Sandy Johnston
@sandypsj.bsky.social
Transit geek. Planner. Cat dad. Cubs fan. Deputy Director of Regional Transit Planning at MBTA. Blogging much less than I'd like at www.itineranturbanist.wordpress.com.
Opinions my own.
Opinions my own.
Really awesome paid internship opportunity available in the CTA archives! chicagotransit.taleo.net/careersectio...
chicagotransit.taleo.net/careersectio...
chicagotransit.taleo.net/careersectio...
January 27, 2026 at 1:08 PM
Really awesome paid internship opportunity available in the CTA archives! chicagotransit.taleo.net/careersectio...
chicagotransit.taleo.net/careersectio...
chicagotransit.taleo.net/careersectio...
Plenty on the ground and still going strong
January 26, 2026 at 3:26 AM
Plenty on the ground and still going strong
Snowy neighborhood
January 25, 2026 at 11:52 PM
Snowy neighborhood
Look at the coastal front boundary set up right along 128! 23 on the Newton/Needham border, 11 in downtown Needham. Of course, snowing very hard on both sides.
January 25, 2026 at 11:04 PM
Look at the coastal front boundary set up right along 128! 23 on the Newton/Needham border, 11 in downtown Needham. Of course, snowing very hard on both sides.
Newest operational loco: a rare C&NW/Omaha Road Erie-built. The prototypes were retired within a decade or so. It's a Life-Like model; I got lucky enough to track down one with a hard wired decoder on eBay and swapped shells.
January 25, 2026 at 10:22 PM
Newest operational loco: a rare C&NW/Omaha Road Erie-built. The prototypes were retired within a decade or so. It's a Life-Like model; I got lucky enough to track down one with a hard wired decoder on eBay and swapped shells.
Colin* the patio-dwelling metal chicken has been brought inside in advance of a snowstorm expected to bring snow above his head
*after the chicken in the Portlandia sketch
*after the chicken in the Portlandia sketch
January 25, 2026 at 2:48 PM
Colin* the patio-dwelling metal chicken has been brought inside in advance of a snowstorm expected to bring snow above his head
*after the chicken in the Portlandia sketch
*after the chicken in the Portlandia sketch
Interurban remains: the line linking the Shore Line Electric (CT) and United Railways (RI) systems left a couple of causeways across a reservoir in Killingly, CT. www.google.com/maps/@41.843...
January 22, 2026 at 5:47 PM
Interurban remains: the line linking the Shore Line Electric (CT) and United Railways (RI) systems left a couple of causeways across a reservoir in Killingly, CT. www.google.com/maps/@41.843...
Yikes, looks like a bridge has collapsed under the weight of a road slug on Portland & Western's Toledo, OR branch. h/t The Lincoln County Scan. www.facebook.com/permalink.ph...
January 21, 2026 at 7:03 PM
Yikes, looks like a bridge has collapsed under the weight of a road slug on Portland & Western's Toledo, OR branch. h/t The Lincoln County Scan. www.facebook.com/permalink.ph...
What an excellent headline, ESPN.
January 20, 2026 at 2:41 AM
What an excellent headline, ESPN.
Newest operational loco: SD-24 in the extremely cool EMD demonstrator livery
January 20, 2026 at 1:08 AM
Newest operational loco: SD-24 in the extremely cool EMD demonstrator livery
Obligatory mini snowcat content
January 19, 2026 at 6:50 PM
Obligatory mini snowcat content
Tonight's other layout accomplishment: getting my Chicago & Eastern Illinois GP-35 and GP-7 speed matched
January 15, 2026 at 1:06 AM
Tonight's other layout accomplishment: getting my Chicago & Eastern Illinois GP-35 and GP-7 speed matched
Finally tracked down a Bachmann 70-tonner in the livery used by the Salzberg shortlines. Runs ok but a little loud. The plan is for this to eventually get custom decals for the Fort Dodge, Des Moines, & Southern, a former interurban eventually merged into C&NW.
