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This article lists events related to rail transport that occurred in 1988.

Events

February events

• February 1 - MBTA restores passenger train service to Rhode Island, but only during peak rush-hour times.
• February 29 - Illinois Central Gulf Railroad drops the word "Gulf" from its name, returning to the premerger Illinois Central Railroad company name.

March events

Seikan Tunnel commemorative 500 yen coin

• March 13 – Opening of the Seikan Tunnel beneath the Tsugaru Strait connecting the islands of Honshū and Hokkaidō (53.85 km (33.49 mi)) as part of the Kaikyo Line of Hokkaido Railway Company.^[1]

June events

• June 12 - The Trondheim Tramway in Trondheim, Norway is closed, after decision in the city council.^[2]
• June 27 - A runaway train hits a stationary rush-hour train at Gare de Lyon in France, killing 59 people and injuring more than 50 others.

September events

• September 23 - Boston and Maine Railroad's former Connecticut River Railroad line is transferred to Amtrak for the restoration of Montrealer service, which became Amtrak's Vermonter.

October events

• October 13 - Rio Grande Industries, the parent company of the Denver and Rio Grande Western Railroad, purchases the Southern Pacific Railroad; the combined railroad takes SP's identity due to its brand status to shippers.

December events

• December 12 - Three British Rail commuter trains collide at around 8:00 AM (local time) in the Clapham Junction rail crash in South East London as a result of inadequately supervised work on signalling, killing 35.^[3]

Unknown date events

• Burlington Northern Railroad corporate headquarters are moved from Seattle, Washington, to Fort Worth, Texas.
• Union Station in Washington, DC, is reopened after renovation.

Deaths

References

• Rivanna Chapter National Railway Historical Society (2005), This month in railroad history: September. Retrieved September 23, 2005.
• Rivanna Chapter National Railway Historical Society (2005), This month in railroad history: October. Retrieved October 11, 2005.

1. ^ Morse, D. (May 1988). "Japan Tunnels Under the Ocean". Civil Engineering 58 (5): 50–53.  
2. ^ Aspenberg, Nils Carl (1995). På meterspor i Nidaros. Oslo: Baneforlaget. p. 6.  
3. ^ Left, Sarah (2002-01-15). "Key dates in Britain's railway history". The Guardian Unlimited. http://www.guardian.co.uk/transport/Story/0,2763,633951,00.html.