SEATTLE — Almost four years after the derailment that halted its use, Amtrak trains will return to the Point Defiance bypass south of Tacoma, Wash., on Thursday, Nov. 18. Initially, eight trains — the Amtrak Cascades service and the Coast Starlight — will use the 14.5-mile inland route, which parallels Interstate 5. It departs from […]
WASHINGTON, D.C. — While Greyhound announced last week that it will resume cross-border intercity bus service between U.S. and Canadian destinations Nov. 8, no firm date has been finalized for restoring Amtrak trains serving Vancouver, B.C., Toronto, and Montreal. U.S. citizens have been able to visit Canada since Aug. 9, but Canadians won’t be able […]
ANCHORAGE — The Alaska Railroad has rescinded its mandate for employees to receive the COVID-19 vaccination following a Tuesday vote by the state-owned railroad’s board of directors. The Anchorage Daily News reports the board voted unanimously to rescind the mandate, announced Friday in an email from CEO Bill O’Leary to employees [see “Alaska Railroad to […]
WASHINGTON — The National Transportation Safety Board says it will focus on factors including passenger car crashworthiness and survival factors as part of its ongoing investigation of the fatal Sept. 25 derailment of the Empire Builder near Joplin, Mont. In a preliminary report released Tuesday, the NTSB also said it would focus on track and […]
ANCHORAGE, Alaska — The Alaska Railroad is joining in an effort to acquire $100 million in federal infrastructure funding to build a new 18-mile spur to serve a liquefied natural gas plant near Anchorage. The Mat-Su Valley Frontiersman reports the Matanuska Susitna Borough, Fairbanks North Star Borough, and Interior Gas Utility are also part of […]
ANCHORAGE, Alaska — Telling employees it does not have a choice because of a federal executive order, the Alaska Railroad has announced a vaccine requirement for its employees and set a Dec. 8 deadline for workers to be fully vaccinated. The website Must Read Alaska has published a letter to railroad employees from CEO Bill O’Leary […]
WALLULA, Wash. — Tiger Cool Express, a temperature-sensitive intermodal service, has signed a letter of intent to acquire the former Union Pacific Cold Connect warehouse in Wallula and develop an adjacent intermodal rap. The facility will provide service for international containers between Wallula and the ports of Seattle and Tacoma, as well as domestic service […]
CORVALLIS, Ore. — After two years of COVID-19 disruptions, Winterail is set to return in March 2022 at Corvallis High School with a two-day event featuring shows for 2020, 2021, and 2022. The 2020 show will be held on Saturday, March 19, with digital presentations from noon to 10 p.m. and a collectables sale from […]
CHICAGO — A Chicago law firm has filed four more lawsuits on behalf of passengers who were on board Amtrak’s Empire Builder when it derailed Sept. 25 in Joplin, Mont., killing three people. The new suits — involving Saint Matthew (Matt) Johnson, 40, of Seattle; Stuart and Karen Dixon, 60 and 57, of Berwyn, Pa.; […]
CHICAGO — The widow of a man killed in Saturday’s Empire Builder derailment in Montana has filed suit against Amtrak and BNSF railway for their alleged role in her husband’s death. Courthouse News Service reports Rebecca Schneider, wife of 28-year-old victim Zach Schneider, filed suit Tuesday in federal court in Chicago for unspecified damages. Zach […]
CUSTER, Wash. — BNSF Railway could face fines or other penalties for the December 2020 derailment and fire involving a unit oil train in Custer — even if vandalism or sabotage is the cause. The Bellingham (Wash.) Herald also reports a Washington state senator is calling for hearings on the derailment, citing the danger from […]
SEATTLE — Union Pacific will pay more than $80,000 in penalties, along with reimbursement of cleanup costs, in a settlement with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency over a 2016 derailment that spilled crude oil in the Columbia River Gorge near Mosier, Ore. The June 3, 2016, derailment saw 16 cars of a train with 96 […]
