Alstom to overhaul, modernize 181 GO Transit railcars

Green and white commuter train led by cab car

TORONTO — Ontario transit agency Metrolinx has signed an agreement with Alstom to overhaul 181 bilevel railcars for Toronto-area commuter rail operator GO Transit. The agreement, valued at approximately Ca$500 million ($347 million U.S.), calls for overhauls and modernization of the Series VIII cars to be conducted at Alstom’s Thunder Bay, Ont., plant beginning by […]

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Golden Gate

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Santa Fe’s Golden Gate, a secondary Bay Area train, pulls into Merced, Calif., in May 1958 as a tour group prepares to board. Jim Neubauer photo […]

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Lionel releases 2025 Volume 1 catalog

cover of Lionel 2025 volume 1 catalog

The Lionel 2025 Volume 1 catalog was recently published on the manufacturer’s website. Highlights include Lionel Lines Vision Hudson prewar sets, Vision Commodore Vanderbilt locomotives, a 20th Century Limited set, a 125th anniversary Lighted Station Platform, an expanded “battery O” line, exclusive anniversary products, and much more. View the catalog at lionel.com. […]

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Intermodal strength keeps U.S. rail volume ahead of 2024 levels

Weekly table showing U.S. carload rail traffic by commodity type, plus overall intermodal volume

WASHINGTON — Carload traffic was down considerably but intermodal volume remained strong in the latest report on U.S. weekly rail traffic. According to statistics from the Association of American Railroads, traffic for the week ending Jan. 11, 2025, included 465,390 carloads and intermodal units, up 1.8% from the same week in 2024. That included 199,511 […]

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Brightline on-board workers vote to join union

people serving food

WASHINGTON — Onboard attendants at Brightline have voted to join the Transport Workers Union, the union announced Tuesday (Jan. 14, 2025). Mail-in voting concluded Tuesday after beginning on Nov. 27, 2024. The approximately 100 workers who sell food and beverages onboard trains and provide other services between Orlando and Miami voted in favor of unionization […]

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Reading & Northern buys Penn Valley passenger cars (updated)

SUNBURY, Pa. — After 27 years of running holiday passenger trains, fund-raising excursions, and shipper specials, owner Jeff Pontius of Penn Valley Railroad LLC has sold his fleet of seven passenger cars to the Reading & Northern Railroad. R&N announced that it would receive the cars today (Jan. 14, 2025) and outlined the planned move […]

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Bill requiring disclosure of Amtrak bonuses passes House

Trains Washington Watch logo

WASHINGTON — A bill that would require Amtrak to disclose information on base pay and bonuses for some of its executives has passed the House of Representatives. H.R. 192, sponsored by U.S. Rep. David Rouzer (R-N.C.), would require the bonus information to be available on Amtrak’s website, along with the criteria used to determine bonuses, […]

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New Mexico Rail Runner receives grant for new shop facilities

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WASHINGTON — The agency overseeing the New Mexico Rail Runner commuter operation has received a $22.4 million grant for a new maintenance facility. The grant, from the Department of Transportation’s Rebuilding American Infrastructure with Sustainability and Equity (RAISE) program, is among nine announced Monday (Jan. 13, 2025) by members of New Mexico’s congressional delegation. Also […]

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Brightline to bring back South Florida commuter program

People mill about on platform next to streamlined passenger trains

MIAMI — Brightline will revive the commuter pass program it discontinued last year, thanks to a federal grant it received last week, the company has announced. The company received a $33.8 million Restoration and Enhancement grant from the Federal Railroad Administration, which the federal announcement said would support expanding Brightline train consists from five to […]

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