Railfan Road: The Lone Star State

An orange freight locomotive leads a coal train through a rolling rural landscape

Amarillo to Fort Worth BNSF Railway’s route from Amarillo to Fort Worth has been twice reinvented — a secondary route rebuilt into a unit coal train conveyor, then repurposed to a primary California-Texas intermodal route.  Broad vistas, interesting topography and about 20 trains per day easily viewable from a closely paralleling U.S. highway makes the […]

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BNSF, electrical workers announce tentative contract agreement

BNSF Railway logo

FORT WORTH, Texas — BNSF Railway and the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers have reached a tentative agreement on a five-year contract, while the National Conference of Firemen and Oilers has ratified its agreement with the railroad. The BNSF-IBEW agreement is the ninth reached by the railroad in the last two months ahead of the […]

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Projects in Illinois, Virginia receive CRISI grants

Logo for Federal Railroad Administration

WASHINGTON — Two more awards have been announced under the Federal Railroad Administration’s Consolidated Rail Infrastructure and Safety Improvements, or CRISI, grant program. The first of what Washington state’s two senators said will be 122 grants totaling $2.477 billion were announced late last week [see “Announcements of 2024 CRISI grants begin,” Trains News Wire, Friday, […]

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FRA proposes automated track inspection regulations

WASHINGTON — The Federal Railroad Administration this week proposed its first regulations on automated track inspection — but has left untouched the regulations that cover traditional visual track inspections. The rule itself would have little impact on Class I and II railroads: They’re already meeting or exceeding the proposed inspection frequency with their various track […]

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Canadian union calls for CN to prioritize passenger operations

Passenger train on multi-track main line adjacent to highway

OTTAWA, Ontario — Unifor, Canadian’s largest private-sector union, is calling on Canadian National Railways to prioritize passenger operations — and for more government oversight of the relationship between freight and passenger service — in the wake of restrictions CN has placed on VIA Rail Canada corridor trains in Ontario and Quebec. “This is about CN […]

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TOFCEE SERVICE

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Trailer Train began acquiring 85-foot flatcars in 1958. This class F85A car, built by American Car & Foundry in 1958, carriers two Baltimore & Ohio 35-foot trailers shortly after delivery. Classic Trains collection […]

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KR Models HO skeleton log car

Color photo showing HO model with log load.

Price: $60 (without logs), $75 (with logs) Manufacturer KR Models Ltd. No. 100 — 17865 106A Ave. Edmonton, Alberta, Canada T5S 1V8 krmodels.net Era: Early 1900s to 1950s Comments: Loaded and empty skeleton log cars are now available in HO scale from KR Models Ltd. The ready-to-run model features injection-molded plastic construction, metal wheelsets, and […]

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Union Pacific reports higher volume, revenue, and profits

Yellow locomotives leading train of double-stacked containers over bridge

OMAHA, Neb. — Union Pacific’s third-quarter financial results – with volume, revenue, and profits all on the upswing — are proof that the railroad’s strategy is working, CEO Jim Vena says. UP this morning (Oct. 24) reported that operating income increased 11%, to $2.46 billion, as revenue grew 3%, to $6 billion. Earnings per share […]

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Bridge collapses on flood-damaged Norfolk Southern line

Bridge over river, bent in middle of span

NEWPORT, Tenn. — A trestle on Norfolk Southern’s storm-closed AS Line in Tennessee collapsed Wednesday, leading to a series of road closures, Newport police reported. Three roads are closed until further notice as a result of the collapse of the bridge over the Pigeon River, the police said in a Facebook post. The NS line […]

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CPKC earnings grow despite Canadian work stoppage

Freshly painted red and black diesels with gold trim and white letters

CALGARY, Alberta — Canadian Pacific Kansas City’s third-quarter profits and revenue increased despite the impact of the four-day work stoppage in Canada, the railway reported on Wednesday. Quarterly operating income rose 3%, to $870 million, as revenue increased 6%, to $2.56 billion. Earnings per share increased 7%, to 65 cents. CPKC’s operating ratio increased 1.2 […]

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Weekly U.S. rail volume shows slight gain

Weekly table showing U.S. carload rail traffic by commodity type, plus overall intermodal volume

WASHINGTON — U.S. weekly rail traffic showed a modest gain for the week ending Oct. 19, 2024. According to statistics from the Association of American Railroads, volume was 510,730 carloads and intermodal units, a 1.1% increase over the same week in 2023. That includes 223,278 carloads, down 4.6% from a year ago, and 287,452 containers […]

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