NEW YORK — Railroads will not regain market share lost to trucks unless they shift to traffic growth mode, transform their operations, and provide service that’s far more reliable than ever. That’s the view of Oliver Wyman partner Adriene Bailey, who this week outlined four big steps railroads must take in order to deliver the […]
CHICAGO — Spot market prices in the freight transportation sector are trending downward during a time when freight companies typically ship peak volume for the holiday season. High inflation, fears about the economy’s future, and a slowdown in consumer spending mean less freight is needed to replenish already above-normal retail inventories. These circumstances are a […]
Railroads are attracted to extremely long trains like a moth to a flame. And sometimes they get burned from this unhealthy obsession. A case in point: In October CSX Transportation ran two overlength merchandise trains at each other on its single-track mainline between Savannah and Augusta, Ga. The plan was to do a double saw-by […]
NEW YORK – Surface Transportation Board Chairman Martin J. Oberman unleashed a barrage of criticism at the big four U.S. Class I railroads during the RailTrends conference on Wednesday, claiming that their crew shortages are self-inflicted and that the resulting service problems are damaging the economy. The service meltdown was brewing long before the pandemic, […]
CHICAGO — It’s been five years since Canadian Pacific and retail giant Canadian Tire Corp. unveiled North America’s first 60-foot intermodal container, and intermodal analyst Larry Gross says the larger container type is probably going to remain exclusive to Canada for the foreseeable future. CP and Canadian Tire launched service with the larger container in […]
Although its tracks didn’t reach the first and last places in its name, the 110-mile Toronto, Hamilton & Buffalo served several important points in southern Ontario. Here, maroon-and-cream GP7 No. 76 and GP9 No. 402 lead a Toronto–Coburg freight on the rails of TH&B parent Canadian Pacific in April 1976. A. J. Sutherland photo […]
OMAHA, Neb. — Union Pacific once again will meter traffic to limit congestion if certain customers don’t voluntarily reduce the number of private freight cars operating on the railroad. UP informed shippers last week, Trains News Wire has learned. “Union Pacific regularly reviews our network to monitor for elevated inventory,” UP spokeswoman Robynn Tysver says. […]
Get your old trains running again! It’s time to take them out of the boxes and have some fun. In this chapter from Beginner’s Guide to Repairing Lionel Trains, Ray L. Plummer offers advice on how to do it. Get your old trains running again “Old electric train” – that’s what it says on the […]
WILLMAR, Minn. – BNSF Railway has opened a new 2.8-mile wye track west of Willmar that allows trains to bypass the city. Referred to as the “Willmar Bypass” the new track links BNSF’s busy Marshