CHARLOTTE, N.C. — The Charlotte Area Transit System has taken about half its light-rail fleet out of service after because of a wheel issue that led to the rapid development of a flat spot on one car, WCNC-TV reports. The North Carolina Department of Transportation ordered 22 of the older cars to be taken out […]
The near-scale single-dome tank cars were cataloged in 1946 and ’47. The No. 2855 Sunoco tankers offered no animation or action, except what kids might imagine. Then the great-looking and highly realistic models might be part of a fleet of oil cars hard at work in refineries located along the East Coast. The variations of […]
WASHINGTON — National Transportation Safety Board chair Jennifer Homendy blasted the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority for its “poor safety culture” in a press briefing today (Thursday, Jan. 4) on the final report into the Oct. 12, 2021, derailment of a DC Metrorail train in Arlington, Va., saying the agency’s issues with WMATA include some […]
Tangent Scale Models kicked off 2024 with a splash by releasing a new HO scale four-bay hopper. The model, based on an Illinois Central (IC) Centralia Shops 3,834-cubic-foot capacity prototype, features injection-molded plastic construction, wire grab irons and uncoupling levers, and road-specific details. Paint schemes Paint schemes on the initial release of the Centralia Shops […]
Model Railroader’s favorite products of 2023: As 2023 draws to a close, and we look forward to a new year, Model Railroader‘s Cody Grivno and Bryson Sleppy take a look back at some of their favorite model railroad products of 2023. Tangent Scale Models HO scale Burlington Northern International Car Co. wide-vision cabooses For […]
WASHINGTON — Amtrak touted across-the-board gains compared with 2022 in each of its three business units in its recap of results for fiscal 2023. But less equipment available for long-distance trains triggered near constant sellouts on portions of those routes throughout the year. As a result, ridership and revenue growth for the inter-regional segment was […]
When I take my granddaughter to the local neighborhood park, I usually envision seeing a large-scale garden railway running loops through the park. So, one day I contacted one of the people in charge and shared my vision of the garden-railway. In time, someone contacted me to let me know that it would be a […]
By now, Amtrak’s second-generation Acela trainsets were supposed to be in their second year of operation. Instead, they have no definite date to enter service, and are taking a growing toll on the passenger operator’s bottom line. A company web page simply says the trains are scheduled to debut “in 2024.” A Wall Street Journal […]
LONDON — The operator of the seasonal steam excursion known as the “Harry Potter train” has lost a court bid to block actions by British regulators, leaving in doubt the future of its operation of the celebrated train in the Scottish Highlands. West Coast Railways operates the train officially known as The Jacobite, which appears […]
Amtrak Superliner cars are derived from the old Santa Fe El Capitan Hi-Level car fleet. The cars, which operate on all Western long-distance plus a few others in the East, had a long gestation period. On July 3, 1973, Roger Lewis, Amtrak’s first president, sent a request for proposals to 13 companies — six engineering […]
BALTIMORE — Service on the Baltimore Light RailLink line will resume Saturday, just over two weeks after it was suspended to allow for emergency rolling-stock repairs, the Maryland Transit Administration announced today (Friday, Dec. 22). Mechanics have finished work on 18 cars, WBAL-TV reports, with at least 14 available for service on Saturday. The 30-mile, […]
WASHINGTON — Amtrak has issued a formal Request for Proposals for replacement of its bilevel long-distance railcar fleet, outlining requirements for what it says will be a multi-billion-dollar order for equipment projected to enter service in the early 2030s. The document, which outlines for manufacturers requirements for coach seating, sleeping cars, food service, and accessibility, […]
