Prototype News

By Justin Franz

The bright and colorful historic streetcars that rumble down San Francisco’s Market Street and along its waterfront could be on the chopping block as the city’s transportation agency faces a “fiscal cliff,” thanks to the state and federal governments cutting off pandemic-era funding. Market Street Railway, the non-profit that supports historic transit in San Francisco, has called the city’s financial issues the “gravest threat to vintage streetcar service since the permanent F-line opened almost 30 years ago.”

San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency officials have said that COVID-era funding could run out by mid-2026. Unless new revenue streams are identified, cuts could begin as soon as 2025. Compounding the issues are changing ridership patterns brought on by remote work and downtown San Francisco’s struggles to fill commercial space. SFMTA’s MUNI has identified several lightly used bus lines, the historic F-Line and the city’s three cable car lines as routes to possibly suspend. 

While officials with Market Street Railway said threatening the cable cars could be a red hearing to bring attention to how serious the cuts could be (President Rick Laubscher notes that continued operation of the cable cars is literally written into the city charter and incoming Mayor Daniel Lurie has said they’re “here to stay”), the F-Line is not so secure. The six-mile line connects the Embarcadero with the Castro neighborhood and features a large fleet of historic streetcars, mostly World War II-era PCCs. 

While MUNI officials have suggested the F-Line should be on the chopping block, Market Street Railway officials note that while it uses historic streetcars, it’s not just a tourist attraction and that many workers along the Embarcadero rely on it every day. Groups like the Chamber of Commerce and San Francisco Hotel Council are also coming out in support of the F-Line.

The post Budget Cuts Threaten San Francisco’s Historic F-Line appeared first on Railfan & Railroad Magazine.

By Railfan & Railroad Staff

After years of work and the construction of platforms to specifically serve Amtrak trains, the nation’s passenger railroad has told officials with Miami Intermodal Center that it will not be serving the station next to Miami International Airport. Miami Today reports that Amtrak informed officials in a letter in December that it was “currently not feasible” to serve the station even though all of the infrastructure needed to support Amtrak’s Silver Meteor and Floridian trains has been built. 

While commuter operator Tri-Rail will still use the station, some platforms specifically built for Amtrak will remain unused. Instead, Amtrak trains will continue to stop at Hialeah, nine miles from downtown. Among Amtrak’s excuses for not wanting to use the station at Miami International was that it would require a lengthy backup move to get to and that the lease terms for the facility were too much. 

Officials with the Florida Department of Transportation have said they are now looking for other ways to use the facility, including the platforms built to Amtrak standards. 

The post Amtrak Cancels Plans to Run to Miami International appeared first on Railfan & Railroad Magazine.

By Railfan & Railroad Staff 

A 125-year-old parlor car will be returning to the place it was built for permanent display, the Historic Pullman Foundation announced recently. Chicago, Rock Island & Pacific parlor car 699 was built in January 1900 and was recently donated to the Historic Pullman Foundation, the non-profit that supports the Pullman National Historical Park & State Historic Site near Chicago. 

The car will be relocated to the North Wing of the historic Pullman Factory once funding has been secured for environmental remediation of the site. The car was built during the heyday of luxury rail travel and officials said its presence at Pullman will deepen visitors’ understanding of this important chapter in history. 

“We owe a debt of gratitude to Dave Hoffman for the generous offer of this rare gem,” said Joseph C. Szabo, HPF board member and former head of the Federal Railroad Administration. “While the interior will need a full restoration, the frame and body are in remarkable shape for a railcar that is 125 years old.” 

The post Historic Parlor Car Donated to Pullman appeared first on Railfan & Railroad Magazine.

By Railfan & Railroad Staff

The U.S. Surface Transportation Board announced on January 2, that it had approved Carload Express’ plan to acquire Maryland & Delaware Railroad. Carload Express, which operates former Norfolk Southern trackage in Delaware as the Delmarva Central, will be able to assume control of the neighboring short line on January 31.

The plan includes outright acquisition of some track on the Snow Hill line and operating state-owned trackage on the Massey and Federalsburg lines. It’s expected that the Snow Hill line will be folded into Delmarva Central, while the other two routes will retain the MDDE name under the new operator. 

Parent company Carload Express Inc. operates two other railroads in addition to the Delmarva Central — Allegheny Valley Railroad and Southwest Pennsylvania Railroad, serving western Pennsylvania. MDDE began operations in 1977 to operate several former Penn Central branch lines that were not included in the formation of Conrail. It is headquartered in Federalsburg, Md.

The post STB Approves Carload Express Takeover of Maryland & Delaware appeared first on Railfan & Railroad Magazine.

