Digest: Conservation groups ask STB for full environmental review of Tennessee Pass revival

American Whitewater logo

Monday midday rail news: Conservation groups ask for full environmental review before Tennessee Pass operations can resume Conservation group American Whitewater, joined by seven other organizations and almost 700 individuals, have asked the Surface Transportation Board to require a full Environmental Impact Statement for the resumption of rail service on Tennessee Pass. The Friday filing asks the […]

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NTSB: Brake and end-of-train device problems led to deadly Sherman Hill runaway (updated)

Overhead view of derailed train

WASHINGTON — A brake system failure — which included an air flow restriction and the failure of an end-of-train device to respond to an emergency brake command — was the probable cause of the October 2018 runaway and subsequent collision that killed two Union Pacific crewmen on Sherman Hill in Wyoming, the National Transportation Safety Board […]

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Digest: Biden executive order requires masks on trains, other forms of transportation

Masked people wait for train

Friday morning rail news:   Executive order requires masks on trains, transit, other modes of transportation President Joe Biden has signed an executive order mandating use of face coverings on trains, public transit, planes, intercity busses, and in airports, the Washington Post reports. The newspaper says that order and one signed Wednesday requiring masks on federal […]

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Union Pacific expects volume growth in 2021

Freight train on curve

OMAHA, Neb. — Union Pacific expects volume to increase by 4% to 6% this year as vaccines are rolled out, the economy recovers, and trucking capacity remains tight. Railroad executives gave their cautiously optimistic outlook Thursday morning during the company’s fourth-quarter earnings call. Other than energy-related traffic segments, UP has a positive view on volume. […]

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Rochelle, Ill. — a Midwest railroad hotspot for train watching

An orange painted diesel locomotive leads a train over a double-diamond.

Join Trains editors on a short tour of the best parts of Rochelle, Ill., for rail fans — the places where train horns sound often.  Rochelle is the crossroads of Union Pacific and BNSF Railway mainlines in the middle of Illinois, in the middle of the Midwest — ensuring dozens of a train a day […]

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Rochelle, Ill. — a Midwest railroad hotspot for train watching

An orange painted diesel locomotive leads a train over a double-diamond.

Join Trains editors on a short tour of the best parts of Rochelle, Ill., for rail fans — the places where train horns sound often.  Rochelle is the crossroads of Union Pacific and BNSF Railway mainlines in the middle of Illinois, in the middle of the Midwest — ensuring dozens of a train a day […]

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Class One Motive Power–an overview

Class One Motive Power Review Chapter 1

Kansas City Southern hasn’t purchased new locomotives since 2014 as the company has had ample power for its traffic levels with coal deliveries down across its core north-south mainline south of Kansas City. The railroad continues to upgrade its existing power, converting six (confirm) GP38-2s and GP40-2s to GP32ECOs using kits supplied from EMD. KCS […]

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Class One Motive Power–an overview

Class One Motive Power Review Chapter 1

Kansas City Southern hasn’t purchased new locomotives since 2014 as the company has had ample power for its traffic levels with coal deliveries down across its core north-south mainline south of Kansas City. The railroad continues to upgrade its existing power, converting six (confirm) GP38-2s and GP40-2s to GP32ECOs using kits supplied from EMD. KCS […]

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Member video: Union Pacific tours the S&P lines

Peter Atonna's Seligman and Paulden Lines

Name: Peter Atonna Railroad Name: Seligman and Paulden Lines Location: Arizona Scale: O Theme: Railroad running through Arizona serving its big and little towns Description: Union Pacific officials decided that since the S&P Lines furnish a good amount of traffic to the UP, they would do a tour of the railroad. Join them in the […]

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Member video: Union Pacific tours the S&P lines

Peter Atonna's Seligman and Paulden Lines

Name: Peter Atonna Railroad Name: Seligman and Paulden Lines Location: Arizona Scale: O Theme: Railroad running through Arizona serving its big and little towns Description: Union Pacific officials decided that since the S&P Lines furnish a good amount of traffic to the UP, they would do a tour of the railroad. Join them in the […]

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BNSF gains temporary trackage rights over UP routes in California

BNSF logo

WASHINGTON — Union Pacific has granted BNSF Railway temporary trackage rights over its lines between Stockton and Keddie, Calif., for the movement of unit ballast trains to and from a quarry at Elsey, Calif. The trackage rights, disclosed in a regulatory filing this week, cover UP’s Oakland, Sacramento, and Canyon subdivisions. The 187.5 miles of […]

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