JANUARY 2020: Adam Twombly explores the final days of the isolated Black Mesa & Lake Powell, a privately-operated line in northern Arizona built to connect a coal mine to an electric power plant in the heart of Navajo country. Ron Flanary and Sam Phillips take us to Appalachian coal country and an unusual mountain switchback that continues to move coal for CSX. Emily Moser wraps up her two part series on the history and future of Detroit’s Michigan Central Station, while Frank Keller takes us to the Alaskan frontier to shoot a rare plow extra. All this and more in the January issue of Railfan & Railroad!
Black Mesa Finale
The low price of natural gas forced the closure of the coalfired Navajo Generating Station in the northern Arizona desert, spelling the end of the line for the isolated Black Mesa & Lake Powell Railroad.
M-497: Built for Speed
Despite trains like the Metroliner and later Acela reaching regular speeds of 150 m.p.h., no one has broken the American record set on a straightaway in Ohio 50 years ago by New York Central M-497.
Classic Cab Units Down Under
While all but vanished from American main lines, streamlined EMD diesels remain in daily use across portions of Genesee & Wyoming’s Australian operations.
Tribute to Siskiyou Semaphores
Southern Pacific installed Union Switch & Signal semaphores on the Siskiyou Line in Oregon around 1912, and the last working set was removed in 2007.
How Bad Are Things in Railroading Right Now?
In the freight railroad business it’s often difficult to determine what’s really going on. For instance, freight business is down all over the country in the last year. But is this something serious or just a temporary blip?
The Train that Takes Us Home
There has always been a strong link between trains and the holiday season. A train ticket just seems to go along with hot cocoa, holly leaves, and falling snow. But why?
