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Now that trains are running on the HO scale East Troy Industrial Park (ETIP) project layout, David Popp hosts this BONUS video to share some of the behind-the-scenes efforts and design considerations the MR crew still needs to tackle. As so many model railroaders can attest, there’s no such thing as “finished” layout…especially when structure […]
WASHINGTON — Rebutting a Union Pacific motion to dismiss, Chicago area commuter rail operator Metra says the Surface Transportation Board clearly has jurisdiction to address its request for trackage rights — part of its ongoing dispute with UP over financial terms for continued operation on three Union Pacific lines. And in a turnabout — after […]
CHICAGO — The agency overseeing the Chicago area’s three transit operators is directing Metra, the Chicago Transit Authority, and bus operator Pace to develop two versions of their 2026 budgets: one based on the current funding shortfall, and one if the state legislature comes through with more funding. Streetsblog Chicago reports that at a June […]
Classic Trains Film Archive | Illinois and Ohio Highlights, J. David Ingles Reel 0050 – Explore the fascinating world of 1960s Midwest railroading with rare footage and historic action across Central Illinois and Ohio. Visit Jacksonville, Ill., to see legendary trains from Chicago, Burlington & Quincy (CB&Q), Gulf, Mobile & Ohio (GM&O), and Norfolk & […]
Facts and features Name: Rice Lake, Dallas & Menomonie RRScale: HO (1:87.1)Size: 8 x 30 feetPrototype: Soo LineLocale: northwestern WisconsinEra: early 1950sStyle: walkaroundMainline run: 50 feetMinimum radius: 30″ (main), 18″ (branch)Minimum turnout: No. 5 (main), No. 4 (branch)Maximum grade: noneBenchwork: L-girderHeight: 44″Roadbed:1∕2″ plywood covered with 1∕2″ HomasoteTrack: Atlas code 100 flextrack, Peco and Atlas turnoutsScenery: […]
COLUMBUS, Ohio — Ohio’s Senate has moved to eliminate funding for the state to rejoin a Midwest passenger rail planning group, public broadcasting’s Statehouse News Bureau reports. The version of the state’s biennial budget passed by the House includes $25,000 for each of the next two years for membership in the Midwest Interstate Passenger Rail […]
OMAHA, Neb. — Union Pacific’s Abraham Lincoln commemorative locomotive will be displayed at baseball’s College World Series, the railroad has announced. The locomotive, along with cars from the UP heritage fleet, will be on display at the railroad’s “Home Plate” location adjacent to Charles Schwab Field, site of the baseball tournament, from noon to 6 […]
Chicago, Rock Island & Pacific had a fleet of 85 4-8-4 Northerns, largest in the country. Here, No. 5058 leads a westbound freight near Lawrence, Kans., in January 1952. Robert P. Olmsted photo […]
Even though track wiring is in place, our hosts still need to install a Digital Command Control (DCC) system before trains will run on the HO scale (1:87.1) East Troy Industrial Park project layout! David and Bryson first examine the components of the NCE PH5R Power Pro DCC system before working to integrate the parts […]
CHESTERTON, Ind. — The start of service on South Shore Line’s new West Lake Corridor, the 9-mile spur between Hammond and Dyer, Ind., has slipped back further, and now is not likely until at least the end of this year, General Manager Mike Noland said in a recent message to riders. The message on the […]
The latest edition of News Wire Recommended Reading ranges around the world, looking at everything from a new rail line in India to the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority’s long, strange trip to replacing some of its rapid transit equipment. — The New York Times provides a look at India’s new rail line to Kashmir, which […]
I have always had a thing for “class units,” that is, the first in a series, and “my engine” is Illinois Central SD40 6000, delivered in late 1967 in the then-new orange and white color scheme. I have a custom-painted HO scale model of it, weathered in that livery. Best of all, during my […]
