KANSAS CITY, Mo. — The KC Streetcar is back in operation. Streetcar service resumed this morning (July 21), 17 days after being halted because of track failure on a portion of the Main Street bridge over Interstate 670. The streetcar operator says multiple factors led to the track failure, including thermal expansion and degradation of […]
EAST LANSING, Mich. — Ron Batory, the career railroader whose lengthy resume includes a term as Federal Railroad Administration administrator, is joining Michigan State University’s Center for Railway Research and Education. A press release from MSU’s Broad College of Business says Batory, who has spent 52 years in the rail industry, will provide the CRRE […]
STEUBEN COUNTY, Ind. — Tickets have been released for the Fall Color Trains, scheduled to operate in Northeast Indiana and Southeast Michigan this October. Nickel Plate Road steam locomotive No. 765 of the Fort Wayne Railroad Historical Society will serve as the main motive power for these all-day, round-trip excursions on the Indiana Northeastern Railroad […]
Just when you think recent progress in railroad preservation can’t get any better — I’m thinking here of everything from Big Boy to Reading & Northern 2102 to Silvis Shops to Michigan Central Station — along comes another milestone that, if not quite a blockbuster, is still remarkable. Especially if you’re interested in diesel […]
NORTH JUDSON, Ind. — After two years of restoration work using an all-volunteer labor force, the Hoosier Valley Railroad Museum in North Judson is close to beginning operations with one of its two former Bangor & Aroostook Railroad BL2s. BL2s No. 52 and No. 56 came to the museum in June of 2021 after private […]
PLEASANT LAKE, Ind. — Nickel Plate Road No. 765 was under steam July 13-15 as the centerpiece of the first Indiana Railcamp in Pleasant Lake. Organized by the Fort Wayne Railroad Historical Society under the Indiana Rail Experience banner, this pilot program hosted 20 campers — ranging between ages 13 and 17 — from the […]
FIELD TOWNSHIP, Minn. — Two carloads of liquefied petroleum gas were among those involved in a derailment of nine cars of a Canadian National train in rural northern Minnesota on Monday, July 17, according to a press release from the St. Louis County Sheriff’s Office. As reported by KRFO radio, the derailment occurred about 8:20 […]
CHICAGO — Commuter rail operator Metra has launched a survey on proposed fare changes for 2024 that would reduce the number of fare zones from 10 to four and change some of the fare options available. Metra also announced plans for information tables at its four primary downtown stations to provide information and answer questions […]
KANSAS CITY, Mo. — RideKC, operator of the Kansas City streetcar, reports “significant progress” in repairs to track damage that has shut down the system since July 4, and anticipates providing information on the return of service later this week. A Sunday update reported that weekend work on the Main Street bridge across Interstate 670 […]
Travelers board Chicago & North Western train 153, the Flambeau 400 from Michigan’s Upper Peninsula to Chicago, at Milwaukee on June 2, 1951. Wallace W. Abbey photo […]
In 1981, I was a locomotive engineer for the Chicago & North Western Railway based out of Council Bluffs, Iowa, and operating an interdivisional run to Sioux City, Iowa. I made this run many times, but one trip taught me a lesson about troubleshooting a diesel locomotive — and about railroading. Most of the trains […]
On June 25th, 2023, Trains Magazine sponsored their first photo special of the year at the Silver Creek and Stephenson Railroad in Freeport, Illinois. The event was timed to coincide with the Jim Wrinn Memorial Shay-It-Forward event at the Illinois Railway Museum. Let’s take a look at the weekend! […]
