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Events
January
- January 26 – To provide an all-India rail route to Assam following the Partition of India, the Northeast Frontier Railway opens to passengers a new line between Kishanganj and Fakiragram () on which construction commenced only on January 26, 1948; also, Chittaranjan Locomotive Works, India, commences steam locomotive production, the first locomotive (class WG no. 8401) being rolled out on November 1.
February
- February 5 – The first diesel locomotive to pull a freight train on the San Diego and Arizona Railway begins its journey from El Centro, California, on a trial run.
- February 6 – A labor strike by United Mine Workers causes shortages of bituminous coal encouraging New England railroads to accelerate replacement of steam locomotives with diesel-electric locomotives.
- February 10 – Canadian National Railway gains control of Temiscouata Railway in the provinces of Quebec and New Brunswick.
- February 17 – Rockville Centre train crash: A head-on collision between two Long Island Rail Road evening trains in Rockville Centre, New York kills 32 and injures 158, the worst in the road's history until November.
March
- March 2 – The Nickel Plate Road runs its first mainline freight train powered by diesel locomotives, as two yard switchers are pressed into service to handle a train from Peru, Indiana, to Michigan City.
April
- April – The Canadian Pacific Railway registers its first, unsuccessful application with Canada's Board of Transport Commissioners to abandon passenger service on its interurban subsidiary, the Canadian Pacific Electric Lines.
- April 30 – The Pennsylvania Railroad replaces its Steeler with the Morning Steeler and Afternoon Steeler passenger trains between Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and Cleveland, Ohio.
May
- May 6 – Pacific Electric quits the Los Angeles to San Bernardino railway post office, the last interurban RPO in the United States.
- May 7–8 Long Island Rail Road's Jamaica Bay Trestle erupts in a major fire between The Raunt and Broad Channel stations, destroying the bridge over Jamaica Bay, and leading to the eventual decline of the Rockaway Beach Branch five years later.
- May – ALCO introduces the ALCO RS-3.
June
- June 16 – Copper Range Railroad's coal unloading dock at Houghton, Michigan, is razed. [https://web.archive.org/web/20051104011655/http://www.michiganrailroads.com/RRHX/Timeline/1950s/TimeLine1950.htm]
July
- July 2 – Pacific Electric service along the West Santa Ana Branch is truncated to Bellflower, California.
August
- August 1 – Indian Railways takes over most remaining state railways.
October
- October 1 – First section of Stockholm Metro (Stockholms T-bana, Sweden) opened by conversion of the underground tram line from Slussen to Hökarängen.
- October 15 – Pacific Electric ceases operations on the El Monte–Baldwin Park Line.
- November 30 – Baldwin Locomotive Works becomes Baldwin-Lima-Hamilton Corporation.
Unknown date
- Ferrovie dello Stato, Italy, opens new Roma Termini railway station.
- Work on electrification of Saint Petersburg Railway Division of the Oktyabrskaya Railway, Russia begins.
Accidents
Births
- July 18 - Richard Branson, founder of Virgin Rail Group.
Deaths
- February 11 - Victor V. Boatner, president of Peoria and Pekin Union Railway 1921-, Chicago Great Western Railway 1929–1931, dies (born 1884).
References
- MichiganRailroads.com (2005), Railroad History Timeline - 1950. Retrieved June 13, 2005.
- (August 16, 2005), Significant dates in Canadian railway history. Retrieved August 22, 2005.