Railnews from Railfan & Railroad Magazine

Reading Company 4-8-4 2100, currently being restored by the American Steam Railroad Preservation Association (ASRPA), will be the headliner of the Cleveland Railroad Festival on June 27. It will be the first time in nearly 20 years that the engine will be fired up in public.

The event is being held in coordination with the Midwest Railway Preservation Society and Cleveland History Days. It will run from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m., and tickets will be $25 for those 13 and up, and $10 for children ages 5-12 (children under 5 are free). It will feature roundhouse tours and whistle demonstrations.

“This is the first time in nearly 20 years that locomotive No. 250 will be fired up for a public event,” said Nick Martin, ASRPA social media chairperson. “We couldn’t be more thrilled to collaborate with MRPS and CHD to steam up this patriotic engine for the public this summer, showcasing what the last 11 years of generous support have made possible.”

Reading 2100 was built in the railroad’s own shops in September 1945 by essentially expanding an existing Baldwin 2-8-0. The locomotive ran into the 1960s. In 1975, it and its sister locomotive, 2101, were purchased by Ross Rowland. Locomotive 2101 was restored for the American Freedom Train, while 2100 served as a parts source. Locomotive 2100 was briefly restored in the 1980s, then moved to Ontario and Washington state, where it ran briefly in the 2000s. In 2015, the locomotive was moved to Ohio for restoration by ASRPA. To mark the 250th anniversary of the United States, the locomotive is being renumbered 250 and painted into American Freedom Train colors.

Donations can be mailed to the American Steam Railroad Preservation Association, 2800 W. 3rd St., Cleveland, OH 44113, or made online at www.americansteamrailroad.org.

—Justin Franz 

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Canyon Spirit, the luxury tour train in Colorado and Utah, derailed on May 6 after striking a tanker truck carrying hot asphalt near Rifle, Colo. 

More than 300 people were on the train at the time of the collision. No passengers or crew members were injured, but the truck driver sustained “minor to moderate” injuries. The passengers were taken off the train and bused to their final destination of Moab, Utah.

Images of the derailment show that the lead unit suffered damage to the front end and that both locomotives and a handful of passenger cars were off the rails. The derailment occurred on single track and was impacting both freight and passenger service. It was unclear when the route would reopen. 

—Justin Franz 

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Connecticut’s Naugatuck Railroad has painted its U23B into a semiquincentennial livery inspired by the Delaware & Hudson’s bicentennial units.

U23B 2798 was built for Conrail in June 1977 and is notable for being the last Universal Series locomotive General Electric ever built. The engine was later sold to the Providence & Worcester and renumbered 2203. It was acquired by the Naugatuck in 2003 and retained its Providence & Worcester number until this spring.

Naugatuck employees drew inspiration from the D&H, which painted a U23B and RS-3m into a similar scheme in the mid-1970s. While the D&H versions had three stars under the cab, the Naugatuck chose to place five to represent Connecticut as the fifth state to ratify the U.S. Constitution. The engine also pays homage to the railroad’s late shop cat, Turbo, who died earlier this year. Turbo’s outline is on the long hood, along with the words “Spirit of Turbo.”

The engine is expected to enter regular service on May 7. The Naugatuck Railroad is a common-carrier short line owned by the nonprofit Railroad Museum of New England that provides freight and excursion service. 

—Railfan & Railroad Staff

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With Canadian National seeking to abandon part of its former BC Rail route between Squamish and 100 Mile House, B.C., Rocky Mountaineer has announced that 2026 will likely be the last season for its Rainforest to Gold Rush route.

Ever since CN first announced last year that it was considering discontinuing service on the line, many have assumed that Rocky Mountaineer would also suspend its run between Vancouver and Jasper via Prince George. However, Rocky Mountaineer officials had not formally commented on the matter until now.

The specific routes in question include the Squamish Subdivision from MP 43.0 at Thompson, B.C., to MP 157.6 at Lillooet, and the Lillooet Subdivision from MP 157.6 to MP 257.0, north of Edmond, B.C. In April 2020, CN abolished freight service on the Lillooet Subdivision, between Williams Lake and Lillooet, and the Squamish Subdivision between Lillooet and Squamish. The remaining traffic in Williams Lake and points north, destined for the Vancouver area, is routed via CN’s main line from Prince George. The seasonal Rainforest to Gold Rush is the only remaining through train on the line.

Rocky Mountaineer has operated on the line since 2006, two years after CN purchased the former BCR. What began as two routes — the one-day Whistler Sea to Sky Climb between North Vancouver and Whistler, and the two-day Fraser Discovery Route between Whistler and Jasper with an overnight stay in Quesnel — was combined into the three-day Rainforest to Gold Rush route in 2016.

