Railroad nicknames
Encyclopedia
The initials used to identify railroad and railway lines
have often been used for humorous, disparaging or slanderous names. In a related category, portmanteaus, such as Amtrak
, have also been lampooned.
Rail transport
Rail transport is a means of conveyance of passengers and goods by way of wheeled vehicles running on rail tracks. In contrast to road transport, where vehicles merely run on a prepared surface, rail vehicles are also directionally guided by the tracks they run on...
have often been used for humorous, disparaging or slanderous names. In a related category, portmanteaus, such as Amtrak
Amtrak
The National Railroad Passenger Corporation, doing business as Amtrak , is a government-owned corporation that was organized on May 1, 1971, to provide intercity passenger train service in the United States. "Amtrak" is a portmanteau of the words "America" and "track". It is headquartered at Union...
, have also been lampooned.
| Railroad | Locale | Common abbreviation(s) | Nickname(s) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Amtrak Amtrak The National Railroad Passenger Corporation, doing business as Amtrak , is a government-owned corporation that was organized on May 1, 1971, to provide intercity passenger train service in the United States. "Amtrak" is a portmanteau of the words "America" and "track". It is headquartered at Union... |
United States | AMTK | Amcrash Amtrash Slamtrak |
| Baltimore and Ohio Railroad Baltimore and Ohio Railroad The Baltimore and Ohio Railroad was one of the oldest railroads in the United States and the first common carrier railroad. It came into being mostly because the city of Baltimore wanted to compete with the newly constructed Erie Canal and another canal being proposed by Pennsylvania, which... |
Eastern and midwestern United States | B&O | Beefsteak and Onions |
| BNSF Railway BNSF Railway The BNSF Railway is a wholly owned subsidiary of Berkshire Hathaway Inc., and is headquartered in Fort Worth, Texas. It is one of seven North American Class I railroads and the second largest freight railroad network in North America, second only to the Union Pacific Railroad, its primary... |
Western United States | BNSF | Buy Now, Sell Fast Bye Now, Santa Fe Big New Santa Fe Been Nothing Since Frisco Buy Norfolk Southern First Better Not Send Freight |
| Boston and Maine Railroad Boston and Maine Railroad The Boston and Maine Corporation , known as the Boston and Maine Railroad until 1964, was the dominant railroad of the northern New England region of the United States for a century... |
Northeastern United States | B&M | Busted and Mangled |
| Buffalo and South Western Railroad | Northeast United States | B&SW | Brandy and Soda Water |
| Burlington Northern Railroad Burlington Northern Railroad The Burlington Northern Railroad was a United States-based railroad company formed from a merger of four major U.S. railroads. Burlington Northern operated between 1970 and 1996.... |
Northern United States | BN | Big Nothing |
| Chicago and North Western Railway Chicago and North Western Railway The Chicago and North Western Transportation Company was a Class I railroad in the Midwest United States. It was also known as the North Western. The railroad operated more than of track as of the turn of the 20th century, and over of track in seven states before retrenchment in the late 1970s... |
Midwest United States | C&NW | Cheap and Nothing Wasted Can't and Never Will |
| Chicago Great Western Railroad | Midwest United States | CGW | Great Weedy |
| Cincinnati, Hamilton and Dayton Railroad Cincinnati, Hamilton and Dayton Railroad The Cincinnati, Hamilton and Dayton Railroad was a railroad based in the U.S. state of Ohio that existed between its incorporation on March 2, 1846, and its acquisition by the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad in December 1917... |
Ohio Ohio Ohio is a Midwestern state in the United States. The 34th largest state by area in the U.S.,it is the 7th‑most populous with over 11.5 million residents, containing several major American cities and seven metropolitan areas with populations of 500,000 or more.The state's capital is Columbus... |
CH&D | Charge High and Damn Rough Ride |
| Copper River and Northwestern Railway Copper River and Northwestern Railway The Copper River and Northwestern Railway was a railroad built by the Kennecott Corporation between 1907 and 1911 to take copper ore from Kennicott, Alaska to Cordova, Alaska, a distance of . The railroad was built by thousands of workers, who laid tracks around glaciers, across canyons and... |
