With CAHSR perhaps repositioning itself away from reaching Merced with the Initial Operating Segment and stopping at Madera (which would require a change in state law), adjusting to move forward with construction from Madera to Gilroy could significantly change the perception of CAHSR's utility...

Lining up some topic threads for the next couple weeks: •Reality of modern intercity rail seats 💺 •Light-rail in roadway alignments🚉 •Easy existing equipment for new/expanded Amtrak routes🚆 •Next new subway?🚇

A sad farewell today today to Metro Transit’s Northstar commuter rail between Target Field Station in Minneapolis and Big Lake. Rather than a eulogy, I’ll just share a few of my photos from past visits. I believe I rode it 4 times over the years. 🛤️🚆

When the West Lake Corridor opens, the U.S. will have seen a mini railroad electrification period from 2016-2026 including: SSL West Lake: 6 mi Caltrain: 51 mi Denver RTD: A (23 mi)/B (6 mi)/G (11.2 mi)/N (18.5 mi) Total: 115.7 mi ⚡️Key question: what's next...?⚡️

“Additional test runs — this time in daylight — are planned for January. Schedules and a revenue service debut date will follow once everyone involved signs off on the route’s readiness.” www.trains.com/pro/passenge...

Train Beer Friday: Railroad Porter by Stratosphere Brewing in Mt. Holly, N.J. I’ve been off this series for a few weeks but after the thread on the former Pennsy Atlantic Div this week, I came across this brewery across the street from the ROW in Mt. Holly. Looks good!🍻

Very detailed tread about Tren Maya's new long-distance coaches, including sleeping accommodations (first new sleeper order in North America for a public operation since Amtrak's Viewliner IIs, although the order wasn't completed until 2021, but really the first modern format)

Where are things at with MARC to Hagerstown (pop. 293,000)? Reactivating the former B&O branch to Weverton/Brunswick is a relatively easy lift and could boost the utility of existing Brunswick Line service (esp. with a couple weekend trains). It’s been a year or more w/out news.🛤️

I don’t have specific travel plans for 2026 yet, but should be able to ride DART’s Silver Line before too long. Of U.S. systems I’ve yet to ride at all, I’m still missing Hudson-Bergen LR, San Jose’s VTA, ACE, SMART and Milw. & Memphis streetcars. Clearly I need a NoCal trip!🚆🚞🚃🚇🚊🛤️

Trains In Review 2025 This year, I traveled on 9 unique rail lines for the first time, operated by 4 different providers, totaling 1644 miles & 79 stations - my highest single year miles ever (thx Sunset Ltd!). My lifetime totals are 13,394.23 miles & 3,333 different stations.

Renewed push for Amtrack service in Tallahassee following success of Mobile to New Orleans route | @wctv.tv - www.wctv.tv/2025/12/30/r...

Recent survey shows strong support for Brightline in Tampa, but questions remain - including station location & funding | TampaBay28 - www.tampabay28.com/news/region-...

After big AC Line chatter on Sat., stated digging into the former Pennsy Atlantic Division (current CSAO), which sees light activity from Pennsauken Jct through Moorestown to Hainesport, with extant rails to Maple Ave in Mt. Holly. Intriguing as an AC Line or RiverLine branch...?

Tren Interoceanico derailment this morning. Looks like the SD70M/Budd consist (vs HSTs). Other reports note injuries but fatalities uncertain so far…

Alright, with actual Siemens Airo service trainsets seen in the wild, which of these liveries is your favorite? A) VIA Lumi B) Amtrak Cascadee C) Ontario Northlander

I support NJT’s AC Line but there’s some factors limiting its attractiveness to riders (1900/day on 12 roundtrips), including AC itself being less desirable year-round. •Poor land use + local transit at stations •95 min PHL-AC travel time (30 min slower than driving): more double tracking could help

There are so many impossibly pessimistic “railfans” in groups titled like “Passenger Rail Enthusiasts” who are so intolerant of hope that anything can ever be improved that they might as well be called Passenger Rail Defeatists. Just enthusiastic about railroad past, I guess.🤷🏻‍♂️

Merry Christmas to all who celebrate from us in Louisiana!🚃 Joyeux Noël🎄

A key note about all these rights-of-way: None of them were formally converted to a trail. 🛤️ The former B&O Georgetown Branch had temporary gravel and use was permitted but always officially reserved as a future transit corridor. The Purple Line will have a parallel trail.

Some might sleigh… We will find a brighter day! 🚆🚊🚞🚉🚂🚄🚅🚃🚇🚟🛤️

A wave of fully abandoned railroads returning to passenger rail service may be dawning: *@purplelinemd.bsky.social-fmr B&O Georgetown Branch: 2027 *NJ Transit Andover Branch-frmr DL&W Lackawanna Cutoff: 2027 *Amtrak Regional/Silver Star-fmr SCL S Line (?) *ValleyLink-fmr SP Altamont Pass line (?)

In addition to this seasonal ski service in Denver (which Colorado will be expanding as Mountain Rail in coming years), Amtrak also operates the seasonal Berkshires Flyer between NYC & Pittsfield, Ma. From 1986-96, it ran the seasonal Cape Codder to/from Providence. www.skyhinews.com/news/winter-...

