DULUTH, Minn. — The Lake Superior Railroad Museum is moving ahead with repairs to return Duluth, Missabe & Iron Range 2-8-0 No. 332 to service. Repairs are being made to the firebox of the locomotive, where a crack had developed near an old weld. The museum plans to remove this and another existing weld in […]
DES MOINES, Iowa – Central States Steam Preservation Association and the Iowa Interstate Railroad, in partnership with Operation Lifesaver and the Science Center of Iowa, will run short passenger trips out of downtown Des Moines with the Iowa Bolt 2-10-2 steam locomotive No. 6988 Labor Day Weekend. This event will put Operation Lifesaver at the […]
BIG BOY HOT SPOT Location If you’re for Union Pacific Big Boy Hot Spot this summer, don’t miss the Dexter, Missouri, community. Dexter is situated in the rural southeast corner of Missouri in Stoddard County, about halfway between St. Louis and Memphis. It is surrounded by fertile soil, vast row-crop farmland, and straight, high speed […]
ST. PAUL, Minn. — The Twin Cities-area Metropolitan Council has approved an additional $200 million in funding from Hennepin County for the Southwest light rail project, which will extend the existing Green Line to Eden Prairie, Minn. The Minneapolis Star Tribune reports the additional construction funding increases Hennepin County’s share of the project to $878 […]
PLYMOUTH, Mich. — The Plymouth Historical Museum has signed an agreement to bring the Pere Marquette Historical Society, Inc., archives to the museum. The agreement was signed Aug. 6. “As someone who has been a member of the society since the very beginning and was fortunate enough to know several of the founders of the […]
SPRINGFIELD, Ill. — Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker has signed a bill creating a state high speed rail commission. House Bill 399, sponsored by Rep. Martin Moylan (D-Des Plaines) will require the commission to create a statewide plan for a high speed rail line connecting Chicago and St. Louis. [see “Digest: Delays add $300 million to […]
Menards Santa Fe O gauge locomotive program is underway. Asking some 200 people to take a chance on this new product is bold. To request they test it on their layouts and report what the maker got right — and more importantly, wrong — takes even more guts. It is something I’ve never heard of […]
WASHINGTON — On a typical day, BNSF Railway has about 30 international stack trains staged along its main lines, waiting for space to open up at intermodal terminals in Chicago, Memphis, and Alliance, Texas. The terminals are clogged due to an unprecedented combination of record volume and shippers and receivers being slow to pick up […]
HUNTINGTON, Mo. — An estimated 33 cars of a Norfolk Southern train, many of them carrying new automobiles, derailed Monday afternoon in northern Ralls County, Mo. No injuries or hazardous material spills were reported. KHQA-TV reports the Missouri State Highway Patrol and other first responders were notified of the derailment about 12:15 p.m. The accident […]
PULLMAN, Ill. — The grand opening of the National Park Service’s Pullman National Monument and Pullman State Historic Site Factory Grounds is set for Labor Day weekend, Sept. 4-6. Free events will include tours, site visits, and historic tours at the community built for the Pullman Co’s factory and as a community for its workers, […]
ERIE, Pa. — Seven passenger rail advocacy groups have formed a coalition to push for improved rail service between Chicago and New York City. The Erie Times-News reports the Lakeshore Rail Alliance will combine All Aboard Erie, All Aboard Ohio, the Empire State Passenger Association, the Chicago-based High-Speed Rail Alliance, the Indiana Passenger Rail Association, […]
CHESTERTON, Ind. — The Northern Indiana Commuter Transportation District has approved purchase of materials for its planned South Shore Double Track project between Gary and Michigan City, Ind., as part of its effort to lower the cost of building the commuter railroad’s second main line. The Times of Northwest Indiana reports the board on Monday […]
