Issues

April 2010

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Trains magazine covers the broad spectrum of railroading with authoritative content, dazzling photography, and a mix of content designed to appeal to everyone from the casual enthusiast to the seasoned professional railroader.

Trains
offers something for everyone who has a spark for railroading: Railroad news, insight, and commentary on today's freight railroads, passenger service, transit, locomotives, technology, preservation, fan opportunities, and more. You'll also see images and read stories from railroading's glorious past, and explore the bright future of railroading. It's all in the pages of Trains magazine.
Features
Trains Express April 2010 downloadable package
This month's PDF package is packed with coal stories that go back seven decades of Trains' coverage, all for $5.95
Where's That Coal Train Going?
By Tom Murray
A few basics to understand the complex coal rail network
Map of the Month: From Mine to Plant
How coal moves in the U.S.
By Tom Murray, Bill Metzger, and Matt Van Hattem

Bonus content for subscribers: Get exclusive access to PDFs of Trains maps!
Powder River Stories
By Fred Frailey
Five moments that made a difference in the life of North America's busiest coal railroad
Black Diamonds No More?
By Michael W. Blaszak
Coal's economics could change the railroad industry
WEB EXCLUSIVE: Huge Chance, Big Payoff
By John Gruber
Ribbons of Change
The cars that rule the rails are ever-changing
By Bill Fahrenwald and Lee A. Clair

Bonus content: See a list of utility and merchant generators' reporting marks and their corresponding coal car fleets
Electrifying Coal
By Scott A. Hartley
CSX carries coal to Florida's Stanton Energy Center where it's refined and burned
Shipping Coal to the World
By Mike Schaller
How Norfolk Southern loads export coal onto ships
They Run Coal Trains Where?
We visit 14 coal hauls that don't fit the mold
By Various authors

Bonus content: See five more weird coal moves
Shortline Coal: Black Gold or Black Hole
By Roy Blanchard
How short lines make coal work
Railroad Reading: A Day at the Races
By Dee Brown
Milwaukee Road versus Chicago, Burlington & Qunicy
News
News & Photos
High speed rail money • Union Pacific advances 'Sunset' upgrade • Canadian Pacific lays cool claim to Olympic fame

Bonus Content: See a vintage handcar traverse the CP's Lethbridge Viaduct with the Olympic Flame on TrainsTube
Don Phillips
Will a different Joe Boardman please stand up?
Fred W. Frailey
Henry Flagler's railroad, in a three-act drama
Technology
See how a Norfolk Southern track-maintenance crew replaces rails two at a time
Locomotive
Why six of the seven Class I railroads roster classic diesels to pull their executive trains
Passenger
Coach attendants are the rail traveler's ambassador; even as Amtrak streamlines its on-board staff
City Rail
Dubai spent $7.6 billion to build the world's longest automated rail line. Find out what it got for the money
Departments
From the Editor
The Pulse of a Coal Train
Fantrip
West Chicago, Ill., provides Canadian National, Metra, and Union Pacific action
Preservation
New York, Ontario & Western business car and Wisconsin 'fish car' shine once again
Ask Trains
Burlington Northern's 'Pulling for Freedom' • Buffer bars on passenger cars • Solar panels on ballast cars
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