Locomotive 2013

It’s been seven years since the first edition of Locomotive, the Trains magazine special issue dedicated to motive power, rolled off the press. The brainchild of Kalmbach Publishing Co. Vice President-Editorial (and former Trains Editor) Kevin Keefe, Locomotive has covered the contemporary motive power scene, from building Evolution and export-model GEs on the assembly lines in Erie, Pa., to the construction of dual-power NJ Transit ALP45DPs in Bombardier’s historic former-Henschel works in Kassel, Germany; from following ancient Baldwin-Westinghouse steeple-cab electrics shuffling along an Iowa interurban line, to riding the cab of an Amtrak Acela topping 135 mph on the Northeast Corridor. From sleek-styled F59s speeding Surfliners along the California coast, to aging SD40-2 helpers grinding up Allegheny Mountain grades; from bulldog-faced EMD cabs soldiering on in Australia, to SD90MACs in the mountains of Washington and GE 70-tonners in the streets of Modesto, Calif., Locomotive has showcased the work of some of the best writers and photographers in the business: Ted Benson, David Styffe, Michael Valentine, Steve Smedley, Blair Kooistra, Bruce Kelly, Elrond Lawrence, Scott Lothes, Scott A. Hartley, Steve Glischinski, Nick D’Amato, David Busse, Scott Snell, and A. Ross Harrison to name a few.

Building on that momentum, we’re improving Locomotive 2013: with expanded coverage; big stories; and more maps, rosters, and statistics than ever. Beyond the printed page, we’re introducing value-added content: video, locomotive specifications and news updates on the web, Facebook, and other social media. Be sure to check out the new Locomotive section of www.TrainsMag.com. We’ll be updating it regularly throughout the summer.

Set for release in September as both a print and digital product, the eighth issue of Locomotive will feature an unprecedented 20-page, big-picture study of the power that drives North America’s ‘Big 8’ railroads: Union Pacific, BNSF, CSX, Norfolk Southern, Canadian National, Canadian Pacific, Kansas City Southern/Kansas City Southern de Mexico, and Amtrak; an exclusive inside look at Progress Rail’s new Muncie, Ind., locomotive assembly facility, the home of Electro-Motive diesels; a 12-page feature looking at Cajon Pass today, and through the lens of Richard Steinheimer in the early 1970s; features on Iowa Pacific’s fleet of vintage EMDs, a visit to the locomotive rebuild shop of Metro East Industries, an incredible ride up Pocono Mountain grades with a quartet of Alco RS3s, and much more.

The issue is currently in the capable hands of designers Tom Danneman, Drew Halverson, and Scott Krall, who will transform the text and images from concept to creatively presented content. We’ll update their progress right here.