Railfanning.org News Wire

No Picture
Commuter Rail

R Montague tubes close for 14 months of Sandy-related repairs

August 14, 2013 Railfanning.org News Wire
MTA New York City Transit has started so-called “Fix&Fortify” work to the R Subway Line Icon Montague Tubes. The work, which began Aug. 2, will last for 14 months. The MTA is well into the most extensive and wide-ranging reconstruction effort in its history after Superstorm Sandy decimated the subway system last fall. The Greenpoint and Montague Tubes suffered extensive damage during the storm, when they were flooded with salt water along with seven other interborough subway tubes. The work amounts to a near rebuilding of the link which connects Downtown Brooklyn with Lower Manhattan. The work will be completed
Commuter Rail

N.J. Transit approves FY 2014 budget with no fare increase

August 14, 2013 Railfanning.org News Wire
NEWARK, N.J. — The N.J. Transit Board of Directors last month approved a Fiscal Year 2014 operating budget that calls for no fare increase for the fourth consecutive fiscal year. The budget also includes a capital program to supports continued investments in infrastructure and equipment to maintain the system in a state of good repair and improve the overall customer experience. “This budget will enable us to maintain and enhance New Jersey’s robust transportation system while responding to the needs of the customers who rely on our service to conduct life’s daily business,” N.J. Transit Executive Director James Weinstein said
No Picture
World

Swiss Train Crash Kills Driver, Injures 26

July 30, 2013 Voice of America
Two trains have collided head-on in western Switzerland, killing one train’s driver and injuring at least 26 passengers. Officials say 46 passengers were on board the trains when the accident happened late Monday in Granges-pres-Marnand. The cause of the collision was not immediately clear. Last week, 79 people were killed in a train crash in the Spanish city of Santiago de Compostela.
No Picture
Amtrak

Amtrak: New Locomotives Advancing in Testing Program

July 29, 2013 Railfanning.org News Wire
PUEBLO, Colo. – The new Amtrak Cities Sprinter (ACS-64) electric locomotives are now in a comprehensive and rigorous testing program, and are being put through the paces before entering Northeast service this fall. Amtrak President and CEO Joe Boardman, Federal Railroad Administrator Joseph Szabo and Siemens Rail Systems President Michael Cahill traveled to the U.S Department of Transportation (DOT) Transportation Technology Center (TTC) facility in Pueblo, Colo., to get an update on the testing program and to observe a testing demonstration. “These locomotives are the new workhorses of the Amtrak fleet in the Northeast and they must meet our performance-based
Union Pacific

Union Pacific Railroad Acquires Big Boy Locomotive No. 4014

July 29, 2013 Railfanning.org News Wire
OMAHA, Neb. — Union Pacific Railroad reached an agreement with the Southern California Chapter – Railway & Locomotive Historical Society in Pomona, Calif., to transfer ownership of one of the world’s largest steam locomotives, Big Boy No. 4014, back to Union Pacific. Union Pacific plans to relocate No. 4014 to Cheyenne, Wyo., where Union Pacific’s Heritage Fleet Operations team will work to restore it to operating condition. Details regarding those efforts will be made public at a later date. Union Pacific donated No. 4014 to the historical society December 7, 1961. The locomotive arrived January 8, 1962, at its current