Railroad bus service to New York City

People in street outside two-story building with Coca-Cola sign on roof

  There are standard-gauge tracks close by, but they can’t be seen here, since they’re underground in this neighborhood. We’re at Columbus Circle in New York’s borough of Manhattan, on Thanksgiving Day in 1951, Nov. 22. How can that be deduced? Well, that’s the famous Macy’s parade that’s passing down the street, complete with a […]

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Derailed ethanol tank cars strike building in Worcester, Mass.

Logo of Genesee & Wyoming railroad Providence & Worcester

WORCESTER, Mass. — Two tank cars of ethanol struck a building after derailing Sunday, but neither car was breached and the structure did not appear to be damaged, according to a fire department official. The Worcester Telegram & Gazette reports a total of six cars of a Providence & Worcester train derailed, according to a […]

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Rochester & Genesee Valley museum adds Alco S1 to collection

Orange end-cab switcher with black stripe

RUSH, N.Y. — An Alco S1 switcher from the Rochester-area short line Bath & Hammondsport Railroad will be joining the collection of the Rochester & Genesee Valley Railroad Museum. The combined efforts of the museum, the Steuben County Industrial Development Agency, and the Livonia, Avon & Lakeville Railroad has allowed the museum to purchase the […]

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MBTA Green Line train was speeding, passed red signal before February collision: NTSB

Photos of two damaged green and white light rail vehicles

WASHINGTON — A Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority Green Line train was speeding and passed a red signal before colliding with a parked train in a Feb. 9 incident, according to the National Transportation Safety Board preliminary investigation report released today (March 6, 2025). Two passengers and four crew members suffered non-life-threatening injuries in the collision […]

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Brian and Riley Inch’s O gauge layout track plan

A toy train layout track plan

Name: Brian and Riley Inch’s O gauge layoutDimensions: 10 x 16 feetTrack: GarGraves (diameters range from 36 to 72 inches)Switches: Ross Custom Switches with Tortoise machinesMotive power: Lionel, MTHRolling stock: Atlas O, Lionel, MTH, WeaverControls: Lionel type-ZW transformer with Lionel Legacy and MTH Digital Command SystemAccessories: Gilbert American Flyer, K-Line, Lionel, Z-Stuff for TrainsStructures: Crescent […]

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News photo: A (temporary) farewell to Hudson trips

Heritage passenger cars on back of Amtrak train

NEW YORK — The United Railroad Historical Society’s popular Hudson River Rail Excursions are done — for the time being. The last of the day trips between New York Penn Station and Albany-Rensselaer, N.Y., billed as “Farewell (For Now),” ran Sunday, March 2 [see “East River tunnel work to sideline …,” Trains News Wire, Jan. […]

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MBTA faces scrutiny over contracts with commuter operator Keolis

BOSTON — Massachusetts’ inspector general has called for the MBTA to improve fare collection on its commuter trains, saying it does not happen “dependably or consistently,” while the state’s auditor has issued a report critical of the transit agency’s administration of its contract with commuter operator Keolis. The scrutiny comes as the MBTA approaches the […]

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NJ Transit accelerates effort to fix cloudy railcar windows

Bilevel passenger cars at station platform

NEWARK, N.J. — NJ Transit will speed up efforts to replace damaged windows on its multilevel railcars, cutting the time to complete to three years instead of the previously projected six to eight years. The plan to replace the windows in one third of the fleet over the next three years was announced Wednesday, March […]

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NTSB releases preliminary report on SEPTA train fire

Satellite view of route followed by SEPTA train on day of Feb. 6, 2025, fire

WASHINGTON — The Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority train that caught fire on Feb. 6, 2025, had been inspected earlier in the day because of sluggish performance, according to the National Transportation Safety Board’s preliminary report on the incident released today (March 5, 2025), About 325 passengers and four crew members were safely evacuated from the […]

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Lehigh Gorge Scenic sets Bike Train schedule

People with bicycles at train station

PORT CLINTON, Pa. — The Lehigh Gorge Scenic Railway, the Reading & Northern’s tourist rail operation based in Jim Thorpe, Pa., will once again offer its Bike Trains on selected weekends in May through September. The trains, part of the railroad’s schedule for more than a decade, carry passenger and their bicycles from Jim Thorpe […]

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Schedule released for MBTA’s new South Coast Rail service

Map of rail lines in southeastern Massachusetts

BOSTON — The Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority has released the initial schedule for the South Coast Rail service to New Bedford and Fall River, Mass., set to begin on March 24. The debut of the new operation will feature free weekend travel and free parking through the end of April, the MBTA announced last week. […]

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