CALGARY, Alberta — CPKC’s first new service — a pair of intermodal trains linking Chicago and Mexico — will launch on May 11, carrying containers from new customers Schneider and Knight-Swift. Daily hotshots 180 and 181 will link Chicago with Laredo, Texas; Monterrey, Mexico; and Mexico City. With third-day service to Laredo, fourth-day to Monterrey, […]
MONTREAL — Canadian National CEO Tracy Robinson was singing from the same hymnal as other railroad leaders when she discussed safety during CN’s earnings call on Monday. All of the CEOs have stressed the importance of safety during their earnings calls this month in the wake of the disastrous Feb. 3 derailment of a Norfolk […]
CALGARY, Alberta — Knight-Swift will shift its U.S.-Mexico intermodal traffic from Union Pacific to CPKC’s new single-line route beginning in May. CPKC and Knight-Swift announced their multi-year agreement today, just four days after Schneider said it would move its U.S.-Mexico intermodal business from UP to CPKC in May under a similar agreement. “This agreement creates […]
MONTREAL — Strength in bulk traffic and fluid operations propelled Canadian National to first-quarter records for operating income, revenue, and earnings per share. The strong quarter prompted CN to raise its financial outlook for the year to mid single-digit earnings per share growth, up from its previous guidance of low single-digit growth. “It’s important to […]
MONTREAL — Canadian National, Union Pacific, and Ferromex will launch new intermodal service next month linking Canada and Detroit with Mexico, the railroads announced today (Monday, April 24). The Falcon Premium service will connect a dozen CN terminals with the Ferromex terminals in Monterrey and Silao via the Eagle Pass, Texas, gateway. CN and UP […]
The publicly traded U.S. Class I railroads are putting more of an emphasis on service and volume growth in the annual incentive plans they offer to their executives. It’s a clear sign, analysts say, that the railroads are shifting into growth mode after years spent concentrating on reducing their operating ratios in a quest for […]
MONTREAL — Canadian National Railway and the Teamsters Canada Rail Conference have reached a tentative labor agreement, the parties announced Sunday. The agreement covers approximately 6,000 locomotive engineers, conductors, and yard workers in Canada, who now must ratify the deal. A ratification vote will be held via electronic secret ballot May 5-26. The union said […]
FLINT, Mich. — A single-engine aircraft made a forced landing on the double-track mainline of Canadian National Railway’s Flint Subdivision Thursday morning, April 20. The pilot, the plane’s sole occupant, was uninjured in the landing near Linden and Bristol roads west of Flint. According to Michigan State Police, the railroad was contacted to immediately shut […]
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 […]
MONTREAL – Canadian National has launched a new sustainability tool, My Carbon Emissions, that allows customers to calculate the greenhouse gas emissions of all of their loaded shipments moving on the railway. CN’s initial Carbon Calculator, the first in the industry when it debuted 13 years ago, gave customers visibility into their estimated greenhouse gas […]
Distributed power Placing locomotives at various locations within a train is nothing new, although the latest technology has improved the operation and extended the length of trains. The adoption of Precision Scheduled Railroading by most Class I railroads accelerated the push to make trains longer, lowering crew starts, and improving train handling in most situations. […]
Rail labor leaders welcomed the safety advisory that the Federal Railroad Administration issued last week that encourages railroads to take steps to reduce the in-train forces that can cause long trains to derail. Railroads, meanwhile, said they were reviewing the advisory to make sure their operating practices are in line with the FRA’s recommendations. “For […]
