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Rapido HO Southern Pacific ¾ dome lounge Scale: HO (1:87.1) Price: $159.95 Manufacturer: Rapido Trains, 382 High St, Buffalo, NY 14204; 905-474-3314; rapidotrains.com Rapido HO Southern Pacific ¾ dome lounge features: Designed from original blueprints and field measurements Flicker-free, track-powered interior lighting Free-rolling trucks Lighting in dome roof Metal magnetic knuckle couplers Multi-color interior decoration […]
WASHINGTON — The federal government may be headed for a shutdown if 60 U.S. Senators can’t agree on a path forward by the end of the month, but late last week the upper chamber’s lawmakers did vote to confirm Pennsylvania Republican Robert Gleason to a 5-year term on Amtrak’s board of directors [“Senate confirms Robert […]
SEATTLE—Though most state-supported and long distance trains across Amtrak’s far-flung network have been operating with minimal delays, a number of significant disruptions occurred over the weekend which continue to underscore the shortage of sufficient serviceable equipment Pacific Northwest cancellations Problems for Amtrak’s Cascades began Friday afternoon, Sept. 19, when Portland, Ore., to Vancouver, B.C. train […]
WASHINGTON — Robert Gleason, the White House nominee to serve on Amtrak’s board of directors, was among the nominees the U.S. Senate confirmed en masse last week. The Senate approved 48 Trump administration nominees under a simple majority vote on Thursday. Republicans adopted the process last week to speed the confirmation of nominees amid Democratic […]
MADISON, Wis. — The Wisconsin Department of Transportation has announced that the Amtrak Interstate 41 Thruway Bus Service will cease operations on October 1, since the contract between the state and Amtrak would not be renewed. The service linked the Wisconsin cities of Green Bay, De Pere, Appleton, Oshkosh, and Fond du lac with Amtrak […]
MICHIGAN CITY, INDIANA — Demolition experts wasted little time in dismantling the top of the former Michigan Central coaling tower that straddles Amtrak’s Michigan line, which normally hosts Wolverine and Blue Water trains. The process of crushing this fortress and another one on Michigan-owned track west of Augusta, Mich., between Kalamazoo and Battle Creek, has […]
NEW YORK — Amtrak, looking to garner more publicity for the Aug. 28 launch of its new premium NextGen Acela fleet, has piggybacked a tracksuit promotion onto New York’s Fashion Week (Sept. 11-16). According to Amtrak: The most comfortable way to travel just got even more comfortable; as it is launching its first-ever line of […]
Second of two parts NEW ORLEANS — Although the Mardi Gras Service’s twice-daily departures are off to a good start, as outlined in Part 1 of this report, it appears more outreach along the route and attention to operating detail will be necessary to get the best results moving forward. Community engagement ‘For day-to-day onsite […]
First of two parts NEW ORLEANS — Confetti cannons that showered Amtrak’s 10-car Mardi Gras Service inaugural special as it headed to Mobile, Ala., on Aug. 16, 2025, have moved on to other celebrations. Meanwhile, the twice-daily, New Orleans-Mobile round trips have proven that the day’s enthusiasm has survived the transition. The next tasks: completion […]
In August 2025, my wife and I planned a trip to the Pacific Northwest to visit family and friends. While we frequently travel by air and rental car, and have taken shorter train trips in the U.S. and Europe, we’ve never done a long-distance rail experience. So, we decided to take Amtrak’s Empire Builder from […]
WASHINGTON — Though outsiders were not permitted to comment or ask questions, the online Amtrak board of directors meeting today (Wednesday, Sept. 10) was much more informative than the previous edition, in large part because of interrogation by board members following company executives’ presentations and candid admission of where results are falling short. The last […]
WalthersProto HO Amtrak Viewliner I sleeper Scale: HO (1:87.1) Price: Unlighted, $109.98; lighted, $124.98 Manufacturer: Wm. K. Walthers Inc., 5601 W. Florist Ave., Milwaukee, WI 53218; 414-527-0770; walthers.com WalthersProto HO Amtrak Viewliner I sleeper features: 36” metal wheels on plastic axles Detailed underbody with air and waste tanks, battery and equipment boxes, HVAC ducts, transformer […]
