WASHINGTON — Building on the environmental benefits of rail travel, Amtrak has released its Fiscal 2021 Sustainability Report, outlining its efforts to improve sustainability by addressing greenhouse gas emissions and use of diesel fuel and electricity. Those efforts include the introduction of new Siemens Charger locomotives on long-distance routes, Tier-4-compliant units that emit 89% less […]
Siemens ACS-64 Scale: HO (1:87.1) Price: $459 Era: 2020s+ Manufacturer: Bachmann Trains, 1400 E. Erie Ave., Philadelphia, PA 19124; 215-533-1600; bachmanntrains.com Features: Dual-mode TCS WOWSound decoder Keep-Alive capacitor Light-emitting diode lighting, including flashing ditch lights and directional marker lights and headlights Voice-guided Audio Assist Die-cast metal frame Mappable light functions Selector switch for choice between […]
Amtrak Acela II Scale: HO (1:87.1) Price: Train set, $799; separate-sale cars, $139 Era: 2020s+ Manufacturer: Bachmann Trains, 1400 E. Erie Ave., Philadelphia, PA 19124; 215-533-1600; bachmanntrains.com Set features Powered (analog control with speaker) and non-powered (functioning lights) locomotives Additional locomotive features include die-cast metal chassis; working, directional light-emitting-diode (LED) headlights and marker lights; and […]
WASHINGTON — A series of Northeast Corridor efforts to replace century-old infrastructure highlights 11 passenger-rail projects receiving more than $233 million in Federal Railroad Administration grant funding. The grants announced today (Thursday, Aug. 18) by the U.S. Department of Transportation are part of the Federal-State Partnership for State of Good Repair Program. The projects included […]
CHICAGO — The Federal Railroad Administration will provide a $3 million grant for a project to upgrade concourses at Chicago Union Station, matching funds by Amtrak and its partners and bringing the concourse project to the point where it is ready for construction. U.S. Sens. Dick Durbin and Tammy Duckworth and Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot […]
WASHINGTON — Amtrak will host more than 50 hiring events in its coming fiscal year, to fill more than 4,000 available positions nationwide across a broad range of disciplines. Many of the events and positions will be concentrated in Los Angeles; Seattle; New Orleans; New York; Washington, D.C.; Chicago; Oakland; Philadelphia; Miami; and Wilmington, Del. […]
CHICAGO — Continuing equipment-availability problems have led to the suspension of one of four daily Amtrak Lincoln Service round trip between Chicago and St. Louis. The service reduction is slated to run through Tuesday, Aug. 23. Not operating are train No. 300, scheduled to depart St. Louis at 4:30 a.m. and arrive in Chicago at […]
KEYTESVILLE, Mo. — A Missouri judge is considering a request to stay litigation over the fatal June 27 derailment of Amtrak’s Southwest Chief while the National Transportation Safety Board investigation is ongoing, as requested by defendants. KMBC-TV reports Chariton County Circuit Court Judge Terry Tschannen heard arguments Tuesday from attorneys for Amtrak, BNSF Railway, and […]
ALBANY, N.Y. — The mayor of Albany has ended the state of emergency surrounding the Central Warehouse, the derelict former cold-storage facility which led to a disruption of Amtrak service through the city last month. But long-term problems at the site remain. WRGB-TV reports Mayor Kathy Sheehan said emergency repairs have been made at the […]
WASHINGTON – Canadian National has rebutted claims that Amtrak and Canadian Pacific have made regarding its proposed acquisition of Kansas City Southern’s line linking Springfield, Ill., with Kansas City and St. Louis. CN has asked the Surface Transportation Board to force CP to divest KCS’s former Gateway Western Springfield Line as part of the CP-KCS […]
CHICAGO — Track work by host railroad Canadian National will lead to schedule changes for Amtrak’s City of New Orleans beginning today (Monday, Aug. 15) and continuing, with some breaks, though Friday, Oct. 14. The changes, as outlined by Amtrak, include: — Monday, Aug. 15 and Tuesday, Aug. 16: Northbound train No. 58 will depart […]
Amtrak electric locomotives went through a period of uncertainty early in the passenger railroad’s existence. Not long after its inception, Amtrak began to focus on the fact that its non-Metroliner passenger service in the “Northeast Corridor” would require a replacement for the stalwart GG1 electrics that hauled its “conventional” trains over the electrified […]
