1996 in rail transport

• January 6 – A computer-controlled Washington Metro train overruns the platform at the Shady Grove station, colliding with a parked train and fatally injuring the operator.

• February 4 – The first two British passenger train operating companies begin operation of their service franchises as part of the privatisation of British Rail: South West Trains (part of the Stagecoach Group) and Great Western Trains (Great Western Holdings).{{cite journal|title=Passenger train operating companes: who bought what|journal=The Railway Magazine|date=April 1997|page=20}}
• February 9 - 1996 Secaucus train collision: A southbound New Jersey Transit train (Train #1254) bound for Hoboken Terminal collides nearly head-on with a northbound NJ Transit train (Train #1107) heading to Suffern. 3 People are killed.
• February 10 – Woodlands Extension of the MRT North South line in Singapore opened, adding six new stations to the current network.
• February 16 – 1996 Maryland train collision: A Chicago bound Amtrak train, the Capitol Limited, collides with a MARC commuter train bound for Washington, killing 11 people.
• February 19 – Approximately 1,000 passengers are trapped in the Channel Tunnel when two Eurostar trains break down due to electronic failures caused by snow and ice.{{cite news|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/wrong-kind-of-snow-in-tunnel-1320248.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220501/https://www.independent.co.uk/news/wrong-kind-of-snow-in-tunnel-1320248.html |archive-date=2022-05-01 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live|title=Wrong kind of snow in tunnel... |last=Wolmar|first=Christian|date=22 February 1996|publisher=The Independent|access-date=21 December 2009}}{{cbignore}}
• February 24 – The three British trainload freight companies, Loadhaul, Mainline Freight and Transrail, are acquired by North & South Railways, a subsidiary of Wisconsin Central, as part of the privatisation of British Rail.WC group buys British freight services Railway Age March 1996 page 24

• March 4 – Weyauwega, Wisconsin derailment: A Wisconsin Central freight train derails on a broken switch in Weyauwega, Wisconsin. The derailment forces the evacuation of the entire town until March 20 while fire crews work to control the resulting blaze.
• March 15 – Amtrak selects the "American Flyer" design developed by Bombardier and Alstom, based on the TGV trains of France, as the design model for its Acela rolling stock.
• March 18 – SNCF begins a construction project to renew the track ballast on the Paris-Lyon TGV line; the project is expected to last through 2006.
• March 20
• In Seoul, South Korea:
• A section of Line 5 of the Seoul Metropolitan Subway is opened independently from Banghwa to Kkachisan ({{Convert|8.8|km|mi|abbr=on}}).{{Cite web |title=개요 및 연혁 |trans-title=Overview and History |url=http://www.seoulmetro.co.kr/kr/page.do?menuIdx=512 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240205120552/http://www.seoulmetro.co.kr/kr/page.do?menuIdx=512 |archive-date=5 February 2024 |access-date=12 July 2024 |website=seoulmetro.co.kr |language=ko}}
• A branch of Line 2 of the Seoul Metropolitan Subway is opened from Sindorim to Kkachisan.
• March 28
• Muzha Line of Taipei Mass Rapid Transit, the first rapid transit line of Taiwan, opens.
• Freight services between Higashi-Yokoze freight terminal and Shin-Akitsu on the Seibu Ikebukuro Line in Japan are discontinued.
• March 30
• Opening of the first {{Convert|4.9|km|mi|abbr=on}} section of the Rinkai Line between Shin-Kiba and Tokyo Teleport stations in Tokyo, Japan.{{Cite web |title=企業情報 |trans-title=Company Information |url=https://www.twr.co.jp/enterprise/tabid/201/Default.aspx |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231130043850/https://www.twr.co.jp/enterprise/tabid/201/Default.aspx |archive-date=30 November 2023 |access-date=30 January 2024 |website=twr.co.jp |language=ja}}
• In Seoul, South Korea, a branch of Line 5 of the Seoul Metropolitan Subway is opened from Macheon to Gangdong ({{Convert|6.9|km|mi|abbr=on}}). At this point, trains operate from Wangsinmi to Sangil-dong or Macheon, branching from Gangdong.
• March – Government of Guatemala suspends operation on the entire {{convert|885|km|mi|abbr=on}} Ferrocarriles de Guatemala network.{{cite web|author=Williams, Glyn|url=http://www.sinfin.net/railways/world/guatemala.html|title=Railways in Guatemala|date=July 2006|access-date=2010-01-12}}

• April 14 – The British trainload freight company North & South Railways Ltd becomes EWS.
• April 21 – The Jokela rail accident, a derailment in thick fog, kills 4 in Tuusula, Finland.
• April 27 – The Tōyō Rapid Railway Line, connecting Nishi-Funabashi and Katsutadai opens in Chiba Prefecture, Japan.{{cite book| last=Terada| first=Hirokazu|title=データブック日本の私鉄|trans-title=Databook: Japan's Private Railways| publisher=Neko Publishing| date=January 19, 2013| location=Japan| page=56| ISBN=978-4-7770-1336-4}}
• April 28 – Further British train operating companies begin operation of their passenger service franchises as part of the privatisation of British Rail: Gatwick Express and Midland Mainline (both National Express) and Great North Eastern Railway (Sea Containers).

