OMAHA, Neb. — Union Pacific will report a record-low operating ratio for 2018 thanks to an unexpected combination of lower costs and strong traffic volume in December, the railroad said in a regulatory filing on Wednesday. On Nov. 29, UP warned that it did not expect an improvement in its full-year operating ratio due to […]
MARCO ISLAND, Fla. – Three Class I railroads presented 2019 capital plan information during Wednesday’s final day of the National Railroad Contractors and Maintenance Association Conference. While none yet had approved dollar figures to offer for their 2019 capital spending, all offered some notable information. A westbound train exits Mount Macdonald Tunnel in September 2007. […]
A UP freight derailed Wednesday in Texas, narrowly missing a house. Ed Miller AUBREY, Texas — A Union Pacific freight train that derailed in Aubrey, Texas, Wednesday morning, narrowly missed a trackside house. CBS station DFW reports that one locomotive and six cars derailed and remained upright. Seven other cars left the tracks and overturned […]
No. 405 makes it debut on Jan. 4. Metra CHICAGO – Chicago area commuter railroad Metra is expected release newly painted Milwaukee Road heritage unit No. 405 for revenue service on Thursday, a source close to the railroad tells Trains News Wire. The locomotive is tentatively assigned to Metra train No. 2119 departing Chicago at […]
MARCO ISLAND, Fla. – Catching up on some notable moments from the first three days of the National Railroad Contractor and Maintenance Association Conference: PRECISION SCHEDULED RAILROADING AND CAPITAL PROJECTS: Tuesday’s panel discussion on Precision Scheduled Railroading, featuring three current or former Canadian National executives and Howard Green, author of the biography of former CEO […]
Indiana Boxcar’s Olin Locomotive Works is nearing completion on a rebuild of former Louisville & Nashville Railroad SD40 No. 1245, built in 1970. The unit belongs to the Chesapeake & Indiana. Steve Smedley OLIN, Ind. — Olin Locomotive Works is close to completing the rebuild of one of three six-axle EMD’s purchased in a sealed […]
Jim Vena, Union Pacific Chief Operating Officer Canadian National OMAHA, Neb. — Jim Vena is Union Pacific’s $9 billion man. No, that’s not how much Vena will earn as the railroad’s new chief operating officer. Under the terms of his contract, he’ll earn a base salary of $600,000 and will be eligible for an annual […]
Western Maryland Scenic 2-6-6-2 No. 1309 in the shop last September at Ridgeley, W.Va. Trains: Jim Wrinn CUMBERLAND, Md. — Western Maryland Scenic Railroad Executive Director John Garner in a video update posted Wednesday said the railroad’s restoration of Chesapeake & Ohio 2-6-6-2 No. 1309 is proceeding at a pace now that the line will […]
Nashville, Chattanooga & St. Louis Railway No. 576 is seen here minutes after it was moved out of its shed Wednesday morning, Jan. 9. Ralcon Wagner NASHVILLE — After months of anticipation, railroad historians and steam preservationists watched as Nashville, Chattanooga & St. Louis Railway 4-8-4 No. 576 was carefully moved onto a temporary track […]
MARCO ISLAND, Florida – BNSF Railway’s capital plans for 2019 include a cluster of major bridge projects in Washington state, and pairs of bridges near Quenemo, Kan., and on the Hannibal subdivision in Missouri. Not included is a bridge over the Missouri River at Bismarck, N.D., and therein lies a tale that serves an an […]
Matt Rose, BNSF Railway Executive Chairman TRAINS: David Lassen The criticism BNSF Railway Executive Chairman Matt Rose leveled at the other Class I railroads regarding their Precision Scheduled Railroading operating plans has been greeted by silence. None of the other five big systems — each of which is running or shifting to an operating plan […]
MARCO ISLAND, Fla. – Canadian National’s “very ambitious capital program” for 2019 include up to 105 miles of new double track, said Jim McLeod, the railroad’s chief engineer for structures, design, and construction, in a Tuesday presentation at the National Railroad Construction and Maintenance Association Conference. Up to 75 miles of the new double track […]
