In the 1990s Amtrak managers sought to use mail and express business to bolster revenue. A byproduct of that initiative, which involved beefing up baggage handling facilities and acquisition of boxcars, was aggressively seeking ways to use equipment. New Hampshire-based motorcycle event promoter Charlie St. Clair was a member of Amtrak’s Customer Advisory Committee […]
Not in my backyard. The unofficial rallying cry of opposition— to anything from low-cost housing to a railroad line — has made NIMBY a familiar acronym and led to the expectation that someone, somewhere, will oppose almost every effort to build or expand. Railroads and transit agencies are well aware that if financial and environmental […]
Tuesday morning rail news: MTA to open subway for two additional hours overnight The Metropolitan Transportation Authority will increase overnight New York subway service, cutting the time the subway is closed nightly from four hours to two as of Feb. 22. The system, currently closed from 1 a.m. to 5 a.m. for nightly cleaning, will […]
New trainsets and a new snow blower for the Broadmoor Manitou & Pikes Peak Cog Railway in Colorado have begun their journey from Switzerland. The Stadler equipment, along with a snow blower built by Zaugg at its Eggiwil, Switzerland, factory, was taken by truck from Stadler’s factory in Erlen, Swtizerland, to Basel, where they will […]
RDC Deutschland, the German subsidiary of Pittsburgh-based Railroad Development Corp., has won a contract to operate brand new Stadler-built battery-electric multiple unit regional trains on five routes in the north German state of Schleswig-Holstein. RDC won the contract over German national rail company Deutsche Bahn, which currently runs the routes. RDC Deutschland’s “RDC Autozug […]
OMAHA, Neb. — Union Pacific has virtually frozen its entire intermodal network in the face of harsh winter weather. UP notified customers Monday night that, effective at 8 a.m. local time today, it would not accept loads at its intermodal terminals. The railroad expects the closures to last for 72 hours. Exceptions include international shipments […]
Tuesday morning rail transit news: Charlotte unveils preliminary Silver Line light rail plan, sets meetings Charlotte’s transit agency has unveiled initial plans for its 26-mile Silver Line light rail project, and is beginning a series of six public meetings to address the potential route. WCNC-TV reports the Charlotte Area Transit System project aims to be […]
CN derailment in West Chicago, Ill., disrupts Metra, UP operations A derailment on Canadian National near its diamond crossing of Union Pacific in West Chicago, Ill., is disrupting traffic on Metra’s UP West line, as well as Union Pacific trains. Metra has canceled some UP West trains earlier this morning, has been busing passengers between […]
Port Authority releases draft environmental report on Newark AirTrain The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey has released the Draft Environmental Assessment for the project to build a new AirTrain system at Newark Liberty International Airport, beginning the 30-day period for public comment. The project, expected to cost about $2 billion, will build […]
ARCADIA, Ind. — John D. Horachek, former employee and long-time student of the Chicago North Shore & Milwaukee interurban line, died Feb. 5. He was 80. Horachek worked for the North Shore as a trainman, conductor, and motorman until the line shut down on Jan. 20, 1963. He was part of the crew on the […]
MTA asks for 1,000 more police to patrol New York transit system New York’s Metropolitan Transportation Authority is asking for 1,000 New York Police Department officers to deploy on its subway and bus system in the wake of a series of violent attacks including two stabbing deaths at A Train subway stations. WPIX-TV reports this […]
Canadian National’s Elgin, Joliet & Eastern heritage locomotive narrowly missed being a part of Monday’s derailment on the former EJ&E in West Chicago, Ill. [See “Digest: CN derails train …,” Trains News Wire, Feb. 15, 2021.] Eight cars immediately behind that locomotive, the trailing unit on a northbound train, derailed as the train traveled north […]
