Newest subway cars debut on NYC Transit’s B line

Subway train on curve in open-air segment

NEW YORK — New York City Transit rolled out its latest generation of subway equipment, the R211 car, on the B Line on Monday (July 21, 2025), marking the fourth route to receive the new railcars and meaning the equipment is now operating in all five boroughs. “I’m thrilled that B train riders from the […]

Read More…

Report: Goldman Sachs advising BNSF on potential merger (updated)

News reports say that BNSF Railway has hired Goldman Sachs to advise it about a potential rail merger. Semafor, an online publication, reported on Monday evening that BNSF has engaged Goldman Sachs in the wake of Union Pacific working with Morgan Stanley regarding potential mergers. Both reports cited people familiar with the matter. The railroads […]

Read More…

CN names Drysdale as interim chief commercial officer

Woman standing in front of window with office building in background

MONTREAL — Janet Drysdale will become Canadian National Railway’s chief commercial officer on an interim basis, the company announced today (July 21, 2025). The appointment is effective immediately. Drysdale, who has been at CN for nearly 30 years, fills the position vacated by the departure of Remi G. Lalonde. She spent her first decade with […]

Read More…

Broadway Limited HO UP Big Boy

Color photo showing smokebox front and headlight on HO scale steam locomotive. "Big Boy" written on front of smokebox; number boxes display "X4014"

Broadway Limited HO UP Big Boy Scale: HO (1:87.1) Price: Stealth (no sound), $749.99; with dual-mode Paragon4 sound decoder, $849.99 Era: 1941 to present (varies based on paint scheme) Manufacturer: Broadway Limited Imports, 9 East Tower Circle, Ormond Beach, FL 32174; 386-673-8900; broadway-limited.com Broadway Limited HO UP Big Boy features: Back-electromotive-force decoder Built-in capacitor pack […]

Read More…

Wabtec marks 10 years of Tier 4 locomotive success

PITTSBURGH — Wabtec is marking the 10th anniversary of the delivery of its first batch of Evolution Series Tier 4 locomotives, which have gone on to become far and away the dominant new road power on Class I railroads. BNSF Railway was the first to receive the AC-traction locomotives that are designed to comply with […]

Read More…

Lincoln Service, Floridian see extended cancellations

Regional passenger train departs station in evening

CHICAGO — On short notice, Amtrak has cancelled one Chicago-St. Louis Lincoln Service round trip for more than a week as of Thursday, July 17, and implemented a complicated Floridian cancellation scenario that began Friday, July 18, and runs through Aug. 3. Other regional services and long-distance trains continue to suffer hours-long delays, cancellations en […]

Read More…

Steam titan Ross Rowland dies at 85

Man in suit and hat with steam locomotive in background

SACKETS HARBOR N.Y. — As he approached his final days in recent weeks, Ross E. Rowland could look back secure in the knowledge that U.S. steam — indeed even the entire rail preservation scene— owes him a substantial debt. From his Golden Spike exhibition train of 1969 to the American Freedom Train of 1975-76 to […]

Read More…

U.S. DOT rescinds $327 million in funding for Boston road/rail project

Map of road and rail project in Boston's Allston neighborhood

BOSTON — The Trump administration has rescinded a $327 million grant awarded in 2023 or the Allston Multimodal Project, which calls for realignment of Interstate 90 and a new Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority commuter rail station and layover facility, among other features. The funding termination follows President Donald Trump’s signing of a bill that eliminated […]

Read More…

Coal, intermodal, grain boost U.S. rail traffic

High-angle view of coal train approaching curve

Three traffic segments have driven Class I railroad performance in 2025, according to Association of American Railroads data: intermodal, coal, and grain. Year-to-date, intermodal volume is up 5% compared to the same stretch in 2024; coal is up 6%, and grains are also up 6%. Union Pacific is moving the most coal: In the most […]

Read More…