From the Cab: A stray New Haven RR FL9 didn’t add up

Seaboard System GP16 in Acca Yard

A stray New Haven RR FL9 didn’t add up when the commuter locomotive encountered a Seaboard System equipment detector. When I entered engine service on the Seaboard Coast Line in 1979, the railroad was replacing many of its first generation locomotives, mostly aging Alcos and Electro-Motive Division road switchers. These locomotives had been ideally suited […]

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Atlanta’s MARTA unveils first new trainset

Rapid-transit train at station with large crowd on platform

ATLANTA — The Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority on Thursday offered the first public look at its new Stadler-built MARTA trainsets, part of a $646 million order to replace the agency’s entire rail fleet. The first CQ400 trainset is one of 56 trainsets ordered in November 2019. The first of the 224 cars were delivered […]

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Mexican government to begin work on two passenger rail lines

Map showing planned passenger rail projects in Mexico

MEXICO CITY — Construction of two passenger rail lines — Mexico City-Querétaro and Mexico City-Pachuca — will begin in April, the Mexican government’s Ministry of Infrastructure, Communications, and Transportation (SICT) announced this week. The announcement confirmed a portion of plans announced in November by President Claudia Sheinbaum, who had previously said three routes would see […]

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Electrical workers, rail carriers announce tentative agreement

Logo of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, which includes lighting bolts held by a fist

The International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers has reached a tentative five-year agreement with the National Carriers Conference Committee, the bargaining group for major railroads, the two sides have announced. The union said terms are comparable to those in separate deals it has ratified with BNSF Railway and CSX Transportation, including a wage increase compounded to […]

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Vermont Rail System moves to restore portion of Maine Central line

Orange locomotives with green stripes lead frieght train past small station

BURLINGTON, Vt. — Trains could return to a long-dormant section of the former Maine Central Mountain Subdivision in New Hampshire and Vermont, according to the president of Vermont Rail System. The company operates 56-mile short line New Hampshire Central in the northwest corner of the Granite State. “There are transload opportunities on the route,” says […]

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New South Shore route to South Bend airport advances

Train at station platform

CHESTERTON, Ind. — The Northern Indiana Commuter Transportation District board has agreed to commit $6 million in capital funding for the new South Shore Line route to the South Bend, Ind., airport. Approval came at a board meeting on Monday, Jan. 27, WBAA radio reports. The long-discussed project was also the subject of an open-house […]

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