Amtrak Empire Builder dining is among the more pleasant experiences on passenger trains these days. Join David Popp for a look at eating on a moving train in Summer 2022. When traveling on Amtrak’s premier long-distance trains, sleeping car passengers are provided complementary meals in the dining car, including breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Amtrak’s website […]
Milwaukee Road’s Minneapolis–Chicago Morning Hiawatha crosses from track 1 to track 2 as it passes over the Elgin, Joliet & Eastern diamonds at Rondout, Ill., on April 10, 1971. The streamliner is 32 miles from its destination and 20 days from its final run. W. C. Christopher photo […]
Amtrak Amfleet cars were the first of the National Passenger Railroad Corporation’s own passenger cars in the 1970s. They were and are, useful, flexible cars that have served the railroad for decades. Did you know these facts about Amfleet cars? The cars were initially billed as “the Amfleet,” but “the” was quickly dropped as trains […]
Siemens Venture-series passenger cars Scale: HO (1:87.1) Price: To be announced Era: 2020s+ Manufacturer: Bachmann Trains, 1400 E. Erie Ave., Philadelphia, PA 19124; 215-533-1600; bachmanntrains.com Features: Detailed, illuminated interiors Road-specific exterior configurations E-Z Mate Mark II couplers Blackened machined metal RP-25 contour wheels Dual-mode horn, bell, brake sounds, headlights, ditch lights, and marker lights (cab […]
Siemens ALC-42 Charger diesel locomotive Scale: N (1:160) Price: $459 Era: 2020s+ Manufacturer: Bachmann Trains, 1400 E. Erie Ave., Philadelphia, PA 19124; 215-533-1600; bachmanntrains.com Features: Dual-mode TCS WOWSound decoder Keep-Alive capacitor Separate, factory-applied windshield wipers, grab irons, and detail parts Voice-guided Audio Assist Directional headlights and marker lights Interior corridor work lights Steady/alternate flashing ditch […]
BOSTON — With the 30-day closure of a primary rail rapid transit line set to begin this evening, the mayor of Boston has warned it will be “impossible to avoid chaos altogether.” The Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority’s Orange Line will close Friday at 9 p.m., leaving commuters to use a patchwork of commuter rail, other […]
Spain has added to its high-speed rail mileage this summer and is on track to reach 2,500 miles within the next year, maintaining its position as home of the world’s second-largest high speed rail network. China is No. 1 with a network eight or nine times bigger. As the Spanish network has grown, the government […]
SACRAMENTO, Calif. — The California High-Speed Rail Authority board of directors has approved contracts for design of 52.4 miles of right-of-way that will extend the route north to Merced and south to Bakersfield, completing the initial 171-mile segment in the state’s Central Valley. The board awarded a $41 million design contract to Stantec Consulting Services […]
WASHINGTON — Building on the environmental benefits of rail travel, Amtrak has released its Fiscal 2021 Sustainability Report, outlining its efforts to improve sustainability by addressing greenhouse gas emissions and use of diesel fuel and electricity. Those efforts include the introduction of new Siemens Charger locomotives on long-distance routes, Tier-4-compliant units that emit 89% less […]
A 4-6-2 Pacific leads a Milwaukee Road suburban train past the road’s Western Avenue coach yards in Chicago on an afternoon run from Union Station to Fox Lake, Ill., in 1948. Henry J. McCord photo […]
Siemens ACS-64 Scale: HO (1:87.1) Price: $459 Era: 2020s+ Manufacturer: Bachmann Trains, 1400 E. Erie Ave., Philadelphia, PA 19124; 215-533-1600; bachmanntrains.com Features: Dual-mode TCS WOWSound decoder Keep-Alive capacitor Light-emitting diode lighting, including flashing ditch lights and directional marker lights and headlights Voice-guided Audio Assist Die-cast metal frame Mappable light functions Selector switch for choice between […]
Amtrak Acela II Scale: HO (1:87.1) Price: Train set, $799; separate-sale cars, $139 Era: 2020s+ Manufacturer: Bachmann Trains, 1400 E. Erie Ave., Philadelphia, PA 19124; 215-533-1600; bachmanntrains.com Set features Powered (analog control with speaker) and non-powered (functioning lights) locomotives Additional locomotive features include die-cast metal chassis; working, directional light-emitting-diode (LED) headlights and marker lights; and […]
