Articles by Todd DeFeo
Todd DeFeo loves to travel anywhere, anytime, taking pictures and notes. An award-winning reporter, Todd revels in the experience and the fact that every place has a story to tell. He is owner of The DeFeo Groupe and also edits Express Telegraph and The Travel Trolley.
Where the Tracks No Longer Run
ROSWELL, Ga. – Today, not a foot of railroad track lies in this Atlanta suburb. And surrounding communities, such as Dunwoody, offer a similar fate, unless modern-day subway tracks count. But, less than 100 years ago, a narrow-gauge short line railroad once served this community, connecting it to a major thoroughfare between Charlotte and Atlanta. Beginning in 1881, trains operated from Roswell Junction — modern day Chamblee — to just before Roswell, on the banks of the Chattahoochee River. The history of the railroad, however, dates back to 1853, when Roswell King, then president of the Roswell Manufacturing Company, envisioned
In Suspicion of Threat, Amtrak Train Stopped
Authorities, responding to a suspicious note, stopped an Amtrak train in Newark, N.J., and searched with bomb-sniffing dogs before letting it resume. The train, bound for Newark, N.J., was stopped July 11, after a suspicious note was found aboard the train. The Associated Press quoted an anonymous source as saying the note contained “pro-Muslin, anti-Jewish rhetoric.” The train was stopped for about an hour and a half before it was allowed to resume, according to various published reports. Police searched the train with bombsniffing dogs and videoed passengers, The Associated Press reported. Amtrak spokesman Dan Stessel told Reuters there was
Runnin’ Down a Train
MURFREESBORO, Tenn. — I was driving along Interstate 24, when I came to a familiar bridge over a rail line. On every trip along this stretch of highway, it was tradition to gaze over and see what train might be traversing the Rutherford County landscape. Usually, there wasn’t a train, just a pair of parallel rails heading towards the horizon. But today was different. I caught a glimpse of a pair of locomotives — the lead being a BNSF C44-9W, No. 5097. “Surely, this must be rare,” I thought to myself. Regardless, I was deter- mined to catch this one
Indian Derailment Kills As Many As 20 Passengers
An Indian passenger train derailed Wednesday, killing as many as 20 people and injuring scores more, officials said. An Associated Press photograph showed a passenger coach dangling from a railway bridge. According to CNN, an engine and three passenger cars from the train – known as the Matsyagandha Express – fell off the 65-foot tall bridge after the locomotive jumped the tracks. A boulder that washed onto the tracks may be to blame for the derailment, various accounts indicate. The stretch of tracks – known as the Konkan route – is considered by many to be one of the most
MARTA Passes ’05 Budget, No Rail Cuts
ATLANTA — MARTA’s rail operations are safe – for now, at least. Last month, operating and capital budgets for FY ’05 were passed, and although no reductions to rail service were included, 300 employees were cut. Of those, 244 were bus operators and 56 were bus maintenance employees. “Although we’ve been able to maintain operating costs in the past with cost containment measures, this is just a small precursor of what’s to come,” MARTA assistant general manager of legal Mike Sloan said. “If no additional sources of revenue are identified for MARTA operations, more budget reductions may be needed in
Man Killed By MARTA Train
ATLANTA – A man walking in a train tunnel was killed Monday when he was struck by a westbound MARTA train, published reports indicate. The man was struck by the six-car train at about 10:20 a.m. It is unclear why the man was inside the tunnel, just east of the Decatur station. The train’s operator notified authorities after the train struck the man. “She pulled the emergency stop when she saw him,” MARTA spokeswoman Kimberly Willis Green told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution for a story posted to their web site Monday afternoon. Authorities did not release the man’s identity except to