The first Siemens Airo trainset for the soon-to-be-restored Ontario Northlander service between Toronto, North Bay and Timmins, is on its way to Ontario, via Union Pacific. It’s seen here passing through Lombard, Illinois. youtu.be/Qj5ZMjBptXk

Had a very short work trip to Rockville, MD yesterday, so took the 1:30 pm early outbound MARC Brunswick Line up from Union Station. I hadn’t ridden any part of this route in probably a decade. I’m now aboard the Metro Red Line back towards DCA this morning.

“Passenger service, provided by VIA Rail, continued into the 2010s but was suspended after track issues arose. Government officials have said they hope to have the entire line to Gaspé rebuilt by 2027.”

Not faulting Trains’ reporting here but the point of launching a modern passenger rail service isn’t profitability, it’s moving people. These financial reports also include the full capital costs of building the system, not just operations. Would like better ridership & cost per-mile info, though.

The first of 2 Tunnel Boring Machines for the new Hudson River Gateway Tunnel has been shipped from Germany, according to NYC View From Above on FB

Amtrak adjusting Northeast Regional schedule in Virginia to accommodate Long Bridge project construction | Cville - c-ville.com/amtrak-adjus...

Has anyone heard any news or updates on Tren Maya or Tren Interoceánico recently? A smattering of news suggest Maya has carried 1.2 million total riders and work is underway to grow freight service. How about full buildout & electrification? Are HSTs operating on Interoceánico?

People are really angry about Amtrak’s new Mardi Gras service. Really angry it doesn’t go to Pensacola! (Graphic from Downtown Mobile Today)

What is the opposite of the transit death spiral of service cuts and fare hikes called? Transit growth helix? Transit betterment crescendo? Whatever it's called, WMATA is doing it.🚇🚌

Canada is moving ahead with the first leg of ALTO high speed rail, between Montreal and our Capital Ottawa. Chosen for its easy geography, this segment of HSR will cut travel times on this route to under an hour from 2 hours today. www.cbc.ca/news/canada/...

If your city doesn’t have a gingerbread streetcar, it celebrates the holidays less sufficiently than the Ritz-Carlton on Canal St in New Orleans.

If your city doesn’t have a gingerbread streetcar, it celebrates the holidays less sufficiently than the Ritz-Carlton on Canal St in New Orleans.

NC By Train sees highest ridership in 35 years of service | Spectrum News 1 ILM #trains #rail #Amtrak #Raleigh #Durham #Greensboro #Charlotte

Raise your hand if you ever rode WMATA’s stand-alone Green Line branch or the Shortcut over the Red Line to Farragut North via the Green-Red connecting track… Me: 🙋🏻‍♂️ The northern Green Line branch from Fort Totten-Greenbelt opened today in 1993, 32 years ago.

FTA Gives Austin Light-Rail Medium-High Ranking, the Strongest Rating in the FY2026 Program Year | Austin Transit Partnership - www.atptx.org/federal-tran... … #trains #ATX #Texas #TX

From outside my Austin hotel this morning: Amtrak #22 - the northbound Texas Eagle, en route from San Antonio to Chicago - crosses the Colorado River (Lady Bird Lake) and will stop at the Austin station just on the other side of the river. It was running within 2 minutes of schedule.

Mother of pearl: Amtrak's Floridian, which departed Chicago on Monday (12/8) is nearly 8 hours late, currently traveling through South Carolina, but nearly all that delay was recorded between Chicago and South Bend. First locomotive issues than an "equipment adjustment".😧

Took @capmetroatx.bsky.social ’s Route 2 to the Eastside Bus Plaza, which is officially owned/managed by CARTS, the 9-county regional transit system surrounding Austin. It also serves Greyhound/Flix, with CARTS & intercity routes serving Dallas, Houston, Laredo, Monterrey, Bastrop, San Marcos & more

Babe, wake up: the South Shore Line posted a test train timelapse video of the new Monon Corridor, dashing through the snow on the new electrified route set to open in the 1st quarter of 2026! ⚡️🛤️ youtu.be/oPP610icJHI

Both the Borealis & Mardi Gras launches have been fantastic experiences & ridership results. That’s incredible incredible considering the last whole new Amtrak route launch was Downeaster in 2001. (Yes, Norfolk & Roanoke, but those were more extensions than full route)🚆

Buffalo’s NFTA has opened the first Metro Rail revenue service expansion since 1985 with the debut of the new DL&W station, becoming the southern terminus. The facility is the former western terminal of the historic railroad of the same name, which once hosted trains to Hoboken.

Good morning from ATX, where you wear your @capmetroatx.bsky.social socks 🧦

Congrats to Sound Transit on the opening of the 7.8-mile (12.6 km) Link 1 Line extension to Federal Way yesterday and Metrolinx / @ttcalerts.bsky.social on the debut of the 11-kilometer (6.8 mi) Finch West LRT today!

According to this MOA shared by MidwesternRPA on the other platform, Metra and the MARK (Milwaukee Area Racine Kenosha) Commuter Rail Commission are exploring Metra operating KRM service under contract to the Commission - the most obvious solution to connecting Kenosha-Racine-Milwaukee…🚆

On top of the 3+-month Mardi Gras ridership numbers at 46,000 (442 average riders/day, or about 110 per one-way trip; a 64% occupancy rate), Amtrak and the city of Mobile are moving forward with plans for a permanent platform canopy to open by the end of 2026. (Tents are in place currently)