CPKC sets new return schedule for No. 2816, Steam Tour train

steam train with sun coming down on it

CALGARY, Alberta — CPKC has released a revised schedule for the return trip of Canadian Pacific 4-6-4 No. 2816 and the Final Spike Steam Tour, including a new display date in Winnipeg, Manitoba. The revised schedule accommodates the planned excursion with the locomotive on June 29 between Silvis and Bureau Junction, Ill., on the Iowa […]

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News photos: First CPKC locomotives go to work

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

After making its public debut on May 18 at a Final Spike Steam Tour event in Kansas City, CPKC ES44AC No. 9375 — the first locomotive to wear the railroad’s new paint scheme — is now in revenue service. Paired with sister ES44AC KCS No. 4805, also repainted into the new scheme, the locomotive was […]

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Rondout action

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Milwaukee train No. 6, the Morning Hiawatha, passes Tower A20 near Northbrook, Ill., on July 29, 1969. Ahead lies Chicago Union Station. Jim Scribbins photo […]

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Valpo Dummy commuter train

An amtrak train passes in front of industrial structures

Indiana’s Valpo Dummy commuter train could not garner the public support and funding needed to survive into the modern era. In the 1890s, the Pennsylvania Railroad began operating commuter trains between Chicago and Valparaiso, Ind. Over the next century the service remained largely frozen in time, with operations changing relatively little as the trains passed […]

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Revenue run

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A seven-car Illinois Central Gulf piggyback train heads north through Springfield, Ill., for Chicago in September 1975. At Springfield the ICG’s one-time Gulf, Mobile & Ohio route split for Kansas City to the west and St. Louis and points south. Walter A. Peters photo […]

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Metra opens new station on UP North Line

Illustration of new commuter station

CHICAGO — Metra has opened a new $27 million station on Union Pacific’s North Line. The Peterson/Ridge station opened May 20. It includes two six-car platforms; heated concrete stairs and ADA-compliant ramps; a glass and masonry warming house with side canopies and metal roof; two shelters with on-demand heating; an access drive with a cul-de-sac […]

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Wisconsin governor proposes passenger trains to NFL Draft

Wisconsin Governor Tony Evers official portrait

GREEN BAY, Wis. — Wisconsin Governor Tony Evers has proposed running special Amtrak trains to Green Bay during next year’s NFL Draft. In the last few years, the draft announcements have become big business, drawing thousands of people to host cities. The 90th version of the NFL Draft will be held in Green Bay, home […]

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Ohio Rail Development Commission awards grants to three railroads

Logo of Ohio Rail Development Commission

COLUMBUS, Ohio — The Ohio Rail Development Commission has announced grants totaling more than $1.65 million for infrastructure projects for the Wheeling & Lake Erie Railway, East Ohio Valley Railway, and Camp Chase Railway. These grants join the previously announced grant of more than $1.23 million for R.J. Corman’s Western Ohio Lines [see “Two R.J. […]

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Pair of Berkshires build on 2024’s must-see big steam

People gather around a steam locomotive during an event

FORT WAYNE, Ind., and OWOSSO, Mich. — Canadian Pacific 4-6-4 No. 2816 has been a recent showstopper during its epic CPKC Final Spike Steam Tour from Canada to the U.S. and Mexico. But with summer closing in, expect more locomotives to take center stage as part of 2024’s must-see big steam, including a pair of […]

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Amtrak Borealis makes debut

Passenger train running along river with city in distance

ST. PAUL, Minn. — It was 43 years in the making, but the Chicago-Twin Cities corridor finally has a second Amtrak passenger train. In ceremonies in Chicago, St. Paul and intermediate points today, Amtrak and state, local, and federal official marked the first run of the Borealis, new daily service between Chicago Union Station and […]

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