railway transportation

• Maryland

CSX to close section of Morgan Station Road for rail-crossing repairs

CSX is replacing the surface at the railroad crossing and re-paving the railroad approaches.

• Opinion

Amtrak isn't about profits

History shows government must run the railroad while the private sector ruins air travel

• Railway Disasters

Harris wants answers in Amtrak crash before supporting more funding

Rep. Andy Harris is open to the possibility that Amtrak needs more money to improve safety along its busy Northeast Corridor. But the only Republican in Maryland's congressional delegation said he would need more information before supporting such an increase.

By Kevin Rector

May 15, 2015

• Maryland

National Train Day on track for return to museum

Western Maryland Railway Historical Society Museum, in Union Bridge, taking part in National Train Day May 9

• Harford

No construction of new Susquehanna River bridge likely until 2020s, Amtrak says

Bit by bit, the project to replace Amtrak's century-old Susquehanna River Rail Bridge between Havre de Grace and Perryville is taking shape, although it could be at least five more years until construction begins, according to community leaders and railroad officials involved in the project.

• Harford

Public forum on Susquehanna rail bridge replacement scheduled for March 26

Members of the public will have the opportunity next week to learn the latest developments in the ongoing project to replace Amtrak's aging Susquehanna River Rail Bridge, plus talk with members of the project team, officials from Cecil and Harford counties and members of a regional advisory board who are working with the project team, during a community forum at the Havre de Grace Community Center.

• Public Transportation

Public meetings scheduled on B&P Tunnel replacement

A series of public meetings on several shortlisted options for the replacement or reconstruction of the Baltimore & Potomac Tunnel in Baltimore have been planned for next month.

By Kevin Rector

Mar 16, 2015

• Baltimore County

Train collides with trailer in Rosedale, no injuries reported

A train collided with a vehicle in Rosedale Monday morning, Baltimore County fire officials said, less than two miles from the site of a significant derailment and explosion in 2013 along the same rail line.

• Obituaries

Donald J. Borneman Sr., railroader

Donald J. Borneman Sr., a retired Amtrak train dispatcher who enjoyed boating, died.

By Frederick N. Rasmussen

Feb 11, 2015

• Harford

Next stop for Aberdeen's old B&O station is a new foundation

Before the 129-year-old former B&O Railroad station in Aberdeen can be used again, the historic building has to get its feet on the ground, so to speak.

• Maryland

Route 40 sewer line in danger of collapsing, Aberdeen officials warn

Aberdeen's public works director warned Monday that a portion of nearly-century-old sewer line under Route 40 is in danger of imminent collapse.

• Opinion

Replace the B&P tunnel

Baltimore's most urgent transportation problem is a 19

• Railway Transportation

Five questions with B&O Railroad Museum head Courtney Wilson

It might deal in an industry's past, but the B&O Railroad Museum in Baltimore certainly has its eyes on the future. From increasing its role in early childhood education in Baltimore to forming new ties with railroad museums in other countries, the so-called "birthplace of American railroading" constantly seeks to remain relevant in new and exciting ways, said Courtney Wilson, an antiques expert and the museum's executive director.

By Kevin Rector

Jan 16, 2015

• Railway Disasters

Families of women killed in Ellicott City derailment reach settlement with CSX

The families of two young women killed in the derailment of a CSX coal train in the heart of historic Ellicott City in the summer of 2012 have reached a settlement with the railroad.

By Kevin Rector

Jan 14, 2015

• Opinion

Don't overstate risk of oil trains

Federal government has already taken steps to address risk posed by trains carrying petroleum

• Public Transportation

Rebuilding Northeast rail line is a necessity

Rail service between Washington and Boston is too valuable to be neglected

• Harford

A moving bit of railroad history [Editorial]

Its move of about 50 feet from what is today a freight station marks a clear end to the station's use as a terminal for travelers, but it will make the building safe for future visitors hoping to get a look at the past.

