COOPERSTOWN, N.Y. — Patrick O’Donnell has joined the New York, Susquehanna & Western Railway as chief mechanical officer, the railroad has announced. O’Donnell joins the NYS&W after a decade as a rail safety inspector or supervisor or rail safety inspectors for the state of New York. As a supervisor, he oversaw four disciplines — track, […]
NORTH VANCOUVER, British Columbia — Canadian National Railway and short line Battle River Railway are among six recipients of a total of Ca$33.1 million for infrastructure projects under Canada’s National Trade Corridors Fund. Transport Minister Anita Anand announced the funding, for projects in British Columbia and Alberta, on Wednesday, Feb. 12, at the Richardson International […]
WASHINGTON — Matthew Lane, general manager of Pinsly’s Pioneer Valley Railroad in Massachusetts, has been named Safety Person of the Year by the American Short Line and Regional Railroad Association. Lane joins Herman Crosson, Anacostia Rail Holdings’ chief safety and compliance officer, in earning the ASLRRA’s top individual safety awards. Crosson was previously announced as […]
WENDELL, Mass. — Eight cars of an intermodal train operated by the Berkshire & Eastern Railroad derailed today (Feb. 11), the Greenfield Recorder reports. No injuries were reported and no hazardous materials were involved; a Genesee & Wyoming spokesman told WWLP-TV that the train was carrying a mix of commodities. Wendell Police Sgt. Steven Gould […]
Compared to their traditional reciprocating rod-driven counterparts, geared steam locomotives can be seen as “oddballs” to the casual eye. They certainly fit that bill with their unique styles of running gear consisting of cylinders positioned at different angles and connected to the drive shaft through a series of gears to ultimately power every wheel […]
WEST SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Sierra Northern Railway has acquired the assets of locomotive builder RailPower LLC as part of its efforts to develop hydrogen and other low- or zero-emission motive power. RailPower has produced approximately 190 locomotives, including 55 hybrid switchers and 116 genset locomotives, while Sierra Northern is currently involved in development of at […]
WASHINGTON — Edwin (Ed) McKechnie has been named as the 2025 winner of the American Short Line and Regional Railroad Association’s Schlosser Distinguished Service Award, the ASLRRA has announced. Also on Wednesday (Feb. 5), Anacostia Rail Holdings announced Herman Crosson, its chief safety and compliance officer, has been named as the ASLRRA’s Safety Professional of […]
CHURCHILL, Manitoba — The Canadian government will provide more than Ca$43 million for rehabilitation of the Hudson Bay Railway, while the province of Manitoba will invest an additional Ca$36.4 million in the railway and the Port of Churchill, the governments announced Tuesday (Feb. 4, 2025). The federal funds will go the Arctic Gateway Group, a […]
WASHINGTON — If you thought Federal Railroad Administration grant programs for things like passenger service, shortline track maintenance, and grade crossing elimination projects would be the least likely place to become a front in the culture wars, think again. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy on Jan. 29 issued a memo ordering Department of Transportation agencies to […]
There are various ways we can convey to visitors and operators our modeling objectives. Locomotives and rolling stock provide clues as to the prototype (or freelanced) railroad we’re modeling. Those same models, as well as vehicles and figures, can be used to define the era. But what about the model railroad’s locale? Signature structures or […]
BETHLEHEM, Pa. — Seeing “significant opportunities to grow,” independent infrastructure manager Ancala and Arkadia Rail Partners have formed Phoenix Rail following the acquisition of short line rail company Lehigh Valley Rail Management. Terms were not disclosed. Lehigh Valley Rail Management owns and operates a 61-mile freight rail network and is headquartered in Bethlehem, Pa., where […]
A newly tooled FMC 5,347-cubic-foot capacity 50-foot boxcar has joined the Athearn HO scale freight car lineup. The injection-molded plastic model has railroad-specific doors; many separate, factory-applied details; and body-mounted McHenry scale couplers. Prototype history FMC Corp. produced the 5,347-cubic-foot capacity boxcar at its plant in Portland, Ore., from the late 1970s to the early […]
