TRAINS June 2003

Paradise Lost
Tennessee Pass…Homestake Pass…Saluda… Rust is claiming the idle rails on some of North America’s grandest main lines. What would it take to bring them back? TRAINS Magazine looks at the rise and fall of Colorado’s Tennessee Pass and explores how today’s railroads—blessed through merger with a choice of main lines—decide which routes to keep and which to set aside.

Trackside Guide: Detroit
Detroit may be the Motor City, but busy railroad lines converge on the city in every direction. TRAINS Magazine untangles Detroit’s complicated rail network in a new Trackside Guide. It’s all here: five Class Is, three short lines, two steel mills, and more auto plants than you can shake a tire iron at—plus detailed maps and data!

Railroad Blueprint: Sunnyside Yard
Pennsylvania Railroad’s New York City passenger car yard was the world’s largest in 1956, packing over 1200 cars a day on 75 tracks, and servicing 104 passenger trains. We show you what it was like.

Map of the Month: Western winners
We chart 20 years of tonnage growth on main lines in the western United States. Does your favorite make the cut?

Railroad Reading: Ridin’ the Clinch
Nothing compared to that twisting, turning ride through the Blue Ridge Mountains.

Plus expert analysis covering every aspect of railroading.

Don Phillips: NS vs. CSX: It’s all about reputation.

Larry Kaufman: Logic and Congress: Are they mutually exclusive?

Railroad News: Railroads ratchet up security with Iraq war.

Locomotives: Go gracefully into the scrap yard? Not Amtrak’s F40s!

Passenger rail: Dome car roundup: Where to ride under glass in North America.

City rail: Can commuters, CSX, and extreme weather mix?

Preservation: Where to go in 2003: Special events at railroad museums around the country.