fall are selling quickly, the railroad reports, with some September dates almost sold out in all ticket classes and Parlor class seating available for only three dates in the entire month. “Autumn is always a popular time to ride the Cumbres & Toltec,” Scott Gibbs, […]
