Arson may have destroyed circus railcars

Remains of railcars severely damaged by fire

RALEIGH, N.C. — The fire that destroyed four former Ringling Bros. & Barnum and Bailey circus railcars in March may have been arson, a law enforcement officer told a state legislative committee on Thursday. The Raleigh News and Observer reports Chief Deputy Brandon Medina of the Nash County Sheriff’s Office told the Joint Legislative Transportation […]

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Norfolk Southern donates Norfolk & Western archives to Virginia museum

Logo of Norfolk & Western Railway

RICHMOND, Va. — Norfolk Southern has donated its complete collection of documents and archives from predecessor Norfolk & Western Railway to the Virginia Museum of History & Culture, NS announced on Wednesday. Along with the collection, which dates to the 1840s, the company will donate $750,000 in support digitization, cataloging and preservation of the materials. […]

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Lawsuit targets CSX for deadly 2021 flood in Tennessee

CSX logo

WAVERLY, Tenn. — Seventeen people, relatives of those killed in an Aug. 21, 2021, flood in Waverly are suing CSX Transportation for up to $450 million, saying debris that backed up behind a railroad culvert led to the deadly flooding. The Associated Press reports the suit was filed Tuesday in Humphreys County Circuit Court. A […]

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North Carolina seeks to sell remaining circus railcars

Logo of Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey circus.

RALEIGH, N.C. — The North Carolina Department of Transportation will again attempt to sell a group of former Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus railcars, about a month after four of the cars were destroyed in a fire. The Statesville Independent Tribune reports the state has steeply discounted its asking price for five remaining […]

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Saluda Grade future: Possibilities for Southern’s mighty incline

Steam locomotive with thick smoke plume charging upgrade.

Saluda Grade future possibilities are murky. Nearly 22 years have passed since freight trains descended Southern Railway’s Saluda Mountain. Kudzu vines conceal the right-of-way in many places and heavy Appalachian rains have washed away sections of track. Although shrubs and small trees are reclaiming North America’s steepest main line in rural western North Carolina, Norfolk […]

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STB denies mediation request in Amtrak Gulf Coast case

Surface Transportation Board logo

WASHINGTON — The Surface Transportation Board has turned down a request to order mediation in the Amtrak Gulf Coast case. CSX Transportation, Norfolk Southern, and the Alabama State Port Authority/Terminal Railway Alabama State Docks had requested mediation, which Amtrak had opposed. In the decision released today (Friday, April 1), the board says it “unfortunate” that […]

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“Check out the new Diesel!”

Seaboard Airline Railroad

People line up to tour the cab of brand-new Seaboard Air Line E4 passenger diesel No. 3001 in 1938. SAL’s 14 A units and 5 B units were the only Electro-Motive units to carry the E4 model designation. Louis A. Marre coll. […]

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