WASHINGTON – U.S. weekly rail traffic was up 2.3% compared with the same week last year, the Association of American Railroads reported today. For the week ending Jan. 6, U.S. railroads originated 208,176 carloads, up 0.9% compared with the same week in 2023, while U.S. weekly intermodal volume was 209,081 containers and trailers, up 3.7% […]
ALBANY, N.Y. — New York Gov. Kathy Hochul on Tuesday called for the start of engineering work on the Interborough Express light rail line, as well as further extension of the Second Avenue Subway project, as part of the annual State of the State address. Other transit-related aspects of the address included new measures to […]
RICHMOND, Va. — A Virginia legislator is re-introducing regulations that would require two-person crews, cap train lengths, and limit the amount of time trains could block grade crossings in the commonwealth’s House of Delegates. HB385 is sponsored by Delegate Shelly A. Simonds (D-Newport News). It will formally be introduced on Wednesday, Jan. 10. It would […]
ATLANTA — Norfolk Southern partnered with 62 customers to complete industrial development projects worth $3.1 billion last year, the railroad said. “Norfolk Southern worked with customers and economic development partners to facilitate broad-based industrial development in 2023 and set the stage for growth in 2024,” NS Chief Marketing Officer Ed Elkins said in a statement […]
SEATTLE — Sound Transit’s board will consider appointment of Goran Sparrman as interim CEO of the agency at a special meeting this Thursday, Jan. 11, the agency has announced. Sparrman, who would be appointed for one year, currently works for infrastructure consultant HNTB and has twice served as acting director of the Seattle Department of […]
MONTREAL — Canadian National has hired a former forest products company chief executive, Remi G. Lalonde, to lead its marketing and sales efforts. CN, which is the largest hauler of forest products in North America, today named Lalonde as its executive vice president and special advisor to the CEO, a role he’ll hold until he […]
SACRAMENTO — Alstom Transportation and Siemens Mobility are the two potential suppliers of trainsets for the California high speed rail project, the California High-Speed Rail Authority announced Friday. Their identification as qualified bidders follows the authority’s release of a Request for Qualifications in August 2023 and precedes the release of the Request for Proposals and […]
ATLANTA — Norfolk Southern on Thursday released its inaugural Climate Transition Plan, which calls for significant improvements in fuel efficiency and increased use of renewable energy and biofuels. “Reducing the environmental impact of our operations is driven by our commitment to a cleaner and better planet for our employees, our customers, and our communities for […]
CHICAGO — Service on the Chicago Transit Authority’s Yellow Line — the 4.7-mile route colloquially known as the Skokie Swift — will resume Friday, Jan. 5, ending a 50-day suspension following a collision between a Yellow Line train and a snow-clearing machine being used for training. Service will resume at approximately 4:45 a.m. Yellow Line […]
Canadian Pacific Kansas City was the only Class I railroad that was able to eke out higher volume last year. CPKC’s traffic was up a scant 0.1% in 2023, which was a down year for North American freight volume. Rail traffic in the U.S., Canada, and Mexico was down a combined 2.1% last year, according […]
WASHINGTON — National Transportation Safety Board chair Jennifer Homendy blasted the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority for its “poor safety culture” in a press briefing today (Thursday, Jan. 4) on the final report into the Oct. 12, 2021, derailment of a DC Metrorail train in Arlington, Va., saying the agency’s issues with WMATA include some […]
PORT CLINTON, Pa. — Reading & Northern saw double-digit growth in both freight and passenger traffic in 2023, the second consecutive year with such increases, the railroad said in a year-end business review. The Pennsylvania regional railroad handled more than 37,000 cars of freight, up from 33,000 in 2022. Growth was boosted in particular by […]