• May 4 – Purchase by the Dakota, Minnesota and Eastern Railroad of the former Chicago & North Western branch lines from Rapid City, South Dakota to Colony, Wyoming and Crawford, Nebraska becomes effective.
• May 12 – The Green Line of the Chicago Transit Authority elevated and subway rail system, returns to service after a 2-year reconstruction period. Many stations were still incomplete, while six other stations (including, Halsted, Homan, 58th, 61st, Racine, and University) were closed permanently.
• May 17 – Canadian National's Beachburg Subdivision between Pembroke and Nipissing, 126 miles ({{#expr:(126 * 1.609344) round 0}} km) of track which traversed Algonquin Provincial Park, is officially abandoned.{{cite web|url=http://www.railways.incanada.net/candate/ottawa.htm |title=Significant dates in Ottawa railway history |work=Colin Churcher's Railway Pages |date=2006-04-28 |access-date=2006-05-17 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060427061656/http://www.railways.incanada.net/candate/ottawa.htm |archive-date=27 April 2006 |url-status=dead }}
• May 20 – The British railway infrastructure management company, Railtrack, is privatised, being floated on the London Stock Exchange with shares worth 360p.{{cite news|last=Left|first=Sarah|title=Key dates in Britain's railway history|work=The Guardian|date=2002-01-15|url=https://www.theguardian.com/transport/Story/0,2763,633951,00.html| access-date= 7 July 2007 }}
• May 26 – Further British train operating companies begin operation of their passenger service franchises in England as part of the privatisation of British Rail: Connex South Central and LTS Rail (a subsidiary of Prism Rail).

• June 2 – First part of the Belgian High Speed line (HSL 1, from Antoing to the French Border) put into service, continuing the French LGV Nord.
• June 26 – The Atlanta & St Andrews Bay Railroad and the A&G Railroad merge to form the Bay Line Railroad.

• July 21 – British train operating company Chiltern Railways begins operation of its passenger service franchise in England as part of the privatisation of British Rail, following a management buyout.
• July 24 – The Dehiwala train bombing carried out by the LTTE kills 64 people.
• July 26 – Conventional rail world speed record of {{Convert|443.0|km/h|abbr=on}} attained by the JR Central "300X" six-car train between {{STN|Kyoto|x}} and {{STN|Maibara|x}} on the Tokaido Shinkansen.{{cite book |script-title=ja: プロトタイプの世界 – Prototype World |publisher = Kotsu Shimbunsha |date = December 2005 |location = Japan |language = Japanese |page = 60|oclc=170056962}}
• July 27 – Ron Burns becomes president of Union Pacific.
• July 28 – The Talleyr and Terminal Railroad (a subsidiary of Genesee & Wyoming) begins operations in Jacksonville, Florida.
• July 31 – Canadian Pacific makes the last run of a grain load in a {{convert|40|ft|m|abbr=on}} boxcar with the final deliveries of grain to Thunder Bay, Ontario.{{cite journal|author=McDonnell, Greg|date=April 1997|title=In Canada, finis for 40-footers|journal=Trains Magazine|volume=57|issue=4|pages=17–18}}
• July 31 – The first low-floor light rail car in North America is received (from its manufacturer, Siemens) by Portland, Oregon's TriMet.Oliver, Gordon (August 1, 1996). "MAX takes keys to cool new model". The Oregonian, p. D1.

• August 12 – In Seoul, South Korea, the northern section of Line 5 of the Seoul Metropolitan Subway is extended from Yeouido to Kkachisan ({{Convert|6.9|km|mi|abbr=on}}).
• August 19 – Metra's North Central Service commuter rail line begins operations on the Milwaukee District West Line and on the Wisconsin Central Railroad between Union Station in downtown Chicago and Antioch.

