Updated Grafton & Upton paint scheme introduced

Black-and-orange diesel locomotive with freight train displays updated Grafton & Upton paint scheme

  NORTH GRAFTON, Mass. — The Grafton & Upton paint scheme has been yellow and black ever since its first diesels – two General Electric 44-tonners – arrived on the property in 1946. Those colors carried over to an Alco S4 switcher, and earlier in this century on an eclectic roster of older EMD road-switchers […]

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Take Amtrak to see a model railroad

A color photograph of the interior of a train station

If you’re like me and enjoy riding Amtrak, but also enjoy model railroading, you’ve likely asked yourself “can I take Amtrak to see a model railroad?” The answer is yes! Four model railroads call Amtrak stations their home Durand Union Station Model Railroad Engineers Inc. Durand Union Station 200 Railroad Street Durand, Mich. 48429   […]

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Commentary: How to re-invigorate your love of toy trains

chart with colored lines

Editor’s note: I’ve found a number of unpublished manuscripts in our file cabinets. This one dates from around 1999. Does it still apply today? Do you think that simplifying or finding a new aspect of the hobby can re-invigorate your love of toy trains? Leave a comment and let us know. As railroad enthusiasts go, […]

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Alaska by Rail tour Day 7 — Glaciers, ghosts, tunnels

A blue with yellow stripe diesel locomotive and short train next to a rain-soaked platform. Alaska by rail tour.

Welcome aboard the Trains–Special Interest Tours 2024 Alaska by Rail adventure. Please join us as we travel on the Alaska Railroad for 9 days from Sept. 8 to 17, heading south from Fairbanks to Anchorage, Alaska. This morning Anchorage experienced a sunrise as colorful as last evening’s sunset. The colors lasted for only a short […]

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Alaska by Rail expedition Day 6 — An Alaskan sunset

Conductor next to blue and yellow diesel locomotive. Alaska by rail journey.

Welcome aboard the Trains–Special Interest Tours 2024 Alaska by Rail expedition. Please join us as we travel on the Alaska Railroad for 9 days from Sept. 8 to 17, heading south from Fairbanks to Anchorage, Alaska. Today we start with breaking Alaskan wilderness news! There has been a Denali sighting. The morning in Talkeetna began […]

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Montreal commuter rail lines threatened

Cab car leads train of blue-and-silver commuter coaches at station

  MONTREAL — There are Montreal commuter rail lines threatened with closure. A report by Autorité Régionale de Transport Métropolitain suggests that closing three commuter rail lines could save up to C$21 million annually, CBC News reports. Commuters would be served by bus connection to adjacent rail lines instead.   They are the three least-traveled EXO commuter […]

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Broadway Limited HO scale EMD GP35

Screen capture from Product Review video showing HO scale diesel painted orange and green.

A sample from the latest run of Broadway Limited HO scale EMD GP35 diesel locomotives paid a visit to our Winston-Salem Southbound layout. Join Model Railroader Senior Editor Cody Grivno as he shares a brief history of the four-axle road locomotive and Burlington Northern No. 2510, points out the details on the plastic and die-cast […]

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Broadway Limited HO scale EMD GP35

Screen capture from Product Review video showing HO scale diesel painted orange and green.

A sample from the latest run of Broadway Limited HO scale EMD GP35 diesel locomotives paid a visit to our Winston-Salem Southbound layout. Join Model Railroader Senior Editor Cody Grivno as he shares a brief history of the four-axle road locomotive and Burlington Northern No. 2510, points out the details on the plastic and die-cast […]

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Colorado’s San Luis Central reopens line

Green-and-yellow diesel locomotive on five culverts over waterway with pink railcar

MONTE VISTA, Colo. — The San Luis Central reopens its main line running the first train to operate since May 24, 2024. Here, it crosses an irrigation canal on newly installed culverts that repaired a washout on this section of line on Sept. 9, 2024. Electro-Motive SW8, No. 70, with General Manager Tom Tancula at […]

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US weekly rail traffic marks fourth consecutive week of gains

Data table of US weekly rail traffic

WASHINGTON — For the week ending Sept. 7, 2024, total U.S. weekly rail traffic was 479,179 carloads and intermodal units, up 7.3% compared with the same week last year, according to the Association of American Railroads. Total carloads for the week were 222,201, up 2.2% compared with the same week in 2023, while U.S. weekly […]

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