Miami exploring effort to expand commuter rail service

Map of rail lines in Miami area

MIAMI — Miami-Dade County officials are attempting to revive a long-dormant proposal for commuter rail service west and south of downtown using existing CSX Transportation tracks, the Miami Herald reports. The western line would run from Miami International Airport — the current terminus of Tri-Rail service north to West Palm Beach — to the Doral […]

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Maine agency unhappy with CPKC derailment cleanup (updated)

View of damaged track and derailed train

SANDWICH ACADEMY GRANT TOWNSHIP, Maine — The Maine Department of Environmental Protection has notified CPKC of its dissatisfaction with clean-up efforts following last week’s derailment and fire involving a CPKC train in northern Maine, and warned it could step in to take over that cleanup at the railroad’s expense. CPKC says it is fully cooperating […]

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CPKC derailment closes major Winnipeg street (updated)

CPKC logo

WINNIPEG, Manitoba — A major Winnipeg street has been reopened after being closed by the derailment Friday of a CPKC train. Global News reports Winnipeg police announced the reopening of McPhillips Street with a Twitter post at 2:02 a.m. Saturday, after previously saying the street could be closed for several days. The CBC reported the […]

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BNSF reaches paid sick time agreement with electrical workers

Logo of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers

FORT WORTH, Texas – BNSF Railway has reached a paid sick time agreement with a ninth union, the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers. The railroad, which announced the deal on Thursday, says it’s part of larger ongoing discussions about modernizing the work environment. BNSF and three unions have yet to reach similar deals. Building upon […]

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Union coalition calls on railroads to stop share buybacks, scrap Precision Scheduled Railroading (updated)

Train with black locomotive leading

WASHINGTON — A coalition of railroad labor unions today called on the Class I systems to pause their stock buyback programs and abandon the low-cost Precision Scheduled Railroading operating model until safety improves. The 14 unions, which combined represent more than 100,000 railroad workers, claim that since 2015 the six publicly-traded freight railroads spent more […]

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CSX CEO: Spotlight on rail safety will improve the industry

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — CSX Transportation CEO Joe Hinrichs says the nationwide focus on railroad safety ultimately will improve the industry. “We are confident that the industry will emerge from this period stronger, more aligned, and better at sharing safety best practices,” Hinrichs said CSX’s earnings call on Thursday. “Statistics are clear that when measured by […]

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CPKC to handle Schneider’s cross-border intermodal shipments between the Midwest and Mexico

CALGARY, Alberta – CPKC has landed a multi-year contract to handle Schneider National’s intermodal traffic between the U.S. and Mexico. The announcement today – which comes just a week after the Canadian Pacific-Kansas City Southern combination became effective – backs up pre-merger projections that CPKC’s single-line service would enable it to compete in the Chicago-Mexico […]

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Canadian government approves major West Coast container terminal

Illustration of proposed intermodal terminal on artificial island

DELTA, British Columbia — The Canadian government announced Thursday it has approved a C$3.5 billion project to build a new West Coast container terminal, subject to some 370 legally binding conditions, the Globe and Mail newspaper reports. The Roberts Bank Terminal 2 project, which has been in development for more than a dozen years, involves […]

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CSX earnings improve as service improvements boost merchandise traffic

Train with blue and yellow locomotive coming out of tunnel

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Record on-time performance for carload shipments helped CSX Transportation gain merchandise traffic that contributed to higher first quarter revenue and profits. “With sufficient resources in place, we are able to use the benefits of our scheduled railroading model to deliver improvements in our customer service performance that are driving real, tangible financial […]

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Derailments down on Union Pacific despite use of longer trains

OMAHA, Neb. – Union Pacific’s reportable train derailment rate improved 10% during the first quarter, executives said today while defending the safety record of long trains. “We continue to make great strides on safety,” Eric Gehringer, executive vice president of operations, told investors and analysts on the railroad’s earnings call on Thursday. UP’s goal remains […]

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