Coming Soon: The Next Chapter of AlabamaRailfan.com

For over two decades, this site has documented the rich railroading landscape of Alabama. Though updates have been on hold since 2015, a major overhaul is officially in development for the coming year! What to expect in the redesign:

· A clean, modern, and mobile-friendly layout
· Regular uploads of fresh rail photography and video footage
· Updated resources on Alabama shortlines, Class I action, and industrial lines

Thank you for sticking with me over the last 20+ years. Keep your eyes on the rails—and this site—for upcoming changes!
John D. Peterson

  AlabamaRailfan.com Site News for Saturday, October 10, 2026:

Sorry, no Site News at this time! Please check back soon!

  Welcome!

Welcome, fellow railfans, to AlabamaRailfan.com! The state of Alabama boasts some great railfanning opportunities, from mountainous railroading to urban switching operations to gulf ports! Alabama is host to five Class I railroads: the Burlington Northern-Santa Fe Railroad, the Illinois Central Railroad, the Kansas City Southern Railway and the two biggest players in Alabama, CSX Transportation and Norfolk Southern Corporation.

But don't let those big name railroads fool you, Alabama is also packed with lots of shortline and industrial railroading action. There are well over fifteen shortline railroads and dozens of industrial railroad operations in Alabama!

How about passenger service? Alabama has you covered there also with the Amtrak Crescent, which makes daily trips through Anniston, Birmingham and Tuscaloosa! The Sunset Limited made tri-weekly trips through Atmore and Mobile, Alabama until hurricane Katrina hit in 2005. As of 2008, the Sunset Limited only traveled as far east as New Orleans. Hopefully, the Sunset will eventually make trips through Alabama again.

Alabama also has a wealth of railroad related museums and displays. There are two museums with operating trains and a number of displays and historical sites around the state for you to enjoy!

Check out the following email lists for more information:
Discussing all aspects of railroading in Alabama. We cover anything and everything here, so don't hesitate to post what ever you have: https://groups.io/g/ALrails
The SERails list has many members and you can almost always find someone with good info! This list covers the states of Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia, and Florida. You can join the SERails List by visiting https://groups.io/g/SErails.

I hope you enjoy your visit to AlabamaRailfan.com! Even if you are not from the area, I hope you can find something here of interest! Thank you for stopping by and come back again soon!
-- john, AlabamaRailfan.com Webmaster

  Photo of the Day for Saturday, October 10, 2026:
ns_9475.jpg

East bound Norfolk Southern ballast train 920 rolls through Belle Mina, AL near Mooresville Road. The short siding in the foreground is used by maintenance of way crews to store equipment.

File Size: 187 KBytes · Downloads: 5943 · Uploaded: December 12,2001

All content ©1999-2026 John D. Peterson/AlabamaRailfan.com unless noted. These pages are in no way affiliated with any railroad or other company mentioned in these pages. This information is provided for entertainment purposes only.