“We are incredibly grateful to the partners, business owners, and residents in the communities of Whistler and Quesnel for welcoming our guests over the past 20 years,” said Tristan Armstrong, CEO of Armstrong Collective, which operates Rocky Mountaineer. “The Rainforest to Gold Rush route has been a majestic part of our company’s history, and we would be happy to return to the route if a long-term operator can be found to maintain the rail line. In the meantime, our team will ensure the welcoming spirit and warm hospitality of Rainforest to Gold Rush lives on through our other train journeys in Western Canada and in the American Southwest.”

Rocky Mountaineer was founded in 1990 and offers tour trains in the U.S. and Canada.

—Justin Franz 

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On April 18, 2026, Portland’s TriMet held a “Goodbye MAX Type 1” farewell event to celebrate the retirement of the last of the Type 1 light rail vehicles (LRV) at Holladay Park in Portland. The LRVs were the first cars purchased for the TriMet MAX System when the original line opened in 1986. Now, nearly 40 years later, many parts for these cars are no longer commercially manufactured, and TriMet has been making parts in-house or scavenging them from out-of-service cars to keep others operating. With the arrival of the newest Type 6 cars in the past couple of years, it was time to retire the Type 1s.

Over 3,000 people gathered at Holiday Park in Portland to say farewell to the TriMet MAX Type 1 LRV. Photo by Randall Pratt.

From the late 1800s into the 1940s, Portland and the surrounding metropolitan region had numerous trolley lines and interurbans connecting Portland in all directions. With the advent of buses and car culture in the 1950s, nearly all of those services were eliminated. In 1977, planning began for the first step toward reconnecting Portland by rail to communities like Gresham, Hillsboro and Clackamas. Construction began in Gresham in 1983 and continued west into Portland until opening day on September 5, 1986. MAX was the second light rail system on the West Coast, behind San Diego, and one of only a handful in the United States, Canada and Mexico when it was built. Twenty-six Type 1 LRVs were purchased from Bombardier to operate on the original line. In the nearly 40 years since their arrival, each car has put on more than 1 million miles in service to the Rose City.

Over 3000 people gathered to send MAX car 124 off in style. Attendees were able to sign the outside of car 124 and had a chance to sit in the cab for a photo. TriMet hosted a few displays, including the history of the Type 1 cars, some Lego models that a fan had built and an opportunity to order exclusive merchandise celebrating the Type 1 cars. There was a costume contest, and the winner took home a piece of one of the cars. 

While the Type 1s are no longer in service in Portland, one car has been preserved at the Oregon Electric Railway Museum in Brooks, about 45 minutes south of Portland.

—Randall Pratt

Signatures, cartoons, stickers and farewell messages cover the outside of Train Car 124. Photos by Randall Pratt.

Many creative costumes were on display. The most creative won a piece of a Type 1 LRV. Photo by Randall Pratt.

Final movement: Type 1 LRV 124 departs Gateway Transit Center and is about to duck under NE Glisan St. Photo by Gianni Pulone.

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The Friends of the East Broad Top and the East Broad Top Foundation announced on May 3 that they would partner to rebuild the narrow gauge railroad water tank at Saltillo, Pa.

The enclosed Saltillo water tank was a signature structure on the famed coal-hauler established in the 1870s to move coal from the Broad Top fields to market. The line was operated until the 1950s, and then ran as a tourist railroad from the 1960s until 2011. Since 2020, the nonprofit EBT Foundation has been working to restore and operate the historic railroad.

The Saltillo water tank was built in 1912 to fill tenders with water before locomotives faced the steep climb to the mines at Robertsdale. The structure remained in place after the original railroad shut down, but was destroyed in a fire in 1986.

During the first tourist railroad era, trains only operated between Orbisonia and Colgate Grove. But during this most recent restoration, the track has been restored south toward Pogue. The group hopes to eventually run trains all the way down to Saltillo and beyond, and the water tank will be a key part of that effort. The group is also rebuilding the station at Saltillo.

Nearly all of the 33-mile narrow gauge railroad is owned by the EBT Foundation, except for a short section near Mt. Union. That 4.7-mile stretch is currently the subject of an ongoing legal battle between the nonprofit and its owner. 

—Justin Franz 

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More than three months after the U.S. Surface Transportation Board rejected its initial application as “incomplete,” Union Pacific and Norfolk Southern submitted a revised petition on April 30 as part of their ongoing effort to create the largest single railroad in American history.

Meanwhile, BNSF Railway and CPKC joined a group of shippers and unions to oppose the proposed combination, launching a new organization called the Stop the Rail Merger Coalition.

Like the initial one in late 2025, the revised application is more than 7,000 pages. In it, UP officials state that they have provided additional details regarding their acquisition of NS, including an updated analysis that uses actual traffic data from all six North American Class I carriers. In the past, merger analyses have only used data provided by the STB. That more detailed analysis also allowed the railroads to provide a more accurate picture of proposed capacity improvements. In fact, the railroads said they would be spending less on capacity now that they had a better picture of what they would need to do.

“After completing the additional work requested by the STB, the facts remain clear: This merger enhances competition and delivers real public benefits that make America’s supply chain stronger,” said Union Pacific CEO Jim Vena. “Our analysis uses complete systemwide traffic data provided by all Class I railroads to identify even more opportunities for our combined railroad to grow and compete.”

Additionally, UP and NS announced that they would not move to control the Terminal Railroad Association of St. Louis. Instead, as a condition of the merger, the two Class Is would sell some of their shares to other carriers so that the combined railroad would not control more than 50 percent of it. UP presently owns 42.84 percent of the railroad and NS owns 14.29 percent, with other Class Is owning the remainder.

UP continues to tout the benefits of the combination, noting that there will be “virtually no overlap” when the two roads are combined into one 50,000-mile system serving 43 states.

But not everyone supports the creation of a single, coast-to-coast railroad. The day before the revised merger application was submitted, the Stop the Rail Merger Coalition was launched to argue against it. Along with BNSF and CPKC, the coalition includes the American Chemistry Council, the American Farm Bureau Federation, the Teamsters Rail Conference, the Alliance for Chemical Distribution, the National Industrial Transportation League and the Vinyl Institute. Among the group’s chief arguments against the merger is how the last major UP acquisition — the takeover of Southern Pacific in 1996 — wreaked havoc on the rail network for months.

“This did not begin with a customer asking for a UP-NS merger to happen,” said BNSF Railway President and CEO Katie Farmer. “It’s driven by Wall Street on the promise of a big shareholder payout. It will eliminate competition, raise costs for consumers, and destabilize the supply chain that powers the American economy.”

—Justin Franz 

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Amtrak celebrated the topping out of the steel structure for its new maintenance and inspection facility in Seattle, marking the placement of the final steel beam and an important construction milestone at King Street Yard. The new facility will be used to maintain the Airo trainsets due to debut this year.

In South Carolina, Amtrak has completed improvements at both Camden and Denmark, both of which are served by the Chicago–Miami Floridian. In Camden, improvements include a new 600-foot concrete boarding platform, as well as new walkways, ramps, lighting, and signage. In Denmark, passengers will enjoy a new 240-foot platform, as well as new lighting, walkways, and signage. The station upgrades are part of the ADA Stations Program that covers 134 stations and 66 construction projects across the country. The program will wrap up in 2029. 

—Bob Gallegos

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VIA Rail Canada announced it is investing C$150 million in a major modernization program for its entire fleet of 56 Château- and Manor-series sleeper cars, originally built for Canadian Pacific by Budd between 1954 and 1955. This life extension occurs as the procurement process for new locomotives and passenger cars is already underway, with full fleet replacement expected over the next decade. The fleet upgrade will keep the classic streamlined trains rolling in the interim.

VIA chose CAD Railway Industries, located in Lachine, Que., to perform the work over a five-year period. Work includes upgrades to key systems and interiors, improving comfort, reliability, and onboard amenities. The cars are assigned to VIA’s primary long-distance trains, the Ocean and The Canadian. 

—Bob Gallegos

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Union Pacific “Big Boy” 4014 will travel to the East Coast for the first time as part of a coast-to-coast tour marking the 250th anniversary of the United States. The eastern portion of the trip will operate over Norfolk Southern, representing a rare collaboration between the two railroads. The tour will include a special July 4 appearance in Philadelphia, along with major display events in eight cities and more than 50 whistle-stops across 10 states. Scheduled stops include first-time visits by the locomotive to Indiana, Ohio, New York, and Pennsylvania.

This marks the first time the 4-8-8-4 has operated east of Chicago. As it traverses former industrial corridors on Norfolk Southern rails, the trip brings the locomotive to regions historically tied to the nation’s railroad and manufacturing heritage. The tour resumes May 25 from Cheyenne, following the completion of its western leg, which concluded April 24 with events in Sacramento near the original starting point of the Central Pacific Railroad.