January 15, 2026 at 12:29 AM
Finally tracked down a Bachmann 70-tonner in the livery used by the Salzberg shortlines. Runs ok but a little loud. The plan is for this to eventually get custom decals for the Fort Dodge, Des Moines, & Southern, a former interurban eventually merged into C&NW.
Apropos of the earlier conversation about the unpleasantness of the potential 125th St subway-elevated transfer, the elevated station does need an enclosure...how about taking inspiration from Chicago? You can call it 125th-Manhattanville-Columbia ;-)
January 14, 2026 at 1:07 AM
Apropos of the earlier conversation about the unpleasantness of the potential 125th St subway-elevated transfer, the elevated station does need an enclosure...how about taking inspiration from Chicago? You can call it 125th-Manhattanville-Columbia ;-)
Skyline view from Peters Hill
January 11, 2026 at 7:55 PM
Skyline view from Peters Hill
👀👀 at the STB moving reciprocal switching forward. And at this quote in the piece, which is basically "Class Is: FAFO"
www.trains.com/pro/freight/...
www.trains.com/pro/freight/...
![Shippers said the rule didn’t go far enough. And railroads, which opposed the rule, sought a judicial review of the STB decision. In July 2025 the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit tossed the rule covering reciprocal switching for inadequate service. The court said the rule exceeded the board’s authority.
Independent analyst Anthony B. Hatch suggests that the railroads could have avoided the regulatory revamp.
“My initial thoughts are this is what happens to the rails when they foolishly fought and won a legal action against the service-oriented reciprocal switching rules as offered by the [Martin J.] Oberman board,” Hatch says.](https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:py7ihy5s5b25tzxq6ivkozew/bafkreiajdnc5b46kmjaimfdmnf6k3tkpjudaafovkwk2j4ath5cmjhd224@jpeg)
January 8, 2026 at 2:05 PM
👀👀 at the STB moving reciprocal switching forward. And at this quote in the piece, which is basically "Class Is: FAFO"
www.trains.com/pro/freight/...
www.trains.com/pro/freight/...
Last night's RDC turntable fit test, because why not? (Just barely fits)
January 7, 2026 at 4:12 AM
Last night's RDC turntable fit test, because why not? (Just barely fits)
Newest operational unit, TP&W RS-11 #400, rides the turntable
January 4, 2026 at 10:30 PM
Newest operational unit, TP&W RS-11 #400, rides the turntable
Clearly this should have been my Shabbat read rather than the book I did read
January 3, 2026 at 11:00 PM
Clearly this should have been my Shabbat read rather than the book I did read
Broke out the M&StL F-7s and a manifest heavy on Midwestern road names and shippers to show off for our New Year's Day party.
January 1, 2026 at 5:08 PM
Broke out the M&StL F-7s and a manifest heavy on Midwestern road names and shippers to show off for our New Year's Day party.
Your New Year's Day mini snowcat content
January 1, 2026 at 2:49 PM
Your New Year's Day mini snowcat content
Pretty winter JP scene at the corner of Bishop and Newbern
December 31, 2025 at 7:21 PM
Pretty winter JP scene at the corner of Bishop and Newbern
Another solid indicator of a past interurban: a power line that's been running next to a road suddenly marching off on a straighter alignment across some fields. Near Palmyra, IL the ROW of the Sterling, Dixon, & Eastern (1904-1925) is still very apparent.
www.google.com/maps/@41.849...
www.google.com/maps/@41.849...
December 29, 2025 at 3:12 AM
Another solid indicator of a past interurban: a power line that's been running next to a road suddenly marching off on a straighter alignment across some fields. Near Palmyra, IL the ROW of the Sterling, Dixon, & Eastern (1904-1925) is still very apparent.
www.google.com/maps/@41.849...
www.google.com/maps/@41.849...