On July 22, 2025, Chicago Union Station in Downtown, Chicago, Ill., hosted a centennial celebration of the site’s official dedication in 1925. As referenced in the companion Trains.com article, notable city, regional, state, and federal officials staged near the Great Hall to recognize the station’s quintessential role, longevity, and impactful renovations aimed to keep it […]
ARVADA, Colo. — Amtrak’s first Airo trainset — a diesel-powered version destined for use in Amtrak Cascades Service — arrived in Colorado on Wednesday, July 23, en route to an extended stay for testing in Pueblo, Colo. P42 No. 22 was in charge special train No. 964, ferrying the new equipment from Siemens Mobility’s Sacramento plant. […]
Kato N Siemens ALC-42 Charger Scale: N (1:160) Price: Direct-current models, $150; with pre-installed Digital Command Control motor decoder, $250; with pre-installed DCC and sound decoder, $350 Era: 2021 to present Manufacturer: Kato USA Inc., 100 Remington Rd., Schaumburg, IL 60173; 847-781-9500; katousa.com Kato N Siemens ALC-42 Charger features: All-wheel electrical pickup Blackened wheels Body-mounted […]
WASHINGTON — Amtrak would have owed Canadian National $1.4 million for delays its passenger trains caused to CN freights last year under the CN’s proposal for a new operating agreement, according to a document filed with the Surface Transportation Board on Tuesday (July 22, 2025). The CN filing and one from Amtrak are in response […]
CHICAGO — You only celebrate a 100th birthday once, and Amtrak made sure that the milestone for Chicago Union Station did not go unnoticed. Officials including Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker were on hand today for ceremonies today (July 22, 2025) marking the centennial of the station’s dedication, held July 23, 1925, although — as Amtrak’s […]
SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Amtrak today shared photos of the first Airo train set being prepared to leave the Siemens assembly plant in Sacramento. The set will head to Pueblo, Colo., for testing before eventually making its revenue debut in Cascades service sometime in 2026. Amtrak has ordered 83 of the train sets, which will replace […]
NEW YORK — The Federal Railroad Administration will conduct an independent review of operations at New York’s Penn Station to determine whether expansion of the number of station tracks is needed as part of renovation plans, Amtrak’s Andy Byford said Friday. Byford made his first public comments since being named to oversee the project at […]
CHICAGO — On short notice, Amtrak has cancelled one Chicago-St. Louis Lincoln Service round trip for more than a week as of Thursday, July 17, and implemented a complicated Floridian cancellation scenario that began Friday, July 18, and runs through Aug. 3. Other regional services and long-distance trains continue to suffer hours-long delays, cancellations en […]
LOS ANGELES — A former Amtrak employee has been sentenced to 25 months in prison for conspiring to steal nearly $1 million in pandemic-related unemployment insurance benefits and fraudently obtaining more than $63,000 in sickness benefits, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Central District of California has announced. In sentencing on Thursday, July 17, 2025, […]
WASHINGTON — Amtrak lacks an overall strategy to improve service to passengers with disabilities, leading to disjointed efforts that are not well coordinated between departments, the Amtrak Office of Inspector General said in a report issued Tuesday (July 15, 2025). The report credits Amtrak with increased engagement with disability advocacy groups over the last six […]
CHICAGO — Amtrak’s Borealis reached the 250,000-passenger milestone during the July 4th holiday weekend, the passenger operator has announced. The train, funded by the states of Minnesota, Wisconsin, and Illinois, launched in May 2024. It continues to exceed initial passenger estimates, carring more than 18,500 passengers in its first month and reaching 100,000 riders in […]
NEW YORK — Amtrak is cautioning passengers that Northeast Corridor operations may experience delays this morning (July 15, 2025) because of heavy rain overnight, while area transit agencies are also recovering from the storm. An Amtrak customer advisory says overnight weather impacts have led to some trainsets arriving later than usual, which may lead to delays […]
