Class I railroads Class I railroads: If you’re in your car watching a long 100-car freight train roll over a grade crossing, chances are good that the train belongs to one of the Class I systems. The Class Is operate 70% of the total track miles in the U.S., employ 73% of the labor force, […]
SNOQUALMIE, Wash. — The Northwest Railway Museum in Snoqualmie has acquired a Series VI Talgo Bistro car for preservation, the museum has announced. The museum has announced the car — the last surviving Series VI car — is due to arrive today from a scrap yard in Indianapolis. While the car was donated, with its […]
MONTREAL — With political support lining up in Quebec behind high speed rail service between that province and Ontario, Canada’s Transport Minister — who has been working to advance a more conventional-speed “High Frequency Rail” project — has said he is open to a hybrid approach along the corridor. Global News reports Transport Minister Omar […]
The insolvency administrators trying to sell Vivarail, the British passenger train re-manufacturing company previously backed by Pittsburgh-based Railroad Development Corp., have succeeded in selling the company’s innovative fast battery-charging system. That system, called FastCharge, which will be tested in passenger service in London later this year. Vivarail was founded in 2013 by British rail industry […]
FRONTENAC, Quebec — The results of a Sunday referendum showing strong opposition to the proposed Lac-Mégantic bypass mean the municipality of Frontenac will do everything it can to fight the rail-line relocation, Frontenac’s mayor said Monday. Mayor Gaby Gendron told the Canadian Press “it’s absolutely certain the municipal council will oppose the project by all […]
WASHINGTON — The U.S. Department of Transportation will propose a number of new rail safety initiatives on Tuesday in the wake of this month’s fiery derailment of a Norfolk Southern train that was carrying hazardous materials in East Palestine, Ohio. Trains News Wire has learned that Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg on Feb. 21 will call […]
CHICAGO — Metra’s plan to convert at least three of its oldest F40PH-3 diesel locomotives to battery power is on hold after the commuter operator was “not able to secure an agreement” on a contract, Metra CEO/Executive Director Jim Derwinski said Friday. Derwinski, responding to a question during a joint presentation with South Shore President/General […]
With the mission of delivering historical, educational and entertaining experiences on an excursion railroad, the Northern Central Railway operates over 10 miles of the previous incarnation that Abraham Lincoln rode on the way to deliver his Gettysburg Address, and also the route of his funeral train two years later. This history is brought to life by […]
The Oil Creek and Titusville Railroad follows Oil Creek through the nation’s first oil patch, where oil was discovered by Edwin L. Drake in 1859. The train passes a number of ghost towns — villages that sprang up during the oil boom and quickly faded after the rush. Choices On the Oil Creek and Titusville […]
The Black River and Western Railroad, which also hauls freight, hosts 90-minute passenger excursions (operated by the nonprofit Black River Railroad Historical Trust) over a short segment of the former Pennsylvania Railroad’s Flemington Branch between Flemington and Ringoes, and the shorter Browne Station local from Ringoes over 2.5 miles of recently reopened track. Choices In […]
In the 20th century, short lines and branches brought forth coal for use nationwide, and one of the primary locations was Stearns, home of the Kentucky & Tennessee short line. The coal is gone now, but the K&T has been reborn as the Big South Fork Scenic Railway. Choices The Big South Fork Scenic Railway […]
OMAHA, Neb. — Union Pacific has become the second Class I railroad to reach an agreement offering paid sick days to some employees, the railroad has announced. “Union Pacific remains committed to addressing our employees’ concerns and signed a deal with the National Conference of Firemen and Oilers (NCFO) and Brotherhood of Railway Carmen (BRC),” […]
