WASHINGTON — Thirty-year-high mortgage rates and a double-digit decrease in U.S. housing starts from a year ago has only curbed Class I railroads’ lumber business by about 3,300 carloads, down just 1%, compared to July 2023. Now proposed Federal interest rate cuts could rejuvenate residential housing starts and give railroads’ lumber business a jolt. U.S. […]
News & Products for the week of July 15th 2024 Model railroad operators and builders can get the latest information about locomotives, freight cars, passenger cars, tools, track, and more by reading Model Railroader’s frequent product updates. The following are the products Model Railroader editors have news on for the week of July 15th […]
WILMINGTON, Calif. — Pacific Harbor Line and the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineer and Trainmen, Division 214, have ratified a three-year extension to their current labor agreement, extending that contract through Sept. 20, 2027. The extension covers 145 of PHL’s 180 employees. It was ratified July 12 by a record number of eligible BLET members, with […]
Amazon, the Internet shopping giant, is also intermodal’s uncommon carrier. To understand what makes it different, a brief overview of railroad intermodal operations is in order. In the early days of large-scale U.S. railroad intermodal operations, described more accurately at that time as “Piggyback”, or TOFC (Trailer On Flat Car), the identification of these vehicles […]
ABILENE, Texas — Thirty-two cars of a Union Pacific train derailed today (Sunday, July 14) on the west side of Abilene, KTAB/KRBC-TV reports. The derailment was reported to Abilene police shortly after 10 a.m. No injuries were reported, and no hazardous materials were involved. A Union Pacific representative told the station the railcars involved were […]
MONTREAL — The Canada Industrial Relations Board aims to make a ruling by Aug. 9 on the question of essential services that has put a potential Canadian rail strike or lockout on hold, Canadian National Railway says. In a Friday update, the railroad said it the board will provide another update in the event another […]
WASHINGTON — Federal regulators are summoning executives from the six Class I freight railroads to a rare public hearing to explain how their companies plan to invest in and grow their business amid concern over recent negative volume trends. In a notice published today (Friday, July 12), the Surface Transportation Board said it also welcomes […]
ALBANY, N.Y. — New York state has begun work on a new rail bridge across the Hudson River in Albany to replace a structure with portions dating to 1865, and also awarded funding to tear down a deteriorating, vacant warehouse that led to interruptions of rail service in 2022, Gov. Kathy Hochul announced today. The […]
A rail-themed restaurant is a concept familiar to many rail enthusiasts. Perhaps you’ve dined at one yourself. Often located in a converted passenger station, the décor is themed, unsurprisingly, after railroads. Sometimes, these restaurants will feature authentic dining car plates from one or several railroads, and other such memorabilia. Sometimes, though, these rail-themed restaurants will […]
WOODWARD, Okla. — Eighteen cars of a BNSF train derailed Thursday, July 11, in downtown Woodward, briefly leading to an evacuation order until it was determined the contents of the train posed no public safety hazard. KOCO-TV reports BNSF said in a statement that the derailment occurred about 5:30 p.m. and the cars involved carried […]
WASHINGTON — The Surface Transportation Board has postponed the start of a plan by BNSF Railway and Union Pacific to contract out dispatching of Southern California’s Alameda Corridor. In a decision announced Thursday, the board postponed the move — which was to be effective today (Friday, July 12) — “to provide sufficient time for evaluation […]
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – CSX has become the fourth Class I railroad to join RailPulse, the telematics joint venture that aims to put GPS equipment and sensors on freight cars to monitor their location and health in real time. The announcement, made today, leaves BNSF Railway and Canadian National as the only major systems sitting on […]