• Railway Transportation

In some Maryland railroad towns, crude oil is an open secret

The long tanker trains full of crude oil roll south from Pennsylvania about twice a day, along the banks of the Susquehanna River and through the towns of Cecil County. These shipments are part of a global energy shift that's reducing gas prices and U.S. dependence on oil imports, but also controversial for their risks.

• Harford

Huge warehouse project planned for Perryman raises traffic concerns

A new warehouse planned for Perryman raised concern from residents who said development in the area is reaching a tipping point.

• Maryland

Old Aberdeen train station lifted and moved

More than a decade of effort by the members of the Historical Society of Harford County paid off Tuesday when the 129-year-old Aberdeen B&O Railroad station was moved 50 feet from the space it has occupied along the railroad tracks since 1885.

• Opinion

Amtrak: On the wrong track

As U.S. Supreme Court justices wrestle with whether or not Amtrak, as a quasi private corporation, should have the right to set performance standards that would also affect the freight services with which it shares lines, the rail system is facing gridlock. America's outmoded railroad policy leading to this situation was created in a crisis atmosphere 50 years ago. It is counter-productive today and, if not revised, potentially disastrous for the future. A look at the past can better inform the

• Opinion

Railroad's mixed signals

Amtrak ridership is at record highs but the nation's rail system is facing gridlock unless action is taken soon

• Public Transportation

Options for B&P tunnel replacement narrow as Amtrak considers future

Officials plotting a faster route for passenger and freight rail through Baltimore have landed on two options, one of which would likely displace many of the remaining residents in a largely abandoned West Baltimore neighborhood.

• Obituaries

Robert F. Brown Sr., railroader

Robert F. Brown Sr., a retired CSX assistant superintendent and part time funeral home attendant, died Saturday at Stella Maris Hospice of esophageal cancer. He was 87.

By Frederick N. Rasmussen

Nov 18, 2014

• Railway Disasters

Claims settled in Rosedale train explosion as NTSB prepares to release final report

Dozens of damages claims filed against the waste company involved in the derailment and explosion of a freight train in Rosedale in 2013 have been settled, according to federal court documents filed Tuesday.

• Public Transportation

Trains stopped on Camden Line after truck hits Laurel overpass

Rail traffic was temporarily stopped along the Camden Line in Laurel after a tractor trailer became stuck in an underpass in Laurel, according to the Maryland Transit Administration.

By Kevin Rector

Oct 14, 2014

• Public Transportation

Project would decrease rail traffic in Canton

A multimillion-dollar project to reduce train traffic and noise in the increasingly residential and commercial east end of Canton by shifting some rail operations to the north is moving forward, according to railroad and state transportation officials.

• Opinion

Maglev is not the answer [Letter]

Fix existing rail lines before investing in magnetic levitation trains between Washington and Baltimore

• Opinion

State decision on CSX transfer facility is incredibly short-sighted [Letter]

The state's decision to pull funding from a proposed CSX transfer facility is stupid.

• Public Transportation

Without rail facility, port faces uncertain prospects

State officials looking to tap anticipated growth in the East Coast shipping industry are back at the drawing board after abandoning a freight rail project that has been central to their strategy for half a decade.

• Opinion

Port suffers a setback [Editorial]

The decision not to move ahead with a planned CSX intermodal rail facility in Southwest Baltimore is a major blow to city's port

• Baltimore County

NTSB report finds little chemical contamination from Rosedale derailment

About 70 minutes after the derailment and fiery explosion of a chemical-laden train in Rosedale last year, a team of county firefighters, state environmental experts and CSX Transportation officials entered the "hot zone." New documents outline the extent of the chemical spill.

• Harford

Some fascinating views from a bridge not far away [Commentary]

Ever since I took my first intercity trip on a train from Philadelphia to Washington, D.C., many, many years ago, I've held a certain fascination for the bridge on which our train crossed the Susquehanna River.

• Obituaries

Carvey G. Davis Jr., streetcar operator

Carvey G. Davis Jr., a former Baltimore Transit Co. motorman who never lost his affection for streetcars and was a longtime supporter and benefactor of the Baltimore Streetcar Museum, died Saturday at his Glen Burnie home of bone cancer. He was 90.

