ALEXANDRIA, Va. — Virginia Railway Express will begin a search for a new chief operating officer after announcing today that the VRE Operations Board and current CEO Doug Allen “have agreed to part ways.” Allen became VRE’s CEO in September 2012 after stints at Dallas Area Rapid Transit and Capital Metro in Austin, Texas. “Doug […]
A Coaster commuter train negotiates Miramar Hill on its way north from San Diego to Oceanside. Coaster and Amtrak service between Oceanside and San Diego will be shut down this weekend for track work. TRAINS: David Lassen SAN DIEGO — Amtrak Pacific Surfliner and Coaster commuter train service will not operate this weekend and next […]
HARTFORD, Conn. — Connecticut Gov. Ned Lamont wants to reduce Metro-North travel times to and from New York by up to 15 minutes, part of a $5 billion plan to upgrade commuter rail service in the state, the Hartford Courant reports. The commuter-rail plan is part of a larger transportation package, yet to be unveiled, […]
CHICAGO — Metra is testing a new security screening system at several downtown Chicago stations this week, the Chicago Tribune reports. The heat scanner, on loan from the Transportation Security Adminstration, is being used today (Thursday, Oct. 17) at the Ogilvie Transportation Center after tests Tuesday and Wednesday at two Metra Electric stations, Millennium and […]
NJ Transit ALP-45DP 4508 leads an inbound Montclair-Boonton Line train at Montclair State University. Positive train control testing on this line and the Morris and Essex Line will be delayed because of PTC software issues. Ralph Spielman NEWARK, N.J. — NJ Transit’s challenges in implementing positive train controls have hit another snag, pushing back planned […]
SEATTLE — Sound Transit’s two light-rail systems are getting new names. Presently, the Seattle regional transit agency operates a 22-mile north-south line from the University of Washington through downtown to Angle Lake, south of Seattle-Tacoma International Airport. It also operates a 1.6-mile light-rail line in Tacoma, from Freighthouse Square to downtown. But Sound Transit is […]
Four Northeast Corridor stations used by Amtrak and NJ Transit, including Princeton Junction, N.J., will receive makeovers in a program announced Tuesday. Here, a Princeton “Dinky” awaits departure to the Princeton University campus from Princeton Junction in August 2019. TRAINS: David Lassen NEW BRUNSWICK, N.J. — Four stations used by NJ Transit and Amtrak on the […]
A Lehigh Gorge Scenic Railway train prepares to leave the former Central Railroad of New Jersey station in downtown Jim Thorpe, Pa., on Oct. 24, 2018. The Lehigh Gorge Scenic has announced it will shut down in November. Scott A. Hartley PORT CLINTON, Pa. — The Lehigh Gorge Scenic Railway announced it would cease operations […]
Video by Chris Guss Metra heritage unit No. 211 sits at the platform in Aurora on Tuesday after arriving from downtown Chicago. Chris Guss CHICAGO — Metra’s newest heritage locomotive, F40PHM-2 No. 211, made its debut Tuesday on BNSF’s Chicago Subdivison when it led a PTC test train from downtown Chicago to Aurora, Ill.. The […]
A Virgin Trains/Brightline train departs MiamiCentral station in January 2019. Miami-Dade County will fund the construction of a new Aventura station about 15 miles north of the downtown station. TRAIN: David Lassen MIAMI — Miami-Dade County commissioners have approved spending $76 million to build a Virgin Trains USA station at the Aventura Mall, a move […]
NJ Transit will restore midday one-seat Raritan Valley Line service to New York’s Penn Station on Nov. 4, meaning train No. 5432, shown here at Westfield, N.J., will no longer terminate at Newark. Ralph Spielman WESTFIELD, NJ — After a hiatus of more than a year, off-peak direct service to New York City on NJ […]
Starting in October 2019, Classic Trains editors will celebrate the heritage, history, and lore of famed (and infamous) railroads. We start this series with the beloved Boston & Maine. Please enjoy a collection of images located in the David P. Morgan Library archives at Kalmbach Media that include B&M’s iconic locomotives and scarce builder’s photos. […]
