WASHINGTON — Genesee & Wyoming short line Central Oregon & Pacific will lease and operate nearly 28 miles of Union Pacific trackage in the Eugene, Ore., area as part of its deal to take over the Class I railroad’s local switching operations. Details about the transaction, which was announced yesterday, appeared in a regulatory filing […]
Genesee & Wyoming short line Central Oregon & Pacific Railroad will take over local service from Union Pacific’s Eugene Yard in Oregon, in a move the railroads said will improve service for local customers. The change allows UP to reduce the number of times a railcar is handled and create greater efficiencies, while providing more […]
Railfanning California’s Central Valley offers diverse operations, wide-open vistas, and plenty of action. Even so, the Central Valley gets no respect. Fresno, Bakersfield and even Sacramento are the butt of jokes by Los Angeles and Bay Area citizens. Railfans make trips to Cajon, Donner and Tehachapi passes but seldom celebrate the tabletop-flat topography of the […]
NOVI, Mich. — Members of the Brotherhood of Maintenance of Way Employes Division of the Teamsters Rail Conference have ratified agreements at three railroads, the union announced. Union members at the Colorado & Wyoming Railway unanimously voted in favor of the agreement, while those at the Terminal Railroad Association of St. Louis and Norfolk & […]
SANTA PAULA, Calif. — Sierra Northern Railway, partnering with nonprofit Operation Toy Train, ran a pair of Santa trains Saturday, Dec. 7, on its Ventura Division between Ventura and Piru, about 30 miles. The first train, consisting of Genset locomotive No. 2666, an open-air car, and heavyweight business car No. 409, left Ventura at 10:30 […]
INDIANAPOLIS — The Indiana Rail Road Santa Train begins its annual journey across the railroad today (Friday, Dec. 6), with stops scheduled in 12 communities over a three-day period. The Santa Train, launched in 1989, is an all-volunteer event providing cold-weather gear to families in need. At all stops but today’s initial location, in Bargersville, […]
PORTLAND, Ore. — The Oregon Rail Heritage Foundation, caretakers for Portland-owned steam locomotives Southern Pacific No. 4449 and Spokane, Portland & Seattle No. 700, will purchase Portland-area short line Oregon Pacific Railroad, the foundation has announced. Foundation President Rick Franklin said in a press release that the acquisition “honors Dick Samuels’ remarkable legacy while securing […]
OTTAWA, Ontario — Canadian National, Genesee & Wyoming Canada, Metrolinx, and VIA Rail Canada are recipients of the Railway Association of Canada’s 2024 Safety Awards, which honor innovations and proactive measures by the nation’s railways to maintain and improve safety. “Safety is at the heart of everything we do,” Marc Brazeau, president and CEO of […]
WASHINGTON — One year ago this week Canadian National announced its $230 million deal to acquire the 218-mile Iowa Northern Railway. Today CN should be 100 days into integrating Iowa Northern into its 18,800-mile system, assuming regulatory approval of the acquisition. Or CN should be licking its wounds, in the unlikely event that the Surface […]
BENTLEY, Alberta — Genesee & Wyoming Inc. today celebrated the launch of its first railroad in western Canada, the 43-mile Red Deer Railway Limited. RDR runs from Jackson, Alberta, to Homeglen, Alberta, and uses operating rights over Canadian Pacific Kansas City from Red Deer, Alberta, to Chigwell, Alberta, and to Prentiss, Alberta. A direct interchange […]
WASHINGTON — Kristin Bevil, general counsel and chief legal officer of Pinsly Railroad, has been named to the board of directors for the Short Line Safety Institute. Tom Murta, the institute’s executive director, said in a press release that Bevil’s “experience in guiding short line railroad management in issues as diverse as litigation, governance, regulatory […]
As railroad fans, we are in one form or another, closet historians. “The station used to be right there. You can still see the foundation if you look carefully,” we point out to neophytes to a particular area. “The railroad used to have a switcher based here to service the local industries. Today, there is […]