In addition to brief stops for servicing along the way, eight major public display events will be held in:

• May 30 – Omaha, Nebraska (near UP’s historic Milepost 0)
• June 3 – West Chicago, Ill.
• June 10 – Buffalo, N.Y.
• June 15-16 – Scranton, Pa.
• July 4-5 – Philadelphia, Pa.
• July 9-10 – Altoona, Pa.
• July 14 – Fostoria, Ohio
• July 19 – St. Louis, Mo.

In addition to the public display days, railfans can see this historic machine in action at over four dozen whistle-stops, generally 15- to 30- minutes long. Complete details can be found on UP.com in the official steam schedule.

As part of the tour, the Union Pacific Museum will be selling tickets for rides in vintage passenger cars pulled by Big Boy on Reading & Northern through the Poconos Mountains in Pennsylvania on June 14. Tickets can be purchased at www.UPtrainTix.org. This will be the only public passenger excursion opportunity on this tour.

During the eastern leg, No. 4014 will be accompanied by commemorative locomotives from Norfolk Southern Railway, along with several cars from the railroad’s Heritage Fleet. The tour highlights the histories of Union Pacific Railroad in the West and Norfolk Southern and its predecessor lines in the East, reflecting the broader role of railroads in the nation’s economic development. Norfolk Southern is also expected to unveil a new locomotive commemorating the 250th anniversary of the United States in the coming weeks.

Union Pacific “Big Boy” No. 4014 is a massive 4-8-8-4 articulated steam locomotive built in 1941 to haul heavy freight over the Wasatch Mountains. After retiring in 1961, it was restored by Union Pacific and returned to service in 2019, making it the world’s largest operational steam locomotive. Union Pacific and Norfolk Southern announced an $85 billion merger in July 2025 to form a coast-to-coast system linking the Atlantic and Pacific. The proposal, aimed at improving freight efficiency, is under federal review amid concerns over competition, with a revised application due April 30, 2026, and a decision expected in 2027.

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A 19-year-old in Nebraska was convicted of derailing a BNSF Railway train in 2024 and then posting a video of the incident online. The defendant, Zachary Hertzler, was found guilty of one count of criminal mischief and could face up to two years in prison. 

In April 2024, a loaded coal train went through the switch at Bennet, Neb., derailed and struck a parked railcar on a siding. The derailment resulted in an estimated $350,000 in damage. 

After the derailment, law enforcement reviewed security cameras and found that someone had driven up to the switch and thrown it before the train arrived. That person then left and set up a camera near the crossing before the train arrived. After the derailment, the then-17-year-old showed the video to railroad employees and identified himself as an enthusiast.

—Railfan & Railroad Staff

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The Maine Narrow Gauge Railroad Co. & Museum is raising funds to build a new storage facility in Portland, Maine, after its previous shop building was demolished by developers.

The nonprofit dedicated to the preservation of Maine’s famed 2-footers is looking to raise $100,000 for the new structure. Construction will begin once the money has been raised and the museum receives the final permits from the City of Portland. The Maine Narrow Gauge Railroad has called the Portland waterfront home since the 1990s, when the historic collection of narrow gauge equipment came “home” after a half-century at Massachusetts’ Edaville Railroad. New developments along the waterfront, however, have affected the railroad museum.

Because the railroad does not have an easily accessible storage facility, it is unable to operate its largest steam locomotive, Bridgton & Saco River 2-4-4T 7, very often; it must either be wrapped up to protect it from the elements or stored off-site. Donations for the new building can be made online at mainenarrowgauge.org/buildingsteam.

The locomotive will, however, be running in early May as part of a weekend of steam-powered events across the state of Maine. In Portland, locomotive 7 will lead excursions on May 9 and 10. Meanwhile, at the Wiscasset, Waterville & Farmington Railway Museum in Alna, Monson 0-4-4T 3 will be taking part in a photographer’s special the afternoon of May 9. The WW&F’s own locomotive, 0-4-4T 9, will also be under steam. Tickets for the WW&F events can be purchased at WWFRy.org, while those for the excursions in Portland will be at MaineNarrowGauge.org. Proceeds from the events in Portland and Alna will go toward the restoration of two other Maine 2-foot gauge locomotives: Monson 4 and B&SR 8, both owned by Maine Narrow Gauge.

—Justin Franz 

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Union Pacific 4-8-8-4 “Big Boy” 4014 was expected to arrive home in Cheyenne, Wyo., on Friday, April 24, wrapping up the first half of a historic coast-to-coast tour. The engine has been on the road for a month, running from Wyoming to California and back. It will spend the next month in Cheyenne before heading east on May 25.

The engine will be on display in Omaha, Neb.; Chicago; Buffalo, N.Y.; and Scranton, Pa., before arriving in Philadelphia for Independence Day. Additional display days are anticipated in Altoona, Pa., and St. Louis and Kansas City, Mo., before the tour concludes July 29. The engine is also expected to lead an excursion on the Reading & Northern.

While the West Coast part of the trip covered familiar territory for the big engine, it wasn’t without incident. Plans to run the engine east over the former Southern Pacific and Donner Pass were scrubbed due to a snowstorm, forcing the train to return via the former Western Pacific Feather River Route. For much of the trip, the train had two diesel locomotives with it — SD70Ms 1616 and 1776, both in commemorative liveries — but east of Ogden, Utah, UP 4014 ran unassisted up the Wasatch Grade, the territory it was originally built for. —Justin Franz

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A preserved Baltimore & Ohio tower in West Virginia has been damaged by fire. Miller Tower (also called “R” Tower) is located on the grounds of the Martinsburg Roundhouse, a historic B&O facility turned museum. The cause of the fire is under investigation.

Miller Tower was originally located along the B&O main line at Cherry Run, W.Va., west of Martinsburg. It remained in service until 2000, when CSX closed it. It was moved to the roundhouse site in Martinsburg shortly afterward, with hopes of eventually turning it into an exhibit.

The former B&O in West Virginia and Maryland had a number of towers still in use well into the 2000s, with Miller Tower being among the last. —Justin Franz 

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Over the winter, the volunteer shop crew at the Prairie Dog Central Railway carried out their normal maintenance routine, including hydrostatic testing and cleaning scale from the tender of locomotive 3, a 4-4-0 built by Dubs & Co. of Glasgow, Scotland, in 1882 for Canadian Pacific Railway. Notably, it is the oldest operating steam locomotive in Canada.

In addition to the routine mechanical work, the crew made several cosmetic changes to the locomotive. Most noticeable was the removal of the fake diamond stack and headlight installed for a 1970s movie shoot, replaced with the Pyle sealed-beam headlight the engine carried in service with Winnipeg Hydro. The yellow striping on the tender was also removed, along with several plaques that had been added to the cab over the years. The locomotive now more closely reflects its appearance in regular service, both with Winnipeg Hydro and earlier with Canadian Pacific. 

Prairie Dog Central operates excursions from Winnipeg to Grosse Isle and Warren, Man., from May through October. The excursion trains are powered by locomotive 3 or one of the railway’s preserved diesel locomotives. —Glenn Courtney

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Railroad Heritage of Midwest America is raising money to put one of the last F40C locomotives in existence back into service. Metra 611 was donated to RRHMA earlier this year and moved from Chicago to Silvis, Ill., in March. 

RRHMA said it hopes to eventually use Metra 611 in excursion service. Last year, the non-profit used its ex-Union Pacific “Centennial” on an excursion on Iowa Interstate. 

Metra 611 was built in April 1974 as Milwaukee Road 54. The F40C design was unique to the North Suburban and North West Suburban Mass Transit Districts, which supported commuter service over the Milwaukee Road lines north and west of Chicago to Fox Lake and Elgin. The F40C is a six-axle, six-motor locomotive with a “cowl” design intended purely for passenger service. The locomotives’ sides were largely covered in stainless steel to match the Milwaukee Road’s bi-level commuter coaches. They were also equipped with head-end power (HEP) as built. Only 15 F40C locomotives were built, all in 1974 by the Electro-Motive Division of General Motors at the EMD plant in McCook, Illinois.

Metra 611 was used in daily service on the Milwaukee Road North and West lines until 2004, when it was removed from active service. It and identical F40C 614 were returned to service in 2009. In 2012, Metra permanently retired both units and put them into storage at Western Avenue. 

RRHMA owns the former Chicago, Rock Island & Pacific Railroad shop complex in Silvis and plans to turn it into the largest historic railroad equipment restoration facility in the country. The non-profit is presently restoring UP 4-6-6-4 3985 and 2-10-2 5511. —Justin Franz 

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An effort to revive the famed American Freedom Train to celebrate this year’s semiquincentennial has failed. On April 15, the American Freedom Train Foundation 250 announced it was suspending its effort to operate a steam-powered exhibit train across the country in 2026 after it couldn’t secure operating agreements with railroads or corporate sponsors.

Ross Rowland Jr., the man behind the bicentennial version of the AFT, was the driving force behind the initial plan to revive the project. When Rowland died in 2025, steam preservationist Jason Johnson and others quietly picked up the mantle and tried to push the project forward. But it ultimately proved fruitless.

“In spite of committed efforts by the AFT Foundation 250’s board and its supporters, and despite a great appetite on the part of the American citizenry to see the train and to experience its planned onboard exhibits, this ambitious project unfortunately could not be brought to fruition,” the foundation said in a press release.

