MINERSVILLE, Pa. — Central Railroad of New Jersey No. 113 was under steam for a night photo session on Oct. 21 – rescheduled from the original Oct. 14 date due to weather. The heavy 0-6-0 switcher is in its centennial year, having been built in June 1923 by the American Locomotive Company in Schenectady, N.Y. […]
Always something different at LA’s Taylor Yard A wise man once said, “The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.” It’s a nice thought. But he never met a train fan. For decades, whenever I had a few free minutes, I’d drive down to Southern Pacific’s […]
KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Train service from downtown Kansas City to Kansas City International Airport and an expansion of the city’s existing streetcar system are among the projects that could be funded through a new agreement between officials in Kansas City, Mo., and the U.S. Department of Transportation. The Emerging Projects Agreement, announced Tuesday, could […]
WASHINGTON — The National Transportation Safety Board is calling for new rules regarding crew members riding shoving moves through grade crossings as a result of a fatal October 2021 accident in Houston, Texas. The board has recommended that crew members be prohibited from riding such moves through crossings equipped only with warning lights or passive […]
SACRAMENTO, Calif. — The California Air Resources Board has approved a grant that would allow the Napa Valley Wine Train to replace — and, under regulatory requirements, destroy — six vintage diesels with two Tier 4 compliant switchers. The approval, which occurred earlier this year, according to the CARB website, covers two of the Wine […]
TORONTO — After months of service limited to a handful of round-trips regularly operating between Ottawa, Montreal, and Quebec City, a VIA Rail Canada Venture trainset made its Toronto debut Tuesday, rolling into the company’s Toronto Maintenance Centre Tuesday after bringing passengers from Ottawa on train no. 41. The first trip was celebrated with a […]
MONTREAL — Canadian National’s third-quarter profits tumbled on lower freight volume, the railway reported today, but most business segments are bouncing back. “I believe we’ve seen the bottom on volumes,” CEO Tracy Robinson told investors and analysts on the railway’s earnings call this afternoon. CN’s third-quarter operating income sank 21%, to $1.5 billion, as revenue […]
Southern Pacific & World War II By the 1940s, the original Transcontinental Railroad main line around the north end of the Great Salt Lake had fulfilled its original purpose of connecting the eastern United States with California, and was now needed for World War II. Specifically, the U.S. war effort needed the Transcontinental Railroad’s steel […]
In the early 1990s, as the bulk of Amtrak’s EMD F40PH diesel fleet began nearing potential retirement age, the passenger carrier quietly began nosing around for potential replacements. After testing Electro Motive’s F69 AC traction prototypes, the company opted to explore a less-expensive option. To save money, Amtrak sought to modify an existing freight locomotive model […]
WASHINGTON — The Transportation Security Administration announced that it has extended by one year a set of three cybersecurity directives regarding railroad infrastructure that were scheduled to expire today (Oct. 24, 2023). The directives, developed with input from the industry and government agencies including the Federal Railroad Administration and the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, […]
DENVER — The Colorado Department of Transportation has announced a $5 million study to consider reviving Denver-Steamboat Springs-Craig passenger rail service, as well as coordinated and connecting bus service. Passenger service on the 191-mile Denver-Craig route ended in April 1968 with discontinuance of the Denver & Rio Grande Western’s Yampa Valley Mail, which became the […]
PITTSBURGH — Wabtec will provide brakes and couplers for New York City Transit’s second order of R211 subway cars to be built by Kawasaki Rail Car, Wabtec has announced. The 640-car order, placed last year, fulfills an option from an original 535-car order now being delivered that includes 440 R211A cars, 20 pilot cars with […]
