Railfan & Railroad Magazine

20/02/2024

The Reading and Northern Railroad is preparing for a busy season of excursions with vintage diesels, RDCs and steam.

Trips will run to Jim Thorpe, Pa., from Reading and Pittston.

19/02/2024

MARCH 2024: Ted Benson returns to the Land of Enchantment to record the last of the former Santa Fe semaphores before they are replaced with more modern fixtures. This in-depth black & white photo essay will transport you trackside to the beautiful and dramatic landscapes of New Mexico. Dan Kawrciany takes us on a tour of the railroad action in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, while managing editor Otto Vondrak reports on the herculean effort put forth by Danbury Railway Museum to secure two historic New York Central electric locomotives. All this plus our special Along The Line photo gallery in the March issue of Railfan & Railroad!

16/02/2024

A pair of ex-New Haven FL9s a long way from home in Texas will be leading a season of excursions in Texas beginning this weekend on the Grapevine Vintage Railroad.

Texas excursion railroad to offer a full schedule in 2024.

15/02/2024

The Colorado Railroad Museum has recruited Erin Johnson Schmitz as its new Director of Collections to help better interpret its collections for a changing audience.

Erin Johnson Schmitz was hired to help the museum better interpret its vast collection.

14/02/2024

The Pennsylvania Trolley Museum is celebrating its 70th anniversary in 2024 with a series of major events throughout the year, including the upcoming West Penn Trolley Meet in June.

The biennial West Penn Trolley Meet will be the first to feature the new Welcome and Education Center, which opened in late 2023.

13/02/2024

Amtrak has selected Kiewit/J.F. Shea Joint Venture to build the brand new, state-of-the-art passenger rail tunnel that will serve electrified Amtrak and MARC commuter trains on the Northeast Corridor in Baltimore.

Construction on the new Frederick Douglass Tunnel in Baltimore is set to begin in 2026.

12/02/2024

Amtrak is advancing several key initiatives in 2024 as part of the railroad’s ambitious goal of doubling annual ridership to 66 million by Fiscal Year 2040. An expansion of service to new routes will be a major part of that effort, the railroad announced on January 31.

Amtrak hopes to double its ridership to 66 million passengers annually in the next 16 years.

09/02/2024

The Shelburne Falls Trolley Museum is expanding its car barn to protect and restore two newly acquired pieces of equipment: a maintenance of way “line car” and a rare Berkshire Street Railway parlor car.

The museum says car barn extension will help it care for two new acquisitions: a line car and a rare parlor car.

09/02/2024

Recently, a friend asked an online railway enthusiast group for some help finding photos of a particular locomotive in the late 1960s. In response, one member of that group replied, “There are these things called ‘books.’” This was half in jest, but it got me thinking — we have a serious problem with access to good railroading books in our hobby...

A recent discussion got me thinking how we have a serious problem with access to good railroading books in our hobby.

08/02/2024

Amtrak officials tell Railfan & Railroad Magazine that upwards of a dozen P42 locomotives could be painted into the new Phase VII scheme this year. Details here.

The new scheme that was first introduced on ALC-42 locomotives is being rolled out on older locomotives and rolling stock.

08/02/2024

The Raritan River Railroad was a feisty short line in New Jersey, jointly owned by the Pennsylvania Railroad and the Central Railroad of New Jersey. It operated from South Amboy to New Brunswick, with roots dating back to 1888. In the 1950s, the railroad dieselized with the purchase of six EMD SW-900s. These units would serve the railroad reliably for the next three decades. Unlike most railroads in the region, the Raritan River was profitable through the 1970s...

In 1980, about four years after it got out of being absorbed into Conrail, the Raritan River finally became part of the Class I.

07/02/2024

More than a year after announcing that it had struck a deal to restore passenger rail service to the Gulf Coast, Amtrak trains have yet to return to the rails east of New Orleans.

In an update to the U.S. Surface Transportation Board, Amtrak and railroad officials said they were still working out details.

07/02/2024

While you may choose southern Idaho as the place to hunker down, you will undoubtedly visit the panhandle numerous times — the forested hills and mountains; the streams and lakes; the trails, back roads, wildlife, and small towns; the trains. Wait, trains?

Travel west for a look at the two personalities of Idaho railroads, from the arid southern region to the mountainous and forested northern panhandle.

06/02/2024

In an emergency order posted this week, the FRA alleged that the continued operation of the Blackwell Northern Gateway Railroad posed an “imminent threat” to public safety.

FRA officials said multiple Blackwell Northern Gateway trains have derailed and that management provided false documentation to inspectors.

06/02/2024

Based in California and standing tall at six-foot-six, Stein blazed a trail of creative photography for more than six decades, pioneering styles and perspectives that today are commonplace. In a time when railroad action photographs were defined entirely by the three-quarter angle view, Steinheimer’s dynamic photojournalism was alive with constantly changing angles, spectacular scenery, poignant human interest, lineside character, detail views, and moody atmosphere...