The money raised by the foundation is now being donated to the American Steam Railroad Preservation Association, which is currently restoring Reading Company 4-8-4 No. 2100, which had been expected to lead the revived AFT.

—Justin Franz 

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BNSF Railway and Metra signed a new 10-year agreement to continue having the Class I freight carrier provide passenger service on Chicagoland’s busiest commuter route. 

The former Chicago, Burlington & Quincy route between Chicago and Aurora, Ill., known as the “BNSF Line” to commuters, is the last route on Metra that is operated by a freight carrier under contract. Until last year, the three ex-Chicago & North Western routes were operated by Union Pacific, but the freight carrier withdrew from that agreement. 

The new agreement between BNSF and Metra began on April 1 and includes an initial five-year term. The contract automatically extends for another five years unless either party elects to terminate the agreement. 

“BNSF is proud to continue our long‑standing partnership with Metra through this new agreement, which strengthens a relationship built over decades of collaboration,” said BNSF Assistant Vice President of Passenger Operations Jim Tylick. “Just as our freight network keeps goods moving across the country, we believe passenger rail plays a vital role in keeping people connected to the places and opportunities that matter most. We’re excited to continue shaping the future together with Metra through sustainable transportation solutions.”

BNSF also operates Metrolink commuter trains in California and Sounder in Washington state. Until earlier this year, it also operated Northstar in Minnesota. 

—Justin Franz 

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by Jordan Rein/photos by the author

Change was in the air on a crystal-clear September day in 2020 as I set out on what I knew would be my “final” Wisconsin & Southern chase while living in Madison, Wis. The moment felt bittersweet. After eight years at the University of Wisconsin–Madison earning both a B.S. and a Ph.D. in engineering, I was ready for the next chapter — yet reluctant to leave behind the place, and the railroad, that had framed so much of that journey. When I first arrived in Madison in August 2012, I was equal parts excited and anxious about what lay ahead. The years that followed brought opportunity, stress, challenge, and ultimately, growth. Through it all, WSOR was there, threading its way past campus and into my daily routine.

As I reflected that September afternoon, it struck me that the railroad had been evolving, too. Shortly after I arrived, Watco Companies assumed full control of WSOR, ushering in its own period of uncertainty and transition. Over the next eight years, the railroad adapted, overcame obstacles, and gradually found its footing. What I did not yet realize, as I chased trains that day, was that even more significant changes were just ahead — changes that would reshape the look and feel of Wisconsin & Southern for the decade to come.

ABOVE: The 14-story Engineering Research Building overlooks the University of Wisconsin campus as Madison–Boscobel Train T007 heads west on May 5, 2016. Madison sits on an isthmus between Lake Mendota (left) and Lake Monona (right), with the state capitol centered on the skyline.

A Hard Road to Success
Change is nothing new for WSOR. The railroad itself emerged from the sweeping upheaval that reshaped the industry in the decades leading up to the 1970s. Years of heavy regulation and declining traffic left many carriers in a fragile financial situation. When a stagnant economy, high inflation, and rising energy and labor costs compounded those pressures, several were pushed past the breaking point. For The Milwaukee Road, that moment arrived on December 19, 1977, when it entered its third and final bankruptcy.

In an attempt to return to solvency, the trustees planned to trim the railroad down to a core system, shedding hundreds of miles of low-volume branch lines; almost 600 of those miles were in the state of Wisconsin alone. This plan alarmed business groups and local and state governments, as large areas would lose their only rail connection, possibly crippling local industry.

ABOVE: A pair of mallards splash down on Lake Monona as a Chicago-bound grain train enters Madison from the Prairie Subdivision on April 25, 2019. The WSOR goose logo nods to nearby Horicon Marsh, where the railroad began operations on July 1, 1980.

In response to this crisis, the state legislature passed the Rail Preservation Act and several additional statutes in 1977. These new laws allowed the Wisconsin Department of Transportation (WisDOT) to acquire rail property, the state to issue grants for rail improvements, and for the formation of Rail Transit Commissions (RTC). These commissions could be created by local governments to maintain and operate the railways, providing communities agency to preserve rail lines they deemed important.

In early 1980, the East Wisconsin Counties Rail Consortium (EWCRC) was created to administer a cluster of branch lines fanning out of Horicon toward Milwaukee, Oshkosh, and Cambria. By April 1980, EWCRC contracted with an outside company to operate the railroad. And on July 1, 1980, the newly formed Wisconsin & Southern began operations based in Horicon.

