[…]
Venice Simplon Orient Express journey: two Australian’s adventure
Join Jess and Stephen (or Stephen and Jess?!) for a full-review experience of the luxury Venice Simplon Orient Express journey by train from Venice, Italy, to London, U.K. The Australian family maintains a travel blog, Flying The Nest, where they detail their globe-trotting experiences, mostly out of a converted van. They’ve traveled throughout North America, […]
Carload Considerations: Oil’s sudden rise creates new demand, challenges for frac sand
CHARLESTON, W.Va. — West Texas Intermediate oil has eclipsed $100 a barrel in recent days, a substantial comeback from the record-low, negative-$37.00-per-barrel price during the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in April 2020. Oil’s rally, driven by a recovering economy and exacerbated by the Russian-Ukraine War is pressuring U.S. oil companies to increase shale production. […]
BART to award eight retired cars for reuse
OAKLAND, Calif. — Bay Area Rapid Transit has selected eight finalists to receive and repurpose retired BART railcars for uses ranging from a beer garden to firefighter training. While those selected will not pay for the cars, they will have to pay for transporting and installing them at their new locations, which the transit agency estimates […]
Metro-North sets schedules for service increases
NEW YORK — Commuter railroad Metro-North has released schedules for increased service to begin March 27. The schedule includes the addition of 66 trains on the three East of Hudson lines, bringing frequencies to 89% of pre-pandemic levels and restoring express service at several stations. The schedules will see Hudson Line weekday service increase from 142 […]
Michigan court reinstates case of youth struck by train
WYANDOTTE, Mich. — The Michigan Court of Appeals has reinstated a lawsuit against the Grand Trunk Western Railroad involving a teen who was struck by a train in 2012. The Associated Press reports Jacob Marion, who was 14 at the time, was stuck by a train and severely injured while walking down the tracks while […]
President of Washington heritage rail operation resigns
CHEHALIS, Wash. — The president of the Chehalis-Central Railroad and Museum has resigned as the railroad deals with its shutdown because of a lack of insurance, saying in an email that the “organization is doomed to fail and I will not be a part of that failure.” The Centralia Chronicle reports that James Folk, who […]
AAR’s research and testing subsidiary renamed ‘MvX Rail’
PUEBLO, Colo. — The Association of American Railroads is rebranding its research and technology subsidiary as “MvX Rail,” the AAR announced today. The subsidiary had previously been known as Transportation Technology Center Inc., or TTCI — a name that became problematic and a source of some confusion when the Federal Railroad Administration granted a lease […]
Union has yet to issue strike notice against CP in Canada (updated and corrected)
CALGARY — While Canadian Pacific workers in Canada have authorized a strike that could have begun as soon as tonight, their union has yet to provide the 72-hour notice necessary before walking out. Canadian agriculture and industry remain concerned about the potential impact of a walkout, and the railroad says on its website that a […]
Age of Steam Roundhouse, Trains Magazine offer exclusive photo event May 20
SUGARCREEK, Ohio — Age of Steam Roundhouse and Trains Magazine will sponsor an exclusive day of photography May 20 at the venue that houses the late Jerry Joe Jacobson’s extensive steam locomotive collection. The day will begin with the operation of Moorhead & North Fork 0-6-0 No. 12 and then move inside, where locomotives ranging […]
Fort Wayne Railroad Historical Society saves equipment from former museum sites
FORT WAYNE, Ind. — Three locomotives and four other pieces of rolling stock have been saved for preservation by the Fort Wayne Railroad Historical Society, thanks to a generous donation and the assistance of two Indiana communities. The equipment had been left behind and was in deteriorating condition at former locations of the Indiana Transportation […]
Illinois grain facility acquires rare SD18M
BLOOMINGTON, Ill. — Grain terminal operator AgRail LLC is moving to replace its current locomotive with a rare six-axle EMD unit. Western Rail Inc. SD18M No. 1229 has arrived on the property of Bloomington-based AgRail to replace GP7 No. 35, a former Guilford/Springfield Terminal unit. The six-axle, low-nose unit began its life with Minnesota’s Reserve […]
