CN, CPKC to resume negotiations with Teamsters Canada

Grain train led by red locomotive

GATINEAU, Quebec — With the threat of a national strike looming, Canadian National, Canadian Pacific Kansas City, and the Teamsters Canada Rail Conference will resume negotiations on Wednesday, Aug. 8, with the assistance of federal mediators, Labor Minister Steven MacKinnon said today. MacKinnon and Transport Minister Pablo Rodriguez today met with CN, CPKC, and Teamsters […]

Read More…

Norfolk Southern, CSX monitor east’s first tropical storm (updated)

Radar image of large storm over Florida

LAKE CITY, Fla. — Eastern railroads have marked the beginning of another hurricane season, as Hurricane Debby hit the made landfall between Tallahassee and Jacksonville, Fla., today (Monday, Aug. 5) and subsequently was downgraded to a strong tropical storm. The storm brought 70-mph winds and heavy rains across Pinsley Railroad Corp.’s Florida Gulf & Atlantic […]

Read More…

New Tracks Modeling announces line of models

new tracks modeling logo

New Tracks Modeling and O Scale Resource magazine have announced an O scale animated series of models, produced by CatzPaw Innovations LLC and Brennan’s Model Railroading. Preorders for the first model will be taken at the March 2025 O Scale Meet in Chicago, Ill. David Schultz is the chairman of the Modelers Advisory Committee for […]

Read More…

Porter upgrades using computerized and old-school techniques

model steam locomotive

Early model railroaders used wood, wire, and paper to create rolling stock. Today’s scratchbuilders can choose from myriad detail parts and use sophisticated laser cutters and 3-D printers. Sometimes it’s fun to explore old-school materials and techniques. To make this little G scale tender, I used a hybrid approach — mixing the old and the […]

Read More…

MTH RailKing USRA 0-6-0

model steam locomotive on layout

As a collector of scale models, I typically focus on Lionel Legacy or MTH/Atlas Premier models. However, the MTH RailKing line also provides a great deal of scale (and non-scale) models at a lower price point.  Announced in June of 2023 with six “livery configurations,” the USRA 0-6-0 arrived in July of 2024, a few […]

Read More…

Union Pacific coal train derails in Iowa

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

MARSHALLTOWN, Iowa — Thirty-eight cars of a Union Pacific coal train derailed about 2 miles east of Marshalltown on Sunday evening, Aug. 4, KCCI-TV reports. The derailment occurred about 5:30 p.m. No injuries were reported. Marshalltown is about 148 miles west of Clinton, Iowa, on UP’s Clinton Subdivision. It is about 70 miles west of […]

Read More…

Meet Tim Garland

Man in blue sweatshirt standing next to model train layout

What was your first train set (or locomotive)? I remember as a small child being fascinated with all types of transportation. Cars, trucks, ships, planes and trains, but I can definitely recall getting bitten by the model train bug when I was 6 years old. I distinctly remember visiting one of my father’s co-workers, who […]

Read More…

Alaska Railroad agrees to deal for new cruise ship port

Illustration of cruise ship dock with train on adjacent track

ANCHORAGE, Alaska — The Alaska Railroad has approved purchase of a new $137 million cruise ship port in Seward, to be built by a local developer and funded through a combination of loans and bonds. The facility could be completed in time for the 2026 cruise season. The Anchorage Daily News reports the railroad’s board […]

Read More…

Five memorable Amtrak locomotives

Red-and-black diesel locomotive with Amtrak Floridian passenger train at station

The current era of transition for Amtrak’s roster harkens back to motive power that shaped the passenger rail carrier — for better or for worse. Excluding EMD F40PHs, as they’re in a league of their own, here are five memorable Amtrak locomotives.   SDP40F     Initially rolled out in 1973, the SDP40Fs became the […]

Read More…