trains

Latest in trains

a mother and child walk in beside an amtrak train parked at railroad station

Ask Us Anything

What happens if Amtrak gets privatized?

By Mack DeGeurin

CR450AF high speed train on track in China with two people looking at it

At 281 mph, China tests its fastest high-speed train

A bullet train passes below Mt. Fuji in Japan.

Japan will test self-driving bullet trains in 2028

Concept art of lunar base with floating train path alongside astronauts

Wild NASA proposal envisions magnetic hover trains on the moon

Lagos Blue Line Rail train next to traffic jam

Traveling through the world’s most traffic-heavy city just got a lot quicker—and greener

California high speed railcar concept art

A high-speed rail line in California is chugging along towards 2030 debut

Japanese bullet train leaving station at dawn

Texas could get a 205-mph bullet train zipping between Houston and Dallas

Hannover train station

The world’s first hydrogen-powered train has made its final stop

An oncoming Union Pacific freight train

30 tons of ammonium nitrate disappeared from a desert-bound train

Smoke rises from a derailed cargo train in East Palestine, Ohio

Toxic train derailment in East Palestine, OH highlights issues facing America’s railways

Swiss train crossing bridge in Alps

Switzerland sets world record for longest passenger train—and it’s electric

a high speed rail train in black and white over a map of US rail lines in purple in the background

High-speed rail trains are stalled in the US—and that might not change for a while

By Bill Gourgey

Train on tracks at small station.

A guide to riding public transit more, anywhere in the country

By Bridget Reed Morawski

What it takes to dig a new tunnel beneath the Hudson

What it takes to dig a new tunnel beneath the Hudson

The Weirdest Thing I Learned This Week

What’s stranger than bees telling time? How we learned that they can.

By Popular Science Team

train coming out of station

Vibrations from trains could help seismologists peer underground

Woman waiting for airplane with coronavirus mask.

The safest way to travel during the pandemic

19 evidence-based solutions to New York City’s subway disaster

19 evidence-based solutions to New York City’s subway disaster

By Eleanor Cummins

Freight trains are our future

Freight trains are our future

By Michael E. Webber

Not all of us can ride a scooter. Here’s a plan to get everyone where they need to go.

Not all of us can ride a scooter. Here’s a plan to get everyone where they need to go.

By Sarah Scoles