By Railfan & Railroad Staff

The Reading & Northern announced that former Reading Company 4-8-4 2102 will lead at least four Iron Horse Rambles excursions in 2025, including a rare wintertime trip from Reading to Jim Thorpe, Pa., on February 8. Tickets for all four of the announced excursions went on sale on Friday. 

The Iron Horse Rambles excursions are planned for May 24 (Reading to Jim Thorpe), June 21 (Nesquehoning to Tunkhannock), and August 23 (Nesquehoning to Pittston). New this year, passengers on the trips to Jim Thorpe will have the option of riding the “wye move” to turn the train during its layover, giving those who stay onboard the chance to get some rare mileage. 

R&N officials said additional steam excursions would be announced for the fall. They also said that Reading & Northern 4-6-2 425 was expected to join 2102 in service following an overhaul. Locomotive 2102 has been in service since 2022.

The post Tickets Go On Sale For Rare Winter Excursion Behind Reading 2102 appeared first on Railfan & Railroad Magazine.

By Railfan & Railroad Staff

The effort to transfer the operation of Union Pacific’s three commuter lines in the Chicago area to Metra has been delayed again.

In early 2023,  it was announced that Metra would assume services on the three lines including train crew, mechanical, car cleaning, rolling stock maintenance, ticket sales and some engineering duties. The tracks themselves, however, would still be owned by UP. Commuter service in Chicago is unusual in that Metra operates some routes and others are operated by freight railroads under contract for Metra. For example, UP operates the Union Pacific West (to Elburn, Ill.), Northwest (to McHenry and Harvard, Ill.) and North (to Kenosha, Wis) lines and BNSF Railway operates the BNSF Line to Aurora, Ill. While Metra owns the equipment, the UP and BNSF logos sometimes appear on signage and timetables. UP has operated its three lines since 1995 when it took over the Chicago & North Western. The freight railroad is paid $100 million annually to operate the commuter services. 

UP was expected to hand off commuter operations to Metra in early 2023 and then late 2024. In fact, some employees (specifically mechanical and storehouse employees) have already become Metra employees. But in a filing in December, UP officials told the U.S. Surface Transportation Board that the two parties needed more time. Attorneys for UP said the Class I and Metra remained “actively engaged” in the process and hoped to find a resolution by the end of January.

The post Handoff of UP Lines to Metra Delayed Again appeared first on Railfan & Railroad Magazine.

By Justin Franz 

As the year draws to a close, the editors of Railfan & Railroad Magazine are looking at some of the biggest stories in railroading in 2024. Be sure to check Railfan.com every weekday all year long for all your (free) railroad news and if you like what you see, consider subscribing. 

It’s hard to deny that the 2020s are becoming a golden era for railroad preservation, from main line steam locomotives crossing the continent to long-awaited diesel restorations reaching the finish line. This year, there was no shortage of exciting news from the world of heritage railroading. 

On the main line steam side of things, a Canadian 4-6-4 and an American 4-8-8-4 stole the show. In April, Canadian Pacific 2816 embarked on one of the most ambitious steam tours in the preservation era: a nearly 10,000-mile journey from Calgary to Mexico City and return. By almost every measure, the tour was a wild success and hopes are high that this regal Canadian will again return to the High Iron in the future. Meanwhile, Union Pacific “Big Boy” 4014 returned to the main line in a big way with two tours that brought the locomotive from California to Chicago and dozens of points in between. 

Woodstown Central 0-6-0 9 returned to steam in New Jersey for the first time in decades. Photo by Steve Barry. 

There were plenty of smaller steam locomotives also earning their keep in 2024, including a few that made a triumphant return this year after spending time out of the spotlight, including a 2-8-2 tank engine in British Columbia, a narrow gauge Mike in Alaska, and an 0-6-0 in New Jersey.  

This year, a number of major steam restorations were also announced, ensuring that there will be plenty of exciting steam news in the years to come. Among the locomotives that could soon be making headlines include a Great Northern 4-6-2, a CP Pacific, and a log-hauling 2-8-2 in Washington State. But the most anticipated announcements came in the east with news that New York Central 4-8-2 3001 and Chesapeake & Ohio 4-8-4 614 were both being readied for the main line.

Diesels and electric locomotives also got their due in 2024. This year, two different groups saved two different Amtrak AEM-7 locomotives. The VIA Historical Association put the finishing touches on its FP9. A Santa Fe B40-8W was returned to its famed warbonnet scheme. Two Boston & Maine diesels made news in New England. A Norfolk & Western GP9 was saved in Virginia. Two Delaware & Hudson RS-3s found a new home in New York. The famed Flying Yankee moved to the Conway Scenic ahead of a long-awaited restoration. A Western Pacific GP35 ran again in Utah. And an Amtrak F40PH sported its iconic Phase III colors again in Nevada. 