• Opinion

Taking responsibility for the 26th Street collapse [Editorial]

Baltimore and CSX need to clearly delineate who is in charge of maintaining infrastructure.

• Politics

East 26th Street residents call for compensation over landslide

Residents of East 26th Street in Charles Village want financial compensation for having been dramatically displaced from their homes when a landslide in April sent half their block crumbling into railroad tracks below, and have begun taking steps to achieve that goal.

• Laws and Legislation

City, CSX agree to split East 26th Street repair costs

The city of Baltimore and CSX Transportation have agreed to split the cost of rebuilding the collapsed retaining wall along East 26th Street in Charles Village, according to a memorandum of understanding signed by both parties.

• Obituaries

George W. Hilton, college professor

George W. Hilton, a retired college professor who specialized in transportation economics whose definitive books on railroads and shipping also included the seminal history of the Maryland & Pennsylvania Railroad, died Aug. 4 at Lorien Health Park in Columbia. He was 89.

• Maryland

Fairhaven resident takes the ride of a lifetime

For 20 years, Paul Bridge, 75, of Sykesville, has volunteered at the B&O Railroad Museum in Baltimore, researching and leading tours, all while getting a second hand look at the people, technology and transportation during the Civil War era. Now, thanks to the efforts of friends and strangers, he got a chance to experience it personally.

• Baltimore County

Train strikes vehicle in Rosedale where explosion occurred last year

A train struck a vehicle Tuesday morning at the same Rosedale crossing where a train collided with a garbage truck last year and triggered a massive explosion and partial derailment.

• Scientific Research

Garrett Island - so close, and yet so far

People have been pinning their aspirations on Garrett Island since the 1600s, when one Englishman talked about building a college there, but lately these 198 acres are reserved chiefly for plants, trees and non-human actors.

• Baltimore City

Railroad signal box by Howard Street bridge catches fire, delays trains

A shed on the railroad tracks near the Howard Street bridge in North Baltimore caught fire, briefly delaying Amtrak traffic Sunday evening, officials said.

• Howard County

Worn, fractured rail caused Ellicott City train derailment, NTSB determines

A broken rail along train tracks in Ellicott City caused the massive coal train derailment that killed two local women in 2012, the National Transportation Safety Board said Thursday.

• Baltimore City

City approves $12M contract for East 26th St. collapse repairs

The Baltimore Board of Estimates on Wednesday approved a nearly $12 million contract for construction and repair work to replace a block of East 26th Street that collapsed amid heavy rains in Charles Village in April.

• Railway Transportation

2 railroads sue Md. to prevent disclosure of crude oil shipments

Norfolk Southern Railway and CSX Transportation have filed lawsuits against the Maryland Department of Environment to block it from releasing information on their shipments of crude oil through the state, according to court records.

• Howard County

Parents of Ellicott City derailment victims speak out, say they blame CSX for deaths

The parents of two young women killed in a destructive coal train derailment in Ellicott City in 2012 unleashed heated criticism of the railroad for the first time Tuesday — blaming CSX Transportation for their daughters' deaths.

• Howard County

Deadly Ellicott City derailment linked to break in track

The derailment of a coal train in the heart of historic Ellicott City nearly two years ago began at a small break in the rail line several hundred feet from where two young women happened to be seated along the tracks, according to investigative documents released by the National Transportation Safety Board on Monday.

• Harford

Man injured in Joppa train incident

An 18-year-old man was hospitalized Sunday evening after he fell from a train on the CSX rail line in the Joppa area.

• Harford

Pedestrian struck, killed by train in Aberdeen

A pedestrian was struck by an Amtrak train early Sunday in Aberdeen.

• Industrial Disasters

Baltimore's position in crude oil market grows as U.S. confronts concerns

As the nation enjoys a boom in crude oil production and grapples with the heightened risks and logistical constraints of moving ever-increasing volumes of the volatile commodity through its cities and towns, two companies in Baltimore appear to be carving out a new local foothold for the industry.