Working rail roads and their tracks.

[MossRoad]

I saw this today during my bicycle ride. It was 100% truck containers.
View attachment 3958178

View attachment 3958179

We get several dozen of those through our town daily. Usually 2/3 double stacked. Both east and westbound. I sometimes wonder which ones are empty or full? We also get many coal trains through town daily. Most ironic is you'll see two full BNSF coal trains pass each other going in opposite directions.

 

[ArlyA]

More of a RR shot than boat. Lots less smoke in the air these days..
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Riverland's two EMD switchers are in this view as the Lake St. Clair finishes loading wheat for an overseas destination. Duluth, MN - August 22, 2025

 

[MossRoad]

Coal tipple just north of Michigan City, IN Friday evening.

 

[ArlyA]

Iron ore mining, Gogebic Range, Ironwood MI unknown time.

 

[WinterDeere]

I was on a train for the first time in over a year, Barcelona to Zaragoza, just a few days ago. I wasn’t watching the speed reporting the whole time, but I did see it up around 320 km/h at least once. That’s 200 mph.

Overall, a nicer ride than the Philly to DC Amtrak high speed rail I rode last summer, although I have to admit that was also nice. Philly to DC driving is usually over 3 hours, but train took 90 minutes.

A meal and cocktail (G&T) were included on the train from Barcelona, but not so with Philly.

 

[kenmbz]

I was on a train for the first time in over a year, Barcelona to Zaragoza, just a few days

ago. I wasn’t watching the speed reporting the whole time, but I did see it up around 320 km/h at least once. That’s 200 mph.

Overall, a nicer ride than the Philly to DC Amtrak high speed rail I rode last summer, although I have to admit that was also nice. Philly to DC driving is usually over 3 hours, but train took 90 minutes.

A meal and cocktail (G&T) were included on the train from Barcelona, but not so with Philly.

I love the high speed rail in Spain.
Imagine, a country that has much less wealth with a much better rail system.
Italy, Japan etc. all much better.
Even if Amtrak just did 2 train lines for high speed (east coast and cross country) and charged reasonable amounts like in Europe, that would take quite a few plane rides out of the picture.

Amtrak top speed in the best rail areas is 160mph, but can only do that in very limited areas.

 

[WinterDeere]

It might be a good substitute for flight, if we could have better access to rental cars and hotels from train stations, like we do from airports. Last time I took Amtrak, I found they didn’t even have a taxi queue at the station where I was dropped, the station was so desolate I was expecting to see a tumbleweed blow by while awaiting my ride.

But because most need a car wherever they’re headed, so many choose to drive the destinations that might be best served by rail. That really limits the potential ridership numbers.

Spain doesn’t have suburbia, which is what describes most of our east coast.

 

[kenmbz]

In Germany , Munich and Frankfurt have rental car agencies right in the underground garages as do many of the train stations in Italy and France.
Spain has small towns that are access from the main cities and Madrid now has suburbs, built somewhat recently (but car rentals are more outside city center).
Many Amtrak stations don't even have good bus service.

 

[ArlyA]

201 cars, 12,500 feet of train, can be seen here is this reverse curves with K31's train as they make their way south towards Assiniboia. This train is about 2 miles long with cars for the Assiniboia area elevators and the Great Western. The train came out of Moose Jaw and will handle loads back to there once arriving at Assiniboia. The train is south of Crestwynd, SK, Canada, CP Expanse Sub.

 

[ArlyA]

Early mining scene at the Norrie iron ore mine (hematite) in Ironwood, MI in 1899.