Friday afternoon rail news: Work at East Broad Top uncovers, removes decayed dynamite Stabilization work on a building at the East Broad Top Railroad took an unexpected turn this week with the discovery of five cases of material labeled as explosives. After work halted, analysis determined the material was probably decayed dynamite, estimated to be […]
The lone railroad traffic bright spot last year was intermodal volume, which went on a tear in the second half of 2020 due to rising e-commerce parcel shipments, a surge in imports, and retailers rushing to restock depleted inventories. But as intermodal traffic surged and remained at fall peak levels into this year, the volume […]
More Thursday morning rail news: NTSB issues preliminary report on fatal Decatur & Eastern Illinois accident The National Transportation Safety Board has released its preliminary report into the death of a Decatur & Eastern Illinois Railroad employee in November [see “Digest: Illinois short line conductor killed in accident,” Trains News Wire, Nov. 12, 2020], setting […]
Thursday morning rail news: CP begins extensive cleanup effort in B.C. to keep spilled grain from attracting bears Canadian Pacific has undertaken a massive cleanup effort at the site of a grain-train derailment last week near Field, B.C., an effort required to prevent the spilled cargo from attracting bears when they come out of hibernation. […]
PORTLAND, Ore. — The Oregon Rail Heritage Center, home of three significant steam locomotives, is seeking funding to complete restoration of the nearly century-old Brooklyn Turntable, rescued from the former Brooklyn yard in southeast Portland. The roundhouse at that yard was the home of the center’s locomotives — Southern Pacific 4-8-4 No. 4449, the former […]
While intermodal’s role in boosting North America rail volume has been in the spotlight, grain traffic has also been impressive. Canadian National and Canadian Pacific have set a series of records for Canadian grain tonnage [see “CP, CN continue string of records for grain movement,” Trains News Wire, Jan. 4, 2021], but global trade in U.S. grain, particularly […]
TENINO, Wash. — Over the last year, the residents of the small western Washington town of Tenino have become accustomed to the sounds of saws and hammers coming from 1920s-era Great Northern caboose X549. The caboose restoration is a joint venture between the town of Tenino and the Tenino Historical Depot. The caboose was purchased […]
Wednesday morning rail news: Vancouver rail line averts strike with labor agreement The Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada Line of the SkyTrain rail transit system has averted a strike after workers reached a tentative contract agreement with operator Protrans BC. Global News reports the BC Government & Service Employees Union said the agreement came after more than 40 […]
CORDELE, Ga. — An average of 80 trains a day cross the diamond in the south central Georgia community of Cordele, making it one of the busiest rail crossings in the Southeast. Norfolk Southern, CSX Transportation, and the Heart of Georgia Railroad, a Genesee & Wyoming short line, all use the crossing. “The activity rivals […]
Wednesday afternoon rail news: LA Metro CEO Phillip Washington to step down in May CEO Phillip A. Washington will step down in May after six years leading the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority, LA Metro board chair Eric Garcetti announced. Washington recently informed the board he would not seek a new contract or extend […]
Additional Wedesday morning rail news: Chaffee County, Colo., joins group sharing legal fees over Tennessee Pass fight Chaffee County, Colo., has agreed to join a group which will split legal fees resulting from an effort to block reactivation of Union Pacific’s Tennessee Pass rail line. The Vail Daily reports Chaffee County commissioners voted Tuesday to join […]
More Wednesday morning rail news: Rail service continues to dig out from Northeast storm Rail systems continue to recover from Monday’s major snowstorm in the Northeast. Amtrak will continue modified Acela, Northeast Regional, and Keystone Service today on the Northeast Corridor;. see Amtrak.com, the Amtrak app, and the Amtrak Alerts and NEC Alerts Twitter feeds for more information. Most NJ […]