For fans of traction, there was plenty to celebrate. The National Capital Trolley Museum saved a rare “Auto-Railer.” San Francisco’s MUNI got a third “Boat Tram.” And PCC streetcars finally returned to regular revenue service in Philadelphia. 

On the rolling stock side, a historic Virginia & Truckee combine came home to Nevada. N&W and NYC sleeping cars got a new lease on life. A Maine Central plow was restored in Connecticut. And two vintage Rio Grande flangers were put to good use in Utah. 

VIA Rail FP9 6539 was restored by the VIA Historical Association in 2024. Photo by Kevin J. Holland. 

The post Railnews Review 2024: Another Big Year For Rail Preservation appeared first on Railfan & Railroad Magazine.

By Justin Franz

As the year draws to a close, the editors of Railfan & Railroad Magazine are looking at some of the biggest stories in railroading in 2024. Be sure to check Railfan.com every weekday all year long for all your (free) railroad news and if you like what you see, consider subscribing. 

The last 12 months were far from perfect for North America’s six Class I railroads; there was still labor drama, natural disasters and executives brought down by personal shortcomings. But when compared to the previous two years, 2024 was pretty calm. 

In 2022, the headline that ended the year was “Class Is in Crisis.” Service issues had brought the nation’s rail network to its knees and as a result, the U.S. Surface Transportation Board led by Martin J. Obermann brought the CEOs of some of the biggest railroads to Washington D.C. for a contentious and at-times heated series of meetings. “We are in absolute gridlock,” said one railroader. 

The following year, in 2023, service was improving but now safety was the concern, following a series of high-profile derailments that made national news. None was more dramatic than the wreck of a Norfolk Southern train in East Palestine, Ohio, in February that resulted in congressional hearings about the state of the nation’s rail system. 

In between all of that was also a series of major mergers and acquisitions that would dramatically alter the map, including CSX’s acquisition of Pan Am Railways, BNSF retaking Montana Rail Link, and the granddaddy of them all, Canadian Pacific’s deal to acquire Kansas City Southern to create a new railroad: CPKC. 

This year, there were considerably fewer transactions and none of them dramatically altered the map. Canadian National is still awaiting approval from the STB to take control of Iowa Northern (it’s unclear what the delay is). And CSX and CPKC took over a short line in Alabama to create a more direct link to Mexico (in return, Genesee & Wyoming got a new railroad in Alberta). 

Regulators in Washington D.C. were busy this year, although mostly in response to the drama of 2022 and 2023. On the service side, the STB streamlined the process for which a shipper can request emergency service and approved new rules regarding reciprocal switching. Meanwhile, the Federal Railroad Administration released a long-awaited rule requiring at least two crew members aboard most freight trains. 

Elsewhere in Washington D.C., Congress considered giving Amtrak the ability to sue Class I railroads when they needlessly delay passenger trains. And the FRA did just that in July when it alleged that Norfolk Southern was violating federal laws when it gave its trains priority over Amtrak. 

Perhaps no one had a more memorable year among the Class I executives than NS’ Alan Shaw. In May, he survived a proxy fight from a group of shareholders who said he wasn’t doing enough to make the railroad profitable and safe. But in September, he was forced to step down after it was revealed he had violated company policy when he engaged in a consensual relationship with the railroad’s chief legal officer. He was replaced by Mark R. George, who was previously the company’s executive vice president and chief financial officer. 

In Canada, both CN and CPKC had their own personnel challenges during a contentious round of labor talks that broke down and resulted in a 17-hour lockout in August. The Canadian government later forced arbitration. 

No year in railroading is complete without its share of mishaps and disasters. Some occurred off the property, such as when CSX and NS had to divert traffic around Baltimore when a ship ran into a bridge there. Others were acts of God, like a wildfire in Alberta and a hurricane that ravaged the southeast. And others were just plain bizarre, like when a teenager wrecked a train for YouTube views. 

What the new year will hold is anyone’s guess. Overall, freight traffic is up 3.3 percent over the previous year, according to the Association of American Railroads. But that growth is due primarily to intermodal (up 9.2 percent) and carload numbers remain sluggish (down 3.2 percent). With the threat of tariffs against Mexico, Canada and China in the new year — countries that account for a sizeable percentage of rail traffic here in the U.S. — it’s unclear how that will impact the industry. And when one looks at the wider picture — stagnant volumes and revenues over the last decade — it’s even less clear what the future holds. In the end, 2024 could go down as a brief reprieve during a turbulent era.

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