Passengers await the arrival of an airport-bound Denver A Line train at the 40th Avenue-Airport Boulevard station on Oct. 1, 2018. Denver’s RTD says it may cancel the operating contract for the commuter trains. TRAINS: David Lassen DENVER — In a further deterioration of the relationship between the two parties, Denver’s Regional Transportation District has […]
Metra director of strategic planning Lynette Ciavarella explains the railroad’s plan to add reverse commute trains on Milwaukee District North line. METRA webcast image CHICAGO — Metra and officials in Lake County, Ill., have agreed to share the $1.4-million cost of test-launching two new reverse-commute trains on Metra’s Milwaukee District North line serving Chicago’s north […]
It’s a blustery fall day as Amtrak’s westbound Southwest Chief makes the station stop at Lamy, N.M., the railhead for passengers to and from Santa Fe. William P. Diven Harvey the station cat named for Santa Fe Railway icon Fred Harvey tolerates attention from Steven Lucero, one of the volunteers staffing the Lamy, N.M., depot […]
ARDMORE, Okla. — A track washout in southern Oklahoma delayed passengers traveling to Oklahoma City from Dallas-Fort Worth on Amtrak’s Heartland Flyer. Heavy rains late Sunday afternoon damaged the tracks between Gene Autry and Davis. At 5:15 p.m., the National Weather Service issued a tornado warning for Carter County. KFOR News 4 reported that the […]
DALLAS — Texas Central, developers of the high-speed train, has engaged the global construction and engineering firm Salini Impregilo ¬(operating in the U.S. market with The Lane Construction Corp.) to lead the civil construction consortium that will build the Texas passenger line. The selection of the Italian firm, one of the largest civil engineering contractors […]
Bob Johnston/ TRAINS: Steve Sweeney JASPER, Alta. — VIA Rail Canada will drastically alter the Canadian’s train’s schedule and days of operation next spring and summer. Beginning April 29, 2019, westbound and May 1 eastbound, VIA’s Toronto to Vancouver, B.C., flagship train will revert to tri-weekly service after the bi-weekly cutback ends, but only on […]
The New Mexico Railrunner won’t make extra trips this year for the balloon festival. Trains: Jim Wrinn Albuquerque, N.M. — Visitors to the Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta Oct. 6-14 will have to look for a different option if they intended to take the Railrunner train to this year’s event. In the past, the Santa Fe-to-Albuquerque […]
A Railway Post Office clerk looks out from a doorway during a stop at Waterloo, Iowa, in April 1967. The train is Illinois Central’s Sioux City–Chicago Hawkeye. Philip R. Hastings photo […]
Milwaukee Road’s westbound Morning Hiawatha pauses at Portage, Wis., in October 1965. Tucked behind the E units are several head-end cars, including a Great Northern express boxcar, Milwaukee express boxcar, and GN baggage express car. Tom Hoffmann photo […]
LAS VEGAS, Nev. — Florida’s Brightline announced Tuesday that it intends to compete in the heavily traveled Las Vegas-Los Angeles Basin market by acquiring XpressWest. That company won the right from the Nevada High Speed Rail Authority in 2015 to build a 220-mile route adjacent to Interstate 15 from Las Vegas to Victorville, Calif. A […]
WASHINGTON, D.C. — In written testimony at last week’s congressional hearing on positive train control, Amtrak backed away from earlier statements indicating it would not operate on lines without PTC. The written testimony by Scot Naparstek, Amtrak’s chief operating officer, was offered at the Sept. 13 hearing of the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure’s […]
An artist’s conception of the Avelia Liberty trainset. Amtrak/Alstom Merrill Technologies and Alstom personnel pose with the first completed Avelia Liberty power car shell. Pete Hudeck, Merrill Technologies NEW YORK — The Avelia Liberty, the next-generation high speed trainset for Amtrak’s Northeast Corridor service, reached a construction milestone this week, as the first body shell […]
