WASHINGTON — U.S. weekly rail traffic has experienced its first drop of 2025, with traffic for the week ending Jan. 25 down 2.5% compared to the same week in 2024. According to the Association of American Railroads, volume for the week consisted of 454,797 carloads and intermodal units. That included 189,125 carloads, a decline of […]
WASHINGTON — The Trump administration has rescinded its freeze on federal grants, which created confusion regarding a broad variety of government programs, including some in the rail industry. The Washington Post reports that a memo today (Jan. 29, 2025) from Matthew J. Vaeth, acting director of the Office of Management and Budget, said an order […]
DENVER — Rail and real estate company OmniTRAX has named David Garin as its board chairman and elected OmniTRAX CEO Dean Piacente to its board, the company announced today. Garin joined the OmniTRAX board in 2019 after 35 years with Class I railroads. That includes 19 years at BNSF Railway, where he oversaw sales and […]
ATLANTA — Norfolk Southern is back. That was the message CEO Mark George and the railroad’s executive team delivered on the fourth-quarter earnings call today (Jan. 29, 2025), where they emphasized how operational improvements helped NS meet or exceed the financial targets it set amid last year’s nasty proxy battle with activist investor Ancora Holdings. […]
Q: I was wondering if you could provide me with information on what kind of loads an oyster cannery sends and receives? — Markus Russ A: I cast the net wide (pun fully intended) to help answer your question. I started internally. Trains magazine Associate Editor Bob Lettenberger wrote “Five mind-blowing facts — Stilwell Oyster […]
CALGARY, Alberta — Canadian Pacific Kansas City’s intermodal reefer container business got a boost today with the announcement that partner Americold Realty Trust will build a cold storage facility at the Port of Saint John, New Brunswick. “Developing a state-of-the-art facility in Port Saint John marks an exciting step forward for Americold as the company […]
CALGARY, Alberta — Canadian Pacific Kansas City today said that it has reached a tentative four-year collective agreement with the Teamsters Canada Rail Conference Maintenance of Way Employees Division (TCRC-MWED), which represents engineering service employees in Canada. “Working together with the TCRC-MWED, we are pleased to have reached an agreement that is good for our […]
WASHINGTON — The U.S. Department of Transportation’s rail-related spending — including billions of dollars in funding for Amtrak — appears to be affected by President Donald Trump’s order freezing spending on thousands of federal assistance programs. However, the freeze itself is now on hold following a ruling from a federal judge staying the order while […]
EAST PALESTINE, Ohio — Norfolk Southern and the Village of East Palestine have reached a $22 million settlement to resolve all claims by the village resulting from the Feb. 3, 2023, derailment and hazardous-materials release, the two parties have announced. A joint statement on the East Palestine website says the village recognizes the approximately $13.5 […]
Railcar and locomotive lessor GATX reported 2024 fourth-quarter net income of $76.5 million or $2.10 per diluted share, compared to net income of $66 million or $1.81 per diluted share in the fourth quarter of 2023. Chicago-based GATX said utilization of its Rail North America unit’s wholly owned fleet, comprising approximately 111,400 cars, excluding 8,400 […]
Recent rail union news: — Amtrak dining car stewards represented by the International Association of Sheet Metal, Air, Rail and Transportation Workers-Transportation Division (SMART-TD) unanimously ratified a new agreement, retroactive to July 1, 2022 and running through Dec. 1, 2028, that will provide a compounded raise of 40.21% over the life of the contract. Other […]
CSX today named former Surface Transportation Board Chair Ann Begeman to its board of directors. Separately, Norfolk Southern said it has appointed former Celanese CEO Lori J. Ryerkerk to its board, a move made after a search process that was a part of an agreement with activist investor Ancora Holdings. “Ann brings a wealth of […]
