Canadian National touts additional support for proposed KCS merger

Canadian National and Kansas City Southern logos

MONTREAL – Canadian National and Kansas City Southern note that their proposed combination continues to gain support, with letters from customers, suppliers, elected officials, and other stakeholders being filed with the Surface Transportation Board. Nearly 200 additional letters have been sent to CN and KCS and filed with the STB, bringing the total number of […]

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Digest: Local union groups file support for CN-KCS voting trust (updated)

Logo of SMART-TD union

Contradicting national leader, three local union groups support CN-KCS voting trust; another union also expresses support Three local committees of the Sheet Metal, Air, Rail and Transportation Union Transportation Division(SMART-TD) representing Canadian National workers have filed letters of support for the CN-Kansas City Southern voting trust proposal, CN says in a press release. The union’s […]

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NS, CN, and KCS are hiring conductors to meet rising traffic demand

Black locomotives followed by cars carrying truck trailers

WASHINGTON – The chief executives of Norfolk Southern, Canadian National, and Kansas City Southern have told federal regulators that their railroads are hiring conductors to meet expected traffic demand as volume continues to rise. Surface Transportation Board Chairman Martin J. Oberman, responding to shipper complaints about rail service as traffic has rebounded from the pandemic, […]

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Digest: MARC commuter trains to resume full schedule in August

MARC commuter rail logo

After nine months of reduced service, full MARC schedule to resume Aug. 30 MARC commuter trains will resume full operations on Aug. 30, nine months after reducing service in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. The Baltimore Sun reports that Maryland Transit Adminstration officials announced the restoration of MARC and commuter bus service on Monday, while […]

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Digest: Union asks regulators to block CN-KCS voting trust

SMART-TD union logo

SMART-TD union asks STB to reject voting trust for CN-KCS deal A major rail union has asked the Surface Transportation Board to reject Canadian National’s request for a voting trust for its merger with Kansas City Southern. Jeremy Ferguson, president of the International Association of Sheet Metal, Air, Rail, and Transportation Workers, Transportation Division, says […]

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Chemical shippers cite widespread rail service problems, particularly on CSX (updated)

Unit oil train passes passenger station with ground covered with snow

WASHINGTON — The trade association representing chemical shippers has asked federal regulators to put CSX Transportation under increased scrutiny due to what one company called an “operations meltdown.” Members of the American Chemistry Council reported “significant and persistent” railroad service problems, particularly with CSX. But Kansas City Southern and Norfolk Southern also were cited for […]

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General Electric C44-9W profile

Freight trains with orange diesel locomotives pass on curve

General Electric’s 4,400 hp C44-9Ws were, by far, the most popular D.C. traction locomotives the company every produced, with almost 3,600 copies built for North American customers. Sales began in the early 1990s just as A.C. traction was taking hold in the industry. Many railroads were still either wary of the new A.C. technology and […]

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