Railfanning.org News Wire

CHICAGO — The Chicago Transit Authority announced an aggressive schedule to eliminate eight miles of slow zones on branches of two of its busiest rail lines – the north branch of the Red Line and the subway portion of the O’Hare branch of the Blue Line. The subway portion of the Blue Line work is underway and will be completed by mid-September and the Red Line work will be completed by year-end. Over the last ten weeks, CTA engineers have been focused on developing a detailed specification for re-building the Blue Line tracks from Addison to O’Hare. “We know our

NORFOLK, Va. — First responders from across the United States sharpened their skills at responding to hazardous materials incidents during Norfolk Southern-sponsored tank car safety classes this year at the Transportation Technology Center Inc., near Pueblo, Colo. One hundred thirteen students attended the five-day, 40-hour courses at TTCI’s Emergency Response Training Center, which provides training in classes that simulate train, truck and barge accidents. Located on 52 square miles of isolated high desert, the TTCI campus includes 48 miles of specialized tracks to test locomotives, vehicles, track components and signal devices. Some 80 rail cars, intermodal and highway vehicles, and

EVERGREEN, Colo. — Rail passengers traveling on the Amtrak route between Washington, D.C. and Miami will soon have the option of lingering over five-course dinners, sleeping in luxurious suites and enjoying personal butler service. Called GrandLuxe Limited, the new service uses a separate, private, seven-car luxury train attached to Amtrak’s Silver Meteor to transport passengers between the nation’s capital and sunny Florida. The premium service is being made possible by a new partnership between GrandLuxe Rail Journeys, the country’s premier private rail tour operator, and Amtrak, the national passenger rail service. The GrandLuxe train, which features Dining, Lounge and Sleeping