Indiana’s Railroad Open House welcomes over 2,500 visitors

Steam locomotive pulls excursion train with grain elevator in the background.

HUDSON, Ind. — The locomotive maintenance facility of the Indiana Northeastern Railroad Co. in Hudson was a beehive of activity over the weekend as historic steam locomotives, vintage diesels, and over 2,500 attendees swarmed around what was the first Railroad Open House. The July 29-30 event headlined the summer for the 2023 Indiana Rail Experience, […]

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Lake Superior & Ishpeming’s locomotives: ‘Greens’ to become backup power

Two green GE diesel locomotives pull train of ore hoppers past lake

Lake Superior & Ishpeming’s locomotives The writing has been on the wall for years. Fifteen years ago, in Trains’ April 2008 issue, David Lustig warned of the demise of Lake Superior & Ishpeming’s venerable fleet of former Burlington Northern General Electric U30C and C30-7 locomotives. Now, that time appears to have arrived at the short […]

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Canada’s Cando Rail to develop battery switcher

Green and gray switching locomotive with extended-height cab

EDMONTON, Alberta — Cando Rail & Terminals — the Canadian company which operates shortlines, terminals and transload facilities, and handles industrial switching, among a wide variety of rail services — will develop a battery-electric switcher. The company announced Thursday that it plans to retrofit a legacy, non-tier compliant diesel with a lithium-ion propulsion system for […]

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Genesee & Wyoming Canada acquires BMS Locomotive Services

Logo of BMS Locomotive Service, acquired by Genesee & Wyoming Canada

EDMONTON, Alberta — Genesee & Wyoming Canada has completed acquisition of BMS Locomotive Service group, the company announced Thursday. The firm based in Edmonton has offered locomotive inspection, maintenance, refurbishment, and repair services in Western Canada for more than 20 years. It has 10 employees. “The addition of BMS enhances G&W Canada’s suite of services […]

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Vermont Rail System repairs continue

Aerial view of landslide under railroad tracks

RUTLAND, Vt. — Vermont Rail System continues to make progress in repairs to flood damage sustained by its lines earlier this month, company president Selden Houghton told a local news site on Wednesday. “Hopefully, by next week, we’ll be 100% put back together,” Houghton said in a phone interview with the VTDigger. Houghton detailed the […]

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Four operating steam locomotives to headline Indiana’s Railroad Open House

People gather around a steam locomotive during an event

HUDSON, Ind. — The Indiana Northeastern Railroad Co. is scheduled to host the first Railroad Open House at its locomotive maintenance facility in Hudson this upcoming weekend. The July 29-30 event will see more than 1,000 visitors and passengers help celebrate over 130 years of regional history. “The railroad first came to Hudson in 1893 […]

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NTSB releases preliminary report on MRL bridge-collapse derailment

Photo of damaged bridge and tank cars in river

WASHINGTON — Sixteen tank cars, 15 of them carrying hazardous materials, derailed in the Montana Rail Link incident involving the Reed Point bridge collapse on June 24, the National Transportation Safety Board said in its preliminary report on the incident released on Monday. The NTSB’s investigation is only considering the performance of DOT-111 tank cars […]

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Rebuilt Montana Rail Link bridge over Yellowstone River opens to traffic

Montana Rail Link’s main line was put back into service on Saturday after the rebuilt Reed Point bridge over the Yellowstone River was reopened more than a week ahead of estimates. The bridge collapsed on June 24, sending 10 cars into the river and derailing an additional seven cars. Asphalt was released into the river […]

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Class I power finds its way back into the fold

Two red locomotives leading freight train in flat territory.

The traditional life cycle for new locomotives on a Class I roster would be revenue service, followed by lease return if the railroad leased the power or retirement and sale if they were purchased. In a handful of cases, power that departed a Class I roster will find its way back into its original owner’s […]

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Nickel Plate Road No. 765 to power Fall Color Trains in Indiana and Michigan

Steam locomotive waiting to depart during a fall day.

STEUBEN COUNTY, Ind. — Tickets have been released for the Fall Color Trains, scheduled to operate in Northeast Indiana and Southeast Michigan this October. Nickel Plate Road steam locomotive No. 765 of the Fort Wayne Railroad Historical Society will serve as the main motive power for these all-day, round-trip excursions on the Indiana Northeastern Railroad […]

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Arcade & Attica acquires Alco RS3, will relegate center cabs to lesser roles

Two orange and black center-cab diesels and one black and yellow road switcher

ARCADE, N.Y. — The Arcade & Attica Railroad is set to replace its distinctive GE center-cab locomotives, a hallmark of the railroad for almost 80 years, with the arrival of Alco RS3U No. 406. The Alco, acquired earlier in the year from the Western New York & Pennsylvania Railroad in Olean, N.Y., arrived on the […]

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Steam locomotive No. 765 plays host to young campers

Steam engine crosses railroad crossing

PLEASANT LAKE, Ind. — Nickel Plate Road No. 765 was under steam July 13-15 as the centerpiece of the first Indiana Railcamp in Pleasant Lake. Organized by the Fort Wayne Railroad Historical Society under the Indiana Rail Experience banner, this pilot program hosted 20 campers — ranging between ages 13 and 17 — from the […]

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