Restoration continues for rare geared locomotive featured in movie marking 70th anniversary

Geared steam locomotive with large number of people posed along boiler

MISSOULA, Mont. — An obscure but classic motion picture about logging in the Northwest, and the unique log-hauling locomotive that starred in it, are returning to the spotlight. In February 1955, “Timberjack” made its world premiere on the screens of the Roxy and Fox theaters in Missoula, not far from where the movie had been […]

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Community members protest rail-themed name for new high school

Rendering of large high school building

HEBER CITY, Utah — Parents in Utah’s Wasatch County are seeking to overturn the decision to name a new high school to reflect the area’s railroading heritage. The Wasatch County School Board decided last month to name the new facility Iron Horse High School, with its athletic teams known as the Thunder, following the recommendation […]

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Utah cities consider around-the-clock flaggers to silence train horns

Logo for Federal Railroad Administration

SALT LAKE CITY — Two Utah cities are considering employing 24-hour-a-day flaggers at grade crossings to restore a quiet zone on a stretch of Union Pacific track also used by Utah Transit Authority commuter trains. Two quiet zones, stretching from Ogden to Provo and in place for up to 16 years, were suspended last Sept. […]

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New transload terminal planned for Uinta Basin crude

Logo of Savage Services

SALT LAKE CITY — Multifaceted supply chain company Savage will develop a new transload facility for crude-by-rail movement from Utah’s Uintah Basin, the company announced Wednesday (Jan. 8, 2025). The terminal, near Wellington in Carbon County, will unload the basin’s wax crude from tanker trucks into two heated tanks, after which it will be located […]

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SunTrain’s battery storage technology heads for the rails

Electric charger connected to container flatcar

PUEBLO, Colo. — SunTrain, a San Francisco company, is designing a method to transport power by rail, moving containerized batteries between solar and wind farms in Colorado to existing rail-served power plants in the Denver area. The concept is that batteries, inside standard 20-foot containers and loaded onto 89-foot railcars, are charged at originating solar […]

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Utah Central workers vote to join BLET

Logo of Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen union

INDEPENDENCE, Ohio — Train and engine service workers at the Utah Central Railway have voted to join the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen, the union has announced — the seventh short line to join the union since 2023. The vote, certified by the National Mediation Board in December, was unanimous, the union said in […]

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Roberts becomes CEO at Savage

Upper-body shot of man in blue blazer

SALT LAKE CITY — Jeff Roberts has become CEO of Savage Cos., the multifaceted supply-chain company whose businesses include short line railroads and other rail operations and logistics. Roberts becomes just the fourth CEO in the history of the privately held company established in 1946. He replaces Kirk Aubry, who announced plans to retire in […]

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News Wire recommended reading

Short passenger train on single track surrounded by trees

Trains News Wire’s occasional roundup of noteworthy articles is back for your New Year’s Day enlightment, this time with three recent stories on commuter and passenger rail: — The news site MinnPost looks at Amtrak’s Borealis and barriers to further service; even adding another car to the consist would require negotations. — The Boston Globe […]

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Former Rio Grande depot in Cañon City, Colo., is sold

One story brick building with bank signage

CAÑON CITY, Colo. — The Royal Gorge Chamber Alliance has purchased the former Denver & Rio Grande Western depot in Cañon City and plans to make it “a hub serving businesses, residents, and tourists.” The 1909 structure is located at 816 Royal Gorge Blvd., the intersection of U.S. Route 50 and State Route 115. “We […]

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British and European rail enthusiasts travel abroad

steam train with mountains in background

Let’s travel abroad During a Trains Magazine photo charter at the Durango & Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad in fall 2024, a group of British and European photographers decided to travel abroad to the U.S. to join Trains staff at the D&SNG and, in the days following, the Cumbres & Toltec Scenic with Pete Lerro of […]

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Colorado, Union Pacific reach deal on new Moffat Tunnel agreement

Yellow locomotive and passenger cars at tunnel.

  DENVER — The state of Colorado will not have to pay a fee to Union Pacific to use its track for a Denver-Craig passenger train, while the railroad will no longer pay the state annually for use of the 6.2-mile Moffat Tunnel under a new 25-year agreement announced today (Monday, Dec. 23, 2024). The […]

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