Chicago street project changes Union Station access

Map showing traffic changes and access points at Chicago Union Station

CHICAGO — Access to Chicago Union Station will change beginning this evening (Monday, Aug. 7) as the Chicago Department of Transportation begins an 18-month process to rehabilitate four viaducts on Canal Street between Taylor and Madison streets. As a result, no vehicle access to Union Station between West Adams Street and West Jackson Boulevard, and […]

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Amtrak sets hearing, seeks comments on accessibility plans for long-distance equipment

Amtrak wheelchair lift

WASHINGTON — Amtrak is considering the use of semi-permanent coupling in its next generation of long-distance trainsets, and as a result will seek regulatory approval to address accessibility requirements through accommodations throughout those trainsets, rather than in individual cars. That proposal is included in a website the passenger operator has launched as it seeks public […]

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News & Products for the week of August 7th 2023

August 7th: An image of multiple model freight cars in different color scheems

News & Products for the week of August 7th 2023 Model railroad operators and builders can get the latest information about locomotives, freight cars, passenger cars, tools, track, and more by reading Model Railroader’s frequent product updates. The following are the products Model Railroader editors have news on for the week of August 7th 2023. […]

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BNSF earnings decline as quarterly volume falls 11%

Two orange diesel lead train past "Gunter" station sign

OMAHA, Neb. — BNSF Railway’s second-quarter earnings slumped 24% as volume and average revenue per car both declined, the railroad’s corporate parent, Berkshire Hathaway, said on Saturday. BNSF’s operating income fell 24%, to $1.6 billion, as revenue declined 11.6%, to $5.7 billion. The railway’s operating ratio increased five points, to 68.2%. Overall volume was down […]

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CSX conductor trainee killed in Maryland yard accident

CSX logo

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — A CSX Transportation conductor trainee was killed in the Cumberland, Md., yard early this morning, with the accident prompting the railroad to impose a safety stand down for its 350 conductor trainees. “CSX confirms that an employee was fatally injured in the course of working early this morning in Cumberland, Md.,” the […]

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LIRR completes repairs following derailment

Crane lifts damaged commuter EMU car after derailment

NEW YORK — The Long Island Rail Road reported early this morning it had completed all infrastructure repairs following last Thursday’s derailment at Hall Interlocking and expects to operate a regular schedule of trains for today’s morning rush hour. Some LIRR routes are currently reporting scattered delays, but the issues are unrelated to the derailment, […]

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Beech Mountain, likely nearing end of operations, leases SW1500s

Blue and yellow end-cab switcher

ALEXANDER, W.Va. — Beech Mountain Railroad has leased two former CSX SW1500s from LTEX Rail to continue moving coal from Carter-Roag Coal Co.’s Star Bridge processing plant to the railroad’s interchange with the Appalachian & Ohio at Alexander. United Coal Co. subsidiary Carter-Roag has closed its Morgan Camp mine, which fed the Star Bridge preparation […]

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Two electrocuted at ā€˜L’ station

Logo of Chicago Transit Authority

OAK PARK, Ill. — Fire officials in Oak Park report two people were injured, one critically, when they came into contact with the electrified third rail at a Chicago Transit Authority station on Saturday. WGN-TV reports paramedics were called to the Ridgeland Green Line station about 7:24 p.m. after two people, part of a group […]

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At least 30 killed in derailment in Pakistan

Logo of Pakistan Railways

NAWABSHAH, Pakistan — At least 30 people were killed and more than 100 injured when Pakistan Railways’ Hazara Express passenger train derailed Sunday, the BBC reports. The derailment occurred about 170 miles northeast of Karachi, Pakistan’s largest city and the train’s starting point. Al Jazeera reports Minister of Railways Kahwaja Saad Rafique told reporters at […]

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