Alaska, United States | CR&NW | Can't Run and Never Will |
| CSX Transportation CSX Transportation CSX Transportation operates a Class I railroad in the United States known as the CSX Railroad. It is the main subsidiary of the CSX Corporation. The company is headquartered in Jacksonville, Florida, and owns approximately 21,000 route miles... |
Eastern United States | CSX CSXT |
Chicken Shit eXpress Conrail's Southern Xtension Crash Spill eXplode Chessie's Still Xperimenting |
| Delaware and Hudson Railway Delaware and Hudson Railway The Delaware and Hudson Railway is a railroad that operates in the northeastern United States. Since 1991 it has been a subsidiary of the Canadian Pacific Railway, although CPR has assumed all operations and the D&H does not maintain any locomotives or rolling stock.It was formerly an important... |
New York, Pennsylvania | D&H | Delay and Hesitate |
| Delaware, Lackawanna and Western | Hoboken to Buffalo | DL&W | Delay, Linger and Wait |
| Elgin, Joliet and Eastern Railway Elgin, Joliet and Eastern Railway The Elgin, Joliet and Eastern Railway is a Class II railroad that operates in the suburbs surrounding Chicago. The railroad is a link between Class I railroads in northeast Illinois and northwest Indiana... |
Midwestern United States | EJ&E | Egypt, Jerusalem & Elsewhere Easy Jobs for Everyone |
| Erie Lackawanna Railway Erie Lackawanna Railway The Erie Lackawanna Railway , known as the Erie–Lackawanna Railroad until 1968, was formed from the 1960 merger of the Erie Railroad and the Delaware, Lackawanna and Western Railroad... |
Eastern United States | EL | Erie Lack-o-Money |
| Gateway Western Railway Gateway Western Railway The Gateway Western Railway was a Class II railroad that operated 408 miles of former Chicago and Alton Railroad track between Kansas City and St. Louis, Missouri... |
Missouri and Illinois | GWWR | Great Wobbly Wobbly |
| Green Bay and Western Railroad Green Bay and Western Railroad The Green Bay and Western Railroad served the transportation and freight haulage needs of northern Wisconsin for almost 100 years before it was absorbed into the Wisconsin Central in 1993... |
Wisconsin | GB&W | Grab Bags and Walk |
| Guilford Rail System | Northeastern United States | GRS | Guilford Fail System The Big G |
| Halifax and Southwestern Railway Halifax and Southwestern Railway The Halifax and Southwestern Railway was a historic Canadian railway operating in the province of Nova Scotia. The H&SW was created in spring 1901 when William Mackenzie and Donald Mann approached the provincial government with plans to finish the abortive plans for a railway from Halifax to... |
Southern Nova Scotia | H&SW | Hellish, Slow and Wobbly |
| Hoosac Tunnel and Wilmington Railroad | Northeastern United States | HT&W | Hoot Toot and Whistle |
| Kansas City Southern Railroad | Midwestern and Southern United States | KCS | The Haywire |
| Kingston and Pembroke Railway Kingston and Pembroke Railway The Kingston and Pembroke Railway was a Canadian railway that operated in eastern Ontario. The railway was seen as a business opportunity which would support the lumber and mining industries, as well as the agricultural economy in eastern Ontario.... |
Eastern Ontario | K&P | Kick and Push |
| London and Port Stanley Railway London and Port Stanley Railway The London and Port Stanley Railway is a historic Canadian railway located in southwestern Ontario.The L&PS linked the city of London with Port Stanley on the northern shore of Lake Erie, a distance of approximately .... |
Ontario Ontario Ontario is a province of Canada, located in east-central Canada. It is Canada's most populous province and second largest in total area. It is home to the nation's most populous city, Toronto, and the nation's capital, Ottawa.... , Canada |
L&PS | Liver and Pork Steak |
| Louisville and Nashville Railroad Louisville and Nashville Railroad The Louisville and Nashville Railroad was a Class I railroad that operated freight and passenger services in the southeast United States.Chartered by the state of Kentucky in 1850, the L&N, as it was generally known, grew into one of the great success stories of American business... |
Southern United States | L&N | Long and Narrow The Old Reliable |
| Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority The Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority, often referred to as the MBTA or simply The T, is the public operator of most bus, subway, commuter rail and ferry systems in the greater Boston, Massachusetts, area. Officially a "body politic and corporate, and a political subdivision" of the... |
New England | MBTA | Mucho Bad Transit Attitude |
| Minneapolis and St. Louis Railway Minneapolis and St. Louis Railway The Minneapolis and St. Louis Railway was an American Class I railroad that built and operated lines radiating south and west from Minneapolis, Minnesota which existed for 90 years from 1870 to 1960.... |
Midwest | M&StL | Misery and Short Life |
| Missouri–Kansas–Texas Railroad | Missouri Missouri Missouri is a US state located in the Midwestern United States, bordered by Iowa, Illinois, Kentucky, Tennessee, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Kansas and Nebraska. With a 2010 population of 5,988,927, Missouri is the 18th most populous state in the nation and the fifth most populous in the Midwest. It... , Kansas Kansas Kansas is a US state located in the Midwestern United States. It is named after the Kansas River which flows through it, which in turn was named after the Kansa Native American tribe, which inhabited the area. The tribe's name is often said to mean "people of the wind" or "people of the south... , Oklahoma Oklahoma Oklahoma is a state located in the South Central region of the United States of America. With an estimated 3,751,351 residents as of the 2010 census and a land area of 68,667 square miles , Oklahoma is the 28th most populous and 20th-largest state... , and Texas Texas Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in... |
MKT | the Katy |
| Missouri Pacific Railroad Missouri Pacific Railroad The Missouri Pacific Railroad , also known as the MoPac, was one of the first railroads in the United States west of the Mississippi River. MoPac was a Class I railroad growing from dozens of predecessors and mergers, including the St. Louis, Iron Mountain and Southern Railway , Texas and Pacific... |
Western United States | MP | The Mop MoPac |
| Montana Rail Link | Western United States | MRL | Milwaukee Road Lives Monkeys Running Loose |
| Norfolk Southern Railway Norfolk Southern Railway The Norfolk Southern Railway is a Class I railroad in the United States, owned by the Norfolk Southern Corporation. With headquarters in Norfolk, Virginia, the company operates 21,500 route miles in 22 eastern states, the District of Columbia and the province of Ontario, Canada... |
Eastern United States | NS | Nazi Southern New Southern Nomore Steam No Service |
| New York, Ontario and Western Railway New York, Ontario and Western Railway The New York, Ontario and Western Railway, more commonly known as the O&W or NYO&W, was a regional railroad with origins in 1868, lasting until March 29, 1957 when it was ordered liquidated by a US bankruptcy judge. The O&W holds the distinction of being the first major U.S... |
New England, United States | O&W | Old and Weary the Old Woman |
| New York, Susquehanna and Western Railway New York, Susquehanna and Western Railway The New York, Susquehanna and Western Railway , also known as the Susie-Q, or simply the Susquehanna, is a Class II American freight railway operating over 500 miles of track in the northeastern states of New York, Pennsylvania and New Jersey. It was formed in 1881 from the merger of several... |
Pennsylvania, New Jersey, New York | NYS&W | Now You Sit and Wait The Susie Q |
| Pacific Great Eastern Railway | British Columbia | PGE | Prince George Eventually Please Go Easy Province's Greatest Expense Past God's Endurance |
| Pittsburgh, Fort Wayne and Chicago Railroad | Midwestern United States | PFW&C | Paddy Finnigan's Wife and Children |
| Pontiac Pacific Junction Railway Pontiac Pacific Junction Railway The Pontiac Pacific Junction Railway Company is a historic Canadian railway that operated in the upper Ottawa River valley in western Quebec and northeastern Ontario, Canada.... |
Quebec Quebec Quebec or is a province in east-central Canada. It is the only Canadian province with a predominantly French-speaking population and the only one whose sole official language is French at the provincial level.... , Canada Canada Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean... |
PP&J | Push, Pull and Jerk |
| Richmond, Fredericksburg and Potomac | Virginia Virginia The Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there... , United States United States The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district... |
RF&P | Rich Folks and Pedigrees Run Fast and Push |
| St. Louis-San Francisco Railway St. Louis-San Francisco Railway The St. Louis – San Francisco Railway , also known as the Frisco, was a railroad that operated in the Midwest and South Central U.S. from 1876 to 1980.-History:... |
Midwestern and Southern United States | SLSF | The Frisco |
| Seaboard System Railroad Seaboard System Railroad The Seaboard System Railroad was a former Class I railroad created by merging the railroads of the Family Lines System. Although sharing common ownership, the railroads of the Family Lines System used different names when conducting business... |
Eastern United States | SBD | Slowly Breaking Down |
| Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority The Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority is a metropolitan transportation authority that operates various forms of public transit—bus, subway and elevated rail, commuter rail, light rail, and electric trolley bus—that serve 3.9 million people in and around Philadelphia,... |
Eastern United States | SEPTA | Society for the Elimination of Public Transit Altogether |
| Southern Pacific Railroad Southern Pacific Railroad The Southern Pacific Transportation Company , earlier Southern Pacific Railroad and Southern Pacific Company, and usually simply called the Southern Pacific or Espee, was an American railroad.... |
Southwest United States | SP | The Friendly Southern Pacific Espee Suffering Pathetic |
| Southern Pacific Santa Fe Railroad Southern Pacific Santa Fe Railroad In the 1980s, the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway and Southern Pacific Transportation Company attempted a merger. It began with the merger of holding companies Santa Fe Industries and Southern Pacific Company on December 23, 1983 to form the Santa Fe Southern Pacific Corporation , which... |
Southwest United States (proposed) | SPSF | Shouldn't Paint So Fast |
| Staten Island Rapid Transit | Eastern United States | SIRT | Shall I Run Today? |
| Toronto, Hamilton and Buffalo Railway Toronto, Hamilton and Buffalo Railway The Toronto, Hamilton and Buffalo Railway was a railway based in Hamilton that ran in Southern Ontario from 1894 to 1987. It never reached the other two cities in its name, although it did have branch lines extending to Dunnville and Port Maitland.-History:... |
Niagara Peninsula, Ontario, Canada | TH&B | Tramps, Hobos & Bums To Hell & Back |
| Union Pacific Railroad Union Pacific Railroad The Union Pacific Railroad , headquartered in Omaha, Nebraska, is the largest railroad network in the United States. James R. Young is president, CEO and Chairman.... |
Western United States | UP | Under Powered Unlimited Parking Uncle Pete Union Pathetic Utterly Pathetic Onion Pacific |
| Western Pacific Railroad Western Pacific Railroad The Western Pacific Railroad was a Class I railroad in the United States. It was formed in 1903 as an attempt to break the near-monopoly the Southern Pacific Railroad had on rail service into northern California... |
Western United States | WP | (The) Wobbly |
| White Pass and Yukon Route White Pass and Yukon Route The White Pass and Yukon Route is a Canadian and U.S. Class II narrow gauge railroad linking the port of Skagway, Alaska, with Whitehorse, the capital of Yukon. An isolated system, it has no direct connection to any other railroad. Equipment, freight and passengers are ferried by ship through the... |
Alaska Alaska Alaska is the largest state in the United States by area. It is situated in the northwest extremity of the North American continent, with Canada to the east, the Arctic Ocean to the north, and the Pacific Ocean to the west and south, with Russia further west across the Bering Strait... , Yukon Yukon Yukon is the westernmost and smallest of Canada's three federal territories. It was named after the Yukon River. The word Yukon means "Great River" in Gwich’in.... and British Columbia British Columbia British Columbia is the westernmost of Canada's provinces and is known for its natural beauty, as reflected in its Latin motto, Splendor sine occasu . Its name was chosen by Queen Victoria in 1858... |
WP&YR | Wait Patiently, and You'll Ride |