Be careful what you wish for, I would advise the railroad industry. If you think railroads have service issues now, watch them multiply if members of the Sheet Metal, Air, Rail, and Transportation Union (SMART) ratify the BNSF Railway agreement, which...

Looking for lots of steam? Head to the southwestern corner of Colorado and northern New Mexico. This is the Durango & Silverton roundhouse in Durango, Colo., at night. Jim Wrinn photo OK, so you had your heart set on riding or photographing Southern...

I’ve been reporting a story for Trains Magazine about the railroad mess we call Chicago, and one of the worst sinners is CSX Transportation. What bothered me was this: The railroad during April-June was still 4.7 percent shy of its traffic volume...

Readers of this blog got to know columnist Sara Foss of the Schenectady Daily Gazette on June 19 in Why You May Yet Read by Candlelight . I was hard on Sara because she asked the wrong question (can crude by rail ever be totally safe?) of the wrong person...

About a decade ago the Editor of Trains Magazine asked if I would like to write a monthly column. Before answering no, not yet, I tried to think of provocative ideas. Two came immediately to mind. One I called “Why Doesn’t Dick Davidson Know...

Trains Magazine could not be the magazine that it is without the wonderful photo submissions we receive from readers. We have recently updated our online photo submission guidelines to better reflect the magazine's needs and workflow. There had been a...

I don’t recall ever seeing so much of the railroad industry in such disarray. Examples are everywhere you look. Tens of thousands of new vehicles sit on lots in Detroit and Toledo, waiting for rail cars to take them to dealers. Canadian National...

After providing two night photo sessions at Mountain State Railroad & Logging Historical Association’s annual Cass Railfan Weekend in early May, our volunteer photography work force reconvened in Spencer for the duration of the North Carolina...

Readers of this blog were introduced almost three years ago to Florida East Coast Railway engineer David Shelley. In that episode, his southbound intermodal train rounded a curve near Boca Raton at 57 mph to find a car parked on a crossing, its driver...

For the past three years, my wife Marcia and I have spent a month each winter volunteering at Yellowstone National Park's Heritage and Research Center in Gardiner, Montana. Why do this in the winter, you ask? The short answer is: because that's when we...

The debate over the safety of handling crude oil by rail has become frustrating and almost pointless. Yes, tank cars that carry oil could be made more crashworthy, that is, if the Pipeline & Hazardous Materials Safety Administration would get off...

For the past several days, I have enjoyed visiting and photographing Southern California’s exciting railroad operations, ranging from the famous Tehachapi Loops, iconic Cajon Pass, and the sunny Amtrak Pacific Surfline. This is my third visit to...

Novelist Kevin Baker’s report on the present state of the American passenger train, in the July issue of Harper’s Magazine that goes on sale next week, begins thusly: “We start in darkness. After fighting our way through the dingy, low...

The alienation of Auto Train passengers continues unabated. It’s now the only long-distance train (other than the Cardinal , which has neither kitchen nor dining car) on which you cannot be served a grilled flat iron steak, accompanied by a baked...

NS 6169 led the Peach State Whistle Stop Safety Train , and we see it here after arrival in Dalton, Georgia. Look between the ditch lights, and you'll see the lens hood of the camera mounted on the front. All photos by David Lester. Growing up in Southern...

Railroads came to Washington this week to make the case at the White House against what could be tough new rules being drawn up by the U.S. Department of Transportation for handling crude oil. The proposals, which have not yet been made public, may involve...

I’ve said before that any train I’m on can be as late as you like. I believe my exact words were “more train-riding pleasure for the same low price.” Well, forget that. I’ve changed my mind. Even idiots like me have their...

Sometimes we luck into amazing images that aren't planned because half of success is just being trackside at the right time. On other occasions, an awesome shot may have required a great deal of waiting,patience, and persistence. This blog will be...

Google invaded my turf of Washington, D.C., this week with its self-driving car. DC traffic is the ultimate test of automated driving. If Google’s sensor-topped creation can navigate the tortuous traffic of this town, it can succeed anywhere. Google’s...

It’s just incredible, the power of a Midwest thunderstorm these days. Why, just this week storm winds were reportedly the cause of one BNSF Railway freight train being blown off the tracks at the east end of the Waynoka, Okla., yard and derailing...

When last you heard from me, Mark the Amtrak red cap in Chicago had met my four-hours-late Lake Shore Limited and hustled me onto the Texas Eagle , which was being held for our tardy train. Also held were all the other westbound streamliners trains that...

As the weekend festivities continue to unfold at Spencer’s historic gathering of over two dozen cab units and ceremonial start to the restoration of N&W J-Class 611, I’m now able to comprehend the reality of this exclusive gathering and...

It’s an exciting time for railroad history, the beginning of a host of ever expanding recognitions of the importance of railroading in American life. Big locomotives seem to get the headlines, but much is happening across the country. “Streamliners...

Soo Line FP7 2500, N&W 611, and UP E9 get attention at the Spencer turntable. SPENCER, N.C. – Of all the engines to be the last one to arrive. It had to be the FT demonstrator, the first streamlined freight diesel that General Motors built...

There once lived a man named Eric Lomax. He lived in Scotland, fought in World War II, and survived torture at the hands of Japanese captors only to lead a troubled adult life in Britain. He died in 2012. For Trains readers, his life story is poignant...