Tacoma Rail ends service to Frederickson, Wash.

Red and white contemporary diesel locomotive. Tacoma Rail Ends Service to Frederickson Washington

Another little piece of the Milwaukee Road is fading away in Tacoma, Wash. Tacoma Rail aka Tacoma Municipal Belt Line Railway consisted of three divisions. The Tidelands Division, the Mountain Division and the Capitol Division, now known as the Lakewood Division. The Capitol Division included lines in the Olympia, Wash., area and industries in South […]

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Cass Scenic Railroad | Return to Durbin, W.Va.

Steam trains have been running at Durbin, W.Va., for the past 20 years. But if you look closely, this video captures double-headed Shay steam locomotives working up from Cass, W.Va., for the first time since 1985! Hop aboard for the sights and sounds on this special, restored route along the Greenbrier River. Want to see […]

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The HO scale Seaboard Central layout

Facts & features Name: The Seaboard Central Scale: HO (1:87.1) Size: 11′-9″ x 22′-9″ Prototype: Proto-freelanced Era: Spring 2015 Locale: Griffin, Ga. Style: Walk-in Mainline run: 68 feet Minimum radius: 24″ Minimum turnout: No. 6 Maximum grade: None Benchwork: Open grid, sectional Height: 40″ Roadbed: Cork, trackbed Track: Micro Engineering code 83 flextrack Scenery: Foam […]

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Rocky Mountaineer in the Rockies

The Rocky Mountaineer began as a VIA Rail service in Canada in the late 1980s. Operating over Canadian National tracks from Vancouver, British Columbia to Jasper, Alberta, the service was privatized in 1990 and the Rocky Mountaineer now operates three routes in Canada and a new route in the United States. We caught up with […]

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ChatGPT and the model railroad: an exploration

An image of anAI generated model railroad layout

One of the hottest topics of the moment is the conversation around artificial intelligence (AI.) If you’ve been paying attention to this conversation, you likely know that Artificial Intelligence programs have made enormous strides forward in just the past few years. These advances have caused disruption and innovation in equal measure in many fields. These […]

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San Francisco kicks off 150th cable car anniversary

A San Francisco cable car in a street.

SAN FRANCISCO – This weekend sees the launch of a civic celebration to mark 150 years of cable car service in San Francisco. Scotsman Andrew S. Hallidie, an experienced maker of wire rope (steel cable), employed his expertise to construct a cable car on Clay Street in San Francisco, with the first run on August […]

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Sound Transit receives US DOT loans

Light rail train on bridge

SEATTLE – The U.S. Department of Transportation today announced that its Build America Bureau will provide $327 million in low-interest loans to Sound Transit for improvements to its system. By providing Transportation Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act (TIFIA) and Railroad Rehabilitation & Improvement Financing (RRIF) loans the Bureau helps expedite infrastructure projects and reduce project […]

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Mexico invites CPKC to participate in rail projects

CPKC logo

MEXICO CITY – Mexico is seeking to incorporate Canadian Pacific Kansas City (CPKC) into three projects, Business News Americas reported. After a meeting between Mexico President Andrés Manuel López Obrador, U.S. officials, and CPKC executives in Mexico City, the government said it invited CPKC to participate in the 932-mile Maya train that will connect five states […]

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BNSF resumes freight service on Surf Line

BNSF Railway logo

 SAN CLEMENTE, Calif. ­– ­BNSF Railway has resumed freight service on the ex-Santa Fe “Surf Line” between Los Angeles and San Diego past the site of a landslide in San Clemente, the Los Angeles Times reported. BNSF began running two to four trains a day through the area at speeds of 10 to 15 mph, […]

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Sneak peek: Broadway Limited Imports T-1 4-8-4

Color photo of N scale steam locomotive

After looking at the photos, you might be asking, “Hey, where is the paint and lettering?” Well, this isn’t a production model. Instead, Broadway Limited Imports sent us a pre-production sample of its N scale Reading Co. class T-1 4-8-4 steam locomotive. The model, scheduled for release this fall, features a dual-mode Paragon4 sound decoder, […]

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Broadway Limited Imports N scale Reading T-1

A pre-production sample of the Broadway Limited Imports N scale Reading T-1 paid a visit to our Milwaukee, Racine & Troy State Line Route layout. Model Railroader editor Eric White and senior editor Cody Grivno discuss the features on the die-cast metal and plastic model and take the 4-8-4 for a spin around the 4 […]

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