David Lassen

No injuries as BNSF intermodal train derails near Barstow About 15 cars of a BNSF Railway intermodal train derailed Thursday at Jimgray, Calif., about 24 miles northwest of Barstow on the railroad’s Mojave Subdivision. The San Bernardino County Fire Department reports on Twitter that it responded to the accident about 6 a.m., but there were [...]Read More...

WASHINGTON — Amtrak and Siemens Mobility have reached agreement on contracts for 73 to 83 new trainsets to replace Amfleet I and related equipment on Northeast Corridor and state-supported services. A press release from Siemens characterizes the deal as worth $3.4 billion, while Amtrak says the agreement is for $7.3 billion, including a long [...]Read More...

ANTONITO, Colo. — The Colorado Railroad Museum’s Rio Grande Southern 4-6-0 No. 20 has arrived at the Cumbres & Toltec Scenic Railroad for its visit including a role in the upcoming Victorian Iron Horse Roundup. The locomotive, restored to operation in 2020,. arrived Sunday by truck from the museum in Golden, Colo. (The tender will [...]Read More...

WASHINGTON — The U.S. Army needs to act to ensure it is able to move equipment by rail in case of a large-scale mobilization, the Government Accountability Office says in a report issued earlier this month, and also needs to address widespread track issues with Army-controlled rail lines. A summary of the report is here, [...]Read More...

MONTREAL — Commuter rail operator Exo has ordered 10 Siemens Charger locomotives to replace its older locomotives with more fuel-efficient and environmentally friendly motive power. “We are excited to partner with Exo and look forward to working with them to modernize their fleet with the latest in sustainable and intelligent rail technology. Our industry leading [...]Read More...

Traveling Dallas-Fort Worth by rail is now easier. Senior Editor David Lassen tells about circumnavigating the Metroplex by rail transit.

NEW YORK — Excessive work hours pose a high safety risk for many Long Island Rail Road workers, the Office of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority Inspector General says in a report issued Thursday. The audit, addressing hours for workers not covered by Federal Railroad Administration hours-of-service regulations, found that engineering department employees, particularly track workers, [...]Read More...

OTTAWA — The Canadian government’s slow-moving process of developing its proposed High-Frequency Rail passenger route between Toronto and Quebec City is taking its next step. Transport Minister Pablo Rodriguez announced Friday the start of the Request for Proposals process for the rail project, with a deadline announced only as “summer 2024.” Those proposals will come [...]Read More...

CHICAGO — Metra’s board of directors has approved a 2024 budget that significantly revises the commuter rail agency’s fare structure and eliminates some discount passes introduced in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. The board on Friday approve a $1.1 billion operating budget, a 4.9% increase over the 2023 budget (excluding $65 million to be [...]Read More...

WASHINGTON — Chicago Union Station will receive a $93.6 million grant for modernization, part of the Chicago Hub Improvement Program outlined earlier this year by federal, state, local, and Amtrak officials. U.S. Sens. Dick Durbin and Tammy Duckworth, and U.S. Rep. Mike Quigley (all D-Ill.), announced the funding today (Wednesday, Dec. 6). Money will come [...]Read More...

WASHINGTON — The Federal Railroad Administration has released its list of routes selected for the first step of its Corridor Identification and Development Program, a catch-all group of 69 potential future Amtrak routes, possible extensions to existing routes, efforts to increase service on existing routes, and future high speed rail systems. Thirty-three of these routes [...]Read More...

WASHINGTON — The Federal Railroad Administration has issued an emergency order shutting down the Blackwell Northern Gateway Railroad, a 37-mile, Class III short line in Oklahoma, saying the railroad is “operating with a complete disregard for the safety of the public and has not taken corrective action to resolve safety issues … posing imminent risks [...]Read More...

CHICAGO — Jim Derwinski hates the phrase “that’s the way we’ve always done it.” At a Wednesday presentation for Northwestern University’s Sandhouse Rail Group, Derwinski, Metra’s CEO/Executive Director, illustrated why that’s the case, and the potential that comes from putting that approach in the past. “Here’s a little story about where we’re not going to [...]Read More...

WASHINGTON — When the Surface Transportation Board names the members of its first Rail Passenger Advisory Committee, it will be worth remembering that the competition for places among the panels 18 voting members was fiercer for some seats than for others. As outlined in the January call for nominations, the panel has a very specific [...]Read More...

BOSTON — The Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority could become the second transit agency in the U.S. to operate battery-electric commuter trains under a proposal put forth by its contract operator, Keolis, to increase service on the MBTA’s Fairmount line. Bid solicitation documents posted Friday on the MBTA website seek a fleet of battery-electric multiple unit [...]Read More...

FORT MADISON, Iowa — BNSF Railway’s bridge across the Mississippi River between Fort Madison and Niota, Ill., was briefly closed today after having been struck by a barge, but has been reopened, according to authorities. The Hancock County (Ill.) Sheriff’s Office reported the closure at about 1:40 p.m.; police in Fort Madison posted on Facebook [...]Read More...

WASHINGTON — A communication breakdown over granting permission for a train movement into the yard, as well as regarding placement of a portable derail device, was the probable cause of the August 2022 fatality of a Union Pacific conductor at a yard in El Paso, Texas, the National Transportation Safety Board determined in its final [...]Read More...

KENNETT SQUARE, Pa. — Regional Rail LLC has added to its holdings in the Midwest with acquisition of the Cincinnati Eastern Railroad, a 70-mile Ohio short line, the company has announced. The company now has seven railroads in Ohio, Indiana, and Illinois. “The Regional Rail team and I are delighted to partner with the team [...]Read More...