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Athearn GP40-2 series diesels Scale: HO (1:87.1) Price: Direct-current model with 21-pin NEM connector, $229.99; with dual-mode SoundTraxx Tsunami sound decoder, $329.99. Add $10 for Primed for Grime models. Era: 1980s to present (varies based on paint scheme) Manufacturer: Athearn Trains, 2904 Research Rd., Champaign, IL 61822; 800-338-4639; athearn.com Features on Athearn HO GP40-2 series […]
WASHINGTON — Calls for regulations allowing automated track inspections and increased grant funding to help short lines were among topics discussed today (June 18) in a U.S. Senate subcommittee meeting on the rail industry. The hearing by the Subcommittee on Surface Transportation, Freight, Pipelines, and Safety, “On the Right Track: Modernizing America’s Rail,” sets the […]
CHICAGO — Metra will receive more than $104 million in grants for station projects and the purchase of three electric switching locomotives, the commuter rail operator has announced. The funding will come from the Congestion Mitigation and Air Quality Improvement program of the Chicago Metropolitan Agency for Planning. The money will include $80 million for […]
In January of this year, the future looked bleak for the storied Pacific Southern Railway, a model railroad club based in Rocky Hill, New Jersey. Their decades-old, constantly evolving club layout was facing an existential threat. The HO scale Pacific Southern Railway, spanning 5,000 square feet with over 3,500 feet of handlaid track, began its […]
BALTIMORE — The B&O Railroad Museum has launched a new website, AmericanRail200.org, intended as a one-stop source of information on the bicentennial of American railroading in 2027. The site will serve as the central clearinghouse for events and news, with organizations and individuals invited to upload information so users can find information on events nationwide. […]
NORTH FREEDOM, Wis. — The move to return Chicago & North Western 4-6-0 No. 1385 to the Mid-Continent Railway Museum is back on. A June 11 social media post by Mid-Continent announced that the locomotive is scheduled to arrive at the museum on July 12. The public is invited to attend what will be a […]
I am a print subscriber to Classic Toy Trains. Have you reported on the discontinuation of the American Flyer model train line by Lionel? I know your magazine isn’t an “investigative reporting” publication but it’s a curious thing that Lionel would discontinue a line of trains that often showed models as “sold out” on their […]
TORONTO — The Toronto Transit Commission, operator of the city’s subways and streetcars, has officially taken control of the long-delayed Eglinton Crosstown light rail line, the head of regional transit agency Metrolinx said on Tuesday (June 17). Metrolinx CEO Michael Lindsay said the TTC would begin controlling train movements no later than today, June 18. […]
HARRISBURG, Pa. — Pennsylvania’s House of Representatives has passed a bill to provide more than $290 million in funding for public transit statewide that could address major shortfalls for the transit systems in the Philadelphia and Pittsburgh areas. However, the key legislative hurdle — passage by the Senate — remains. House Bill 1364 would provide […]
FORT WORTH, Texas — Fort Worth-area transit agency Trinity Metro has approved a 10-year extension of a contract with operating company Herzog Transit Services Inc. for its two commuter rail operations, the TEXRail line between Fort Worth and DFW International Airport and the Trinity Railway Express between Fort Worth and Dallas. Trinity Metro’s board approved […]
EAST TROY, Wis. — The East Troy Railroad Museum’s Milwaukee Day, scheduled for June 28, will feature rare displays and trolley rides with equipment directly tied to the Brew City’s past. Three rarely-seen pieces in the museum’s collection are planned to be brought out of storage for display at the East Troy depot. Chicago North […]
WASHINGTON — The National Transportation Safety Board will investigate the death of a Transtar Rail employee in Fairfield, Ala., the agency said in a social media post on Tuesday, June 17. A Transtar spokesman said in a June 18 emailed statement that the company “regretfully confirms” a fatality. “We are investigating the incident and are […]
