The switch to full electrification between San Francisco and San Jose came on Sept. 21 (San Jose-Gilroy service is still diesel powered), and ridership showed an immediate jump. In October, the first full month of electrified service, ridership increased 54% from the same month a year earlier. The average weekday ridership was up 38% at […]
PITTSBURGH — Pittsburgh Regional Transit is investigating a ransomware attack on its operations that slowed light rail operations last week — a problem originally believed to be a computer glitch. The agency announced on Monday, Dec. 23, 2024, that it has “launched an investigation, activated its Cyber Incident Response Team, notified law enforcement, and engaged […]
David H. Hamley, a professional engineer and Trains magazine author with a talent for writing about diesel locomotives, died Dec. 18 at a hospital near his home south of Pittsburgh. He was 84. Born in Pittsburgh on Nov. 4, 1940, Hamley in 1965 earned a degree in engineering from the University of Pittsburgh and went […]
NEW YORK — Amtrak says service has been fully restored between New York’s Penn Station and Philadelphia. The company said “all services are operating” in a post shortly before 8 a.m. ET today (Dec. 24, 2024) on its Northeast Corridor alerts feed on X.com. However, Amtrak also reports that Acelas No. 2154 (a 7 a.m. […]
Amtrak carried more passengers in its 2024 fiscal year (October 2023-September 2024) than at any time in the company’s 53-year history. The milestone was achieved primarily by adding Northeast Corridor frequencies and deploying enough passenger cars on its main East Coast artery to meet expanding travel demand. Nationwide, however, it was a different story. While […]
BRUSSELS, Belgium — If you’re considering train travel in Europe, you can expect to do well in Italy. On Eurostar, it’s another matter. Italy’s Trenitalia is the best rail passenger operator in Europe, while Eurostar — the international operator linking London to Amsterdam, Brussels, and Paris — is the worst overall, according to rankings released […]
BOSTON — The Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority has completed its massive Track Improvement Program, announced late last year, which has addressed more than 200 slow orders plaguing the MBTA’s rail transit network. In a ceremony at North Station on Monday, Dec. 23, MBTA CEO Phillip Eng, Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healey, Lt. Gov. Kim Driscoll, and […]
CALGARY, Alberta — The Canadian Pacific Kansas City Holiday Train program raised more than Ca$1.75 million and collected more than 130,000 pounds of food for local food banks during its four-week run in the United States and Canada, the railroad said on Monday, Dec. 23. Additionally, the CPKC Holiday Express, which continues a program launched […]
WASHINGTON — Alvin Brown has been appointed as vice chairman of the National Transportation Safety Board, the board announced Monday, Dec. 23. The appointment by President Joe Biden was made on Friday, Dec. 20. Brown’s appointment to the board was confirmed by the Senate in March; he joined the agency in April [see “Brown, Inman […]
CARSON, Calif. — No injuries were reported when four locomotives and five cars of a Union Pacific train derailed today (Monday, Dec. 23) on the Alameda Corridor route connecting UP and BNSF Railway to the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach. The derailment occurred about 1 p.m. near the intersection of Carson and Alameda […]
DENVER — The state of Colorado will not have to pay a fee to Union Pacific to use its track for a Denver-Craig passenger train, while the railroad will no longer pay the state annually for use of the 6.2-mile Moffat Tunnel under a new 25-year agreement announced today (Monday, Dec. 23, 2024). The […]
WASHINGTON — Just before adjourning last weekend, the U.S. Senate confirmed four nominees to Amtrak’s Board of Directors who are in position to bring different perspectives and active oversight to the organization. The last-minute legislative action early Saturday morning was championed by Senate Commerce Committee Chair Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.) [see “Senate confirms four for Amtrak […]