The Center for Railroad Photography & Art dives into the collection of Richard Steinheimer, arguably the greatest western railroad photographer of the 20th century.

06/02/2024

Steam Railroading Institute, operator of Pere Marquette 2-8-4 1225, said the locomotive is ready for a busy season of operation after receiving its first complete running gear overhaul since the steam era.

Last year the locomotive received its first complete running gear overhaul since the steam era.

05/02/2024

Rain and landslides along the California coast have disrupted Amtrak service on its 'Pacific Surfliner' route.

Amtrak was canceling some 'Pacific Surfliner' runs due to the record-breaking deluge.

05/02/2024

The Reading & Northern Railroad reported a significant jump in freight and passenger traffic in 2023 for the second year in a row.

Pennsylvania short line moved more than 37,000 carloads in 2023, up from 33,000 the year before.

05/02/2024

The sun slowly rises over the paper mill town of Baileyville, Maine. This small town is one of the first places in the continental U.S. that the sun will hit. While the sun rises, the steady hum of equipment originating from the sprawling pulp and tissue mill cannot be ignored. In between semi-trucks transporting chips and finished products, two vehicles roll into the parking lot of the old Maine Central freight house...

Venture east to for a look at changing times in Downeast Maine as a former Maine Central branch finds new life under New Brunswick Southern.

04/02/2024

FEBRUARY 2024: We journey to Downeast Maine to visit a former Maine Central branch line serving the pulp and paper industry now thriving under New Brunswick Southern operation. Woodland Rail straddles the international border between Maine and New Brunswick, and provides stunning photographic opportunities for the adventurous railfan. Ron Flanary recalls his first railfan trip to Atlanta, Georgia, in 1966, while Brice Douglas takes us for a wild ride chasing steam in Thailand by motorbike! Steve Jessup tells the stories of railfanning in "two Idahos" while Michael Murray takes us on a tour of busy Shenandoah Junction in West Virginia. All this and more in the February issue of Railfan & Railroad!

02/02/2024

ICYMI: The celebratory tour, dubbed the “Final Spike Anniversary Steam Tour,” will take the 1930-built locomotive to parts of the continent that haven’t seen steam in decades.

Canadian Pacific 2816 will kick off its tri-nation tour in Calgary on April 24 and arrive in Mexico City on June 4.

02/02/2024

Iowa Northern Railway could become part of Canadian National before fall if a timeline put forth by the Class I railroad is approved by the U.S. Surface Transportation Board.

Canadian National presented a timeline that would see Iowa Northern taken over by the Class I on or after August 25.

01/02/2024

A preview of what we're working on for the April issue in coordination with our friends at the Center for Railroad Photography & Art!

All of us at the Center are pretty excited to see Canadian Pacific 2816 when it comes through Wisconsin on the CPKC tour this spring. Our Jim Shaughnessy Collection contains a few photographs of 2816 in regular service, including this scene from Montréal in 1959. If you want to see more of Shaughnessy's extraordinary coverage of Canadian steam, be sure to pick up a copy of the April issue of Railfan & Railroad Magazine when it comes out; it will feature a gallery of Jim's work prepared by Justin Franz and Scott Lothes. (Shaughnessy-N-CP-0400)

01/02/2024

On this day in 1968, New York Central merged with Pennyslvania Railroad to form Penn Central. In 1969, the New Haven Railroad was added to create a 20,000 mile system connecting the Northeast with the Midwest. It's colossal corporate bankruptcy would set in motion the steps leading to the creation of Amtrak in 1971 and Conrail in 1976. Enjoy this free sample from our February 2018 issue...

The New York Central merged with the Pennsylvania Railroad on February 1, 1968 to create the mighty Penn Central. The new company hoped to integrate the two railroads immediately and quickly realize some of the merger’s expected cost-savings. Instead, Penn Central was in operational chaos almost f...

01/02/2024

Metra announced in January that it was making a pandemic-era rule about bikes on trains permanent and that it would soon be installing new bike racks on railcars across its system.

Bikes have been allowed in the ADA seating area on Metra trains since 2005, but for most of that time they were restricted to non-rush period trains.

01/02/2024

A massive 2-10-4 locomotive that once ran on the Bessemer & Lake Erie has arrived at its new home, the Age of Steam Roundhouse in Ohio.

The locomotive will be put on display along with the rest of the former Ohio Central steam fleet.

31/01/2024

BREAKING NEWS: CPKC announced Wednesday that Canadian Pacific H1b 4-6-4 2816 would kick off its ambitious tri-nation tour in Calgary, Alberta, on April 24, and arrive in Mexico City on June 4.

Canadian Pacific 2816 will kick off its tri-nation tour in Calgary on April 24 and arrive in Mexico City on June 4.