ABOVE: Train T003 rolls east at track speed on newly installed welded rail, passing St. Theresa Catholic Church in Eagle on May 21, 2023. GP-type locomotives from the Northern Division often handle weekend T003/T004 assignments when they are not needed at Horicon.

During its first decade, WSOR showed growth opportunities with improved service and infrastructure. However, economic challenges of the early 1980s and a financially constrained parent company prevented the railroad from fully realizing this growth. That changed in 1988 when Milwaukee area entrepreneur Bill Gardner purchased WSOR outright.
Gardner, who already owned a railcar repair business, recognized that more capital was needed to achieve growth. He began heavily investing in the railroad with increased marketing, motive power, and freight cars. By 1992, WSOR had quadrupled carloads. Within a little more than a decade, the branch lines out of Horicon went from the brink of abandonment to blossoming into a young, yet successful operation.

The same success could not be said for all RTCs in the state. Many state-owned or subsidized lines went defunct. On the brink of extinction was a cluster of lines fanning out of Janesville and Madison administered by several independent RTCs. For the first half of the 1980s, these lines saw a revolving door of operators that failed to stay solvent.

ABOVE: Train T004 passes Whitewater depot on January 29, 2019. WAMX 4219, an ex-CP SD40 delivered in Watco’s black and yellow scheme, was later repainted into the railroad’s newer “V” paint design.

The next operator stepped through the door on January 31, 1985, when Wisconsin & Calumet (WICT, nicknamed “the Wicket” by railfans) began operations over a core segment of the southern Wisconsin RTC lines. WICT took a slower approach to growth, reopening lines when customers could guarantee enough carloads to support operations. Over time, WICT carefully expanded, and by 1989, most of the southern Wisconsin RTC routes were reopened.

Gardner saw another opportunity for growth in August 1992 and purchased WICT. The original WSOR became the “Northern Division” while WICT became the “Southern Division.” Now, several independent RTCs were coordinated by a single operator with a strong footing. While there were growing pains with the WICT purchase, the new addition provided an incredibly valuable link to Chicago that would be a major catalyst for WSOR’s growth.

Throughout the 1990s and into the 2000s, WSOR continued to grow, increasing carloads and acquiring new lines around Madison and Milwaukee. By 2010, WSOR was 30 years old and had grown into a successful regional railroad. Through the action and support of Wisconsin’s local and state governments, along with private investment having a long-term vision of growth, meager carload-generating branch lines on the brink of abandonment were revitalized to become important links in the local economy…

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by David P. Ori/photos as noted

Being an ardent Baltimore & Ohio fan growing up during the 1970s, I had always dreamed of riding one of Chessie System’s hottest trains. I became a fan of the railroad in 1971 when I first visited B&O’s Cleveland Subdivision in my hometown of Parma, Ohio. There, I would witness the passage of the daily road freight, Cleveland 294, from Willard; the CL (Cleveland–Lester) Local; and occasional empty and loaded coal trains operating between Cleveland and Holloway, Ohio. At night, I would hear Cleveland 297 as it made its way out of the Cuyahoga River Valley en route to Willard. Before long, I got to know the crews operating those trains and got occasional cab rides, along with my good friend Terry Chicwak.

When I began driving in the mid-1970s, with my 1970 Oldsmobile Cutlass S, I was able to broaden my railfan horizons and visited hotspots like Sterling, Ohio, and B&O’s hub at Willard, Ohio. At Sterling, my friends and I would spend several hours with the tower operator and gain knowledge about main line operations. Sterling is where the former B&O Baltimore–Chicago main line crossed the former Erie Lackawanna Jersey City, N.J.–Chicago main at grade.

ABOVE: Road Foreman of Engines Ray Shields prepares to board the Baltimore–Chicago Trailer Train at New Castle Junction, Pa., on December 2, 1982. —David P. Ori

Train activity was heavy prior to the formation of Conrail in April 1976. By 1978, Conrail diverted through trains off the former EL main line onto other former Penn Central routes. During the daylight hours, such named trains as the Baltimorean, Chicago-Philadelphia Trailer Train (aka “Jet”), Chicagoan, Pittsburgher, and Shore Line 49 would roll by the classic two-story tower. I would listen to the operator “OS” (noting the passage of a train “on-sheet”) the trains past Sterling with the Akron Main Line Dispatcher and listen to the operators along the Akron Division at such places as RX at Willard, GN at Greenwich, HN Tower at Newton Falls, Ohio, and OA Tower at New Castle Junction, Pa., for train mark-ups.

After acquiring a Pentax K-1000 SLR camera upon high school graduation in 1978, I started to hone my photography skills and began recording the Ohio rail scene on slide film. With camera in hand, I began visiting other towers along B&O’s Akron Division including RN Tower at Ravenna, Ohio, HN Tower at Newton Falls, and UN Tower at New Castle Junction. There, I would get line-ups on the various trains operating on the division. If the action was slow, I would hang out in the towers and talk with the operators. In 1982, I got invited to tour the Akron Division dispatcher’s office in downtown Akron. There, I was able to gain extensive knowledge about division operations by sitting with the dispatchers at the various dispatchers’ desks within the facility.

ABOVE: Operator Dan Schaub greets the Allegheny as it accelerates east past Sterling Tower on July 11, 1987. Originally known as RU Tower for Russell, Ohio, the interlocking once governed the crossing of EL’s Chicago–Jersey City, N.J., main line and Baltimore & Ohio’s Baltimore–Chicago route. —David P. Ori

Piggyback Service
In July 1954, B&O established piggyback service to 12 cities on its 13-state system. Referred to as “Tofcee” (making a pronounceable word from TOFC, the abbreviation for trailer-on-flat-car) Service, it was greatly expanded in 1956 to serve 32 cities. Tofcee trailers were originally painted blue with orange lettering and moved on various trains including B&O’s famous Timesavers. During the early 1960s, piggyback business continued to grow at a rapid pace. In 1965, B&O’s Piggyback Department established all-solid piggyback trains called “Trailer Jets.”

The first pair of trains, the Manhattan Trailer Jet and St. Louis Trailer Jet, began operating on the Cumberland–East St. Louis main line via Cincinnati. A few months later, the New York Trailer Jet and Chicago Trailer Jet were established and began operating between Jersey City and Chicago via Pittsburgh. As volume rose from the Chicago Gateway, the Baltimore Jet was established as a scheduled train in late 1965, handling Washington and Baltimore trailer business as well as high-priority traffic such as perishables and meat.

ABOVE: Converted to a rail-to-truck terminal in 1967, Forest Hill Yard served as Chessie System’s Chicago intermodal hub. With dispatcher clearance, the Chicago–Philadelphia Trailer Train departs with 43 cars on December 3, 1982. —David P. Ori

Due to the severe recession of 1974–1975, intermodal operations were suspended on Chessie System. In late 1976, business conditions improved with Chessie’s Intermodal Department re-establishing service between Chicago and Philadelphia. The Chicago–Philadelphia Trailer Train (CPTT) operated on a 31-hour schedule between Forest Hill Yard at Chicago and East Side Yard at Philadelphia. Its counterpart, the Chicago Trailer Train (CHTT), operated between Philadelphia and Forest Hill Yard.

By 1981, trailer business grew substantially between Chicago and the East Coast. As a result, Chessie System inaugurated a pair of new trains, the Baltimore Trailer Train and Baltimore-Chicago Trailer Train. At Fostoria, Ohio, these trains made connections to the Toledo–Lima Trailer Train and Lima–Toledo Trailer Train, respectively.

Ticket to Ride
After reading Mark Perri’s “Follow That Jet” in the May 1982 issue of Railfan & Railroad, I was inspired to propose a similar adventure — riding two of Chessie’s hottest trains, the Baltimore–Chicago Trailer Train (BCTT) and the Baltimore Trailer Train (BLTT). Bob Reid of Rails Northeast approved the idea, and with the help of Lloyd Lewis, Chessie’s manager of news and community affairs, I secured permission from the vice president of operations. The plan was simple — board the BCTT at New Castle, ride west to Chicago, then return east the following evening on the BLTT, with friends Terry Chicwak and Mark Perri photographing our daylight run between Willard and New Castle.

ABOVE: After a 60 mph run across the Akron Mainline Subdivision, the Baltimore Trailer Train rolls into New Castle Junction on September 20, 1981. Here, the train receives a new crew and brake test before continuing east to Cumberland and Baltimore. —David. P. Ori

And Away We Go
On December 2, Assistant Chief Dispatcher Al Ferrise calls to report the BCTT has three Toledo, Ohio, set-outs and 57 through cars for Chicago, with a 1:40pm arrival at New Castle. After gathering my gear and picking up a lineup in Akron — “The Rabbit” manifest and a pair of Grain Pikers are among the expected moves — I head east.

At New Castle, demolition crews are dismantling the old OA Tower, its operator now relocated to the Terminal Service Center. Inside the yard office, I meet Road Foreman Ray Shields, who will ride the cab to Willard. The OA operator confirms the BCTT is on time. Outside, a Western Maryland unit in red and white circus paint switches grain hoppers while the Buffalo–Rochester crew call UN Tower for departure clearance…

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