A unique tender for a Lionel No. 1587 Girl’s Train

pink tender on an orange and blue box

A unique tender for a Lionel No. 1587 Girl’s Train I couldn’t have imagined the excitement that year would bring to me as a collector and a new father. Chasing after postwar Lionel trains for about four years, I had amassed a decent collection. [Anthony’s superb collection was profiled in the special Kalmbach publication, All-Star […]

Read More…

Nothing beats a Lionel No. 2343 Santa Fe F3 diesel

vintage catalog art of model train

My greatest find occurred in 1957, when I was 13 years old. Before I tell you about it, let me share some memories of my growing up in northeast Philadelphia. Second-hand trains My family wasn’t wealthy, so my trains were mostly what I scrounged up using my allowance. One example was my Lionel GG1 (a […]

Read More…

Transportation Trades Department issues statement in recognition of Rail Safety Week

TDD logo

WASHINGTON — President and Secretary-Treasurer of the Transportation Trades Department, AFL-CIO (TTD), Greg Regan and Shari Semelsberger, issued a statement to recognize Rail Safety Week 2023. Spearheaded by Operation Lifesaver, Inc., and collaborated with many organizations and institutions throughout North America, the Sept. 18-24 campaign raises the awareness to the public surrounding railroad safety [See […]

Read More…

Caltrain completes installation of poles for electrification project

Caltrain logo

SAN FRANCISCO – Caltrain has completed the installation of all the poles necessary to support its overhead catenary between San Francisco and San Jose. It also upgraded the signal system, and successfully tested electric trains at maximum track speed of 79 mph. The commuter railroad said the three major milestones bring the Caltrain Electrification Project closer […]

Read More…

MBTA restores commuter service after washout

Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority logo

BOSTON, Mass. — MBTA and Keolis Commuter Services have completed repairs to tracks in Leominster and have restored commuter rail service to the city. Tracks were damaged when severe flash flooding Sept. 11 overwhelmed the city’s drainage system and washed away the ground under both tracks near Leominster Station. Alternative bus service has been in […]

Read More…

The tale of the whale in N scale

MRRNS0119_02

I thought about calling this column “What on earth were they thinking,” but that wouldn’t have made a good title because someone looking at the table of contents would have had no idea what the article was about. The “they” in my unused title was Atlas, which had the N scale whale-belly tank car shown […]

Read More…

Thefts plague Oregon Coast Scenic Railroad

logo

GARIBALDI, Ore. — The Oregon Coast Scenic Railroad has been plagued by thefts of ties and tampering this month. Vandals broke into a historic diesel and fired off a fire extinguisher inside while also opening and tampering with the electrical cabinets. The railroad also reported a large number of ties being stolen from work sites […]

Read More…

Personal rail safety a year-long concern

See tracks? Think train logo. Personal rail safety a year-long concern.

WASHINGTON — In 1972 the annual average number of U.S. grade crossing collisions had risen to 12,000. Concerned about this tragic situation, the Idaho governor’s office, Idaho Peace Officers, and the Union Pacific Railroad launched a 6-week public awareness educational campaign called Operation Lifesaver to promote highway-railroad grade crossing safety. Idaho’s crossing-related fatalities decreased that […]

Read More…