• September 11 – Union Pacific finishes the acquisition that was effectively begun almost a century before with the purchase of the Southern Pacific.{{cite web|title=Union Pacific Railroad Chronological History|work=Union Pacific|url=http://www.uprr.com/aboutup/history/uprr-chr.shtml|access-date=22 July 2005|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060810170628/http://www.uprr.com/aboutup/history/uprr-chr.shtml|archive-date=10 August 2006|url-status=dead}} The merged company retains the name "Union Pacific" for all railroad operations.
• September 14 – The York–Durham Heritage Railway begins operations on Canadian National's former branch between Uxbridge and Stouffville, Ontario.{{cite web|title=York-Durham Heritage Railway|url=http://www.ydhr.on.ca/WelcomePage.html|access-date=2007-07-20|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070703072813/http://www.ydhr.on.ca/WelcomePage.html|archive-date=2007-07-03|url-status=dead}}

• October 1 – The Norwegian Railway Inspectorate is created.
• October 11 – In Seoul, South Korea, Line 7 of the Seoul Metropolitan Subway is opened from Jangnam to Koknuk University ({{Convert|19.0|km|mi|abbr=on}}).
• October 13 – Further British train operating companies begin operation of their passenger service franchises as part of the privatisation of British Rail: Cardiff Railway Company (operating as Valley Lines) and Wales & West (both subsidiaries of Prism Rail); Connex South Eastern; Island Line, Isle of Wight (Stagecoach Group); and Thames Trains (Go-Ahead Group).
• October – The first stage of Cairo Metro's Line Two (the Yellow line) opens.

• November 18 – Channel Tunnel fire seriously damaging 200 m of the tunnel's lining.
• November 21 – Limited freight service in the Channel Tunnel resumes while construction crews make repairs at the location of the fire three days earlier.
• November 23 – In Seoul, South Korea, Line 8 of the Seoul Metropolitan Subway is opened from Jamsil to Moran ({{Convert|13.1|km|mi|abbr=on}}).

• December 1 – Norwegian State Railways is split into the Norwegian National Rail Administration and Norges Statsbaner.
• December 4 – Passenger service resumes through the Channel Tunnel.
• December 5
• BNSF reopens Stampede Pass in Washington and resumes operating freight trains over the line.{{cite web|title=Burlington Northern {{sic|Sant|e Fe|hide=y}} Railroad reopens Stampede Pass line on December 5, 1996|work=HistoryLink.org|url=http://www.historylink.org/essays/output.cfm?file_id=7364|access-date=5 December 2005}}
• Canadian National operates its last train of grain to be hauled in 40 ft (12 m) boxcars; CN SD40s numbered 5256 and 5051 depart Canora, Saskatchewan, with a train of 114 such boxcars bound for Winnipeg, Manitoba, and Thunder Bay, Ontario.
• December 11 – Opening of the second phase of the Osaka {{nihongo|Rapid Electric Tramway Line No. 7|高速電気軌道第7号線}} (Nagahori Tsurumi-ryokuchi Line) between Kyōbashi and Shinsaibashi.{{Sfn|Subway|2018|p=44}}
• December 16 – Opening of Malaysia's first metro line, the LRT STAR Line ({{lang-zh|实达轻快铁}}) from {{lrts|Ampang}} to {{lrts|Sultan Ismail}} in the Kuala Lumpur, the capital of Malaysia.
• December 30
• Dallas Area Rapid Transit opens the first line of Trinity Railway Express between Dallas and Irving, Texas.Trinity Railway Express, [http://www.trinityrailwayexpress.org/traininfo.html Significant dates in Trinity Railway Express history] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120204070824/http://www.trinityrailwayexpress.org/traininfo.html |date=2012-02-04 }}. Retrieved December 27, 2005.DART, [http://www.dart.org/history.asp DART history]. Retrieved December 27, 2005.
• The Brahmaputra Mail train bombing: a bomb explodes a train travelling in Lower Assam in Eastern India, totally destroying three carriages of the train and derailing six more, killing at least 33 people.
• In Seoul, South Korea, Line 5 of the Seoul Metropolitan Subway is extended from Wangsimni to Yeouido ({{Convert|14.1|km|mi|abbr=on}}). This would be the line's fourth expansion in ten months, connecting the two pre-existing sections in the process.
• December 31 – Burlington Northern and the Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe Railway merge to form BNSF.

{{1996 railway accidents|state=uncollapsed}}

• January 3 – Terence Cuneo, British railway artist (born 1907).

• May 9 – Carl Fallberg, cartoonist who created Fiddletown & Copperopolis (born 1915).{{cite journal|date=February 1997|title=Obituary|journal=Trains|volume=57|issue=2|pages=18A}}

• {{cite web|title=Significant dates in Canadian railway history |work=Colin Churcher's Railway Pages |url=http://www.railways.incanada.net/candate/candate.htm |access-date=13 September 2005 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20050905040306/http://www.railways.incanada.net/candate/candate.htm |archive-date=5 September 2005 |url-status=dead }}
• {{Cite magazine |date=31 August 2018 |title=長堀鶴見緑地線の歴史を辿る |url=http://www.jametro.or.jp/upload/subway/FWdIafNFCVqR.pdf |access-date=31 January 2024 |magazine=SUBWAY |publisher=Japan Subway Association |page= |pages=42–45 |language=ja |format=PDF |publication-place=Japan |volume=8 |issue=218 |issn=0289-5668 |ref={{sfnref|Subway|2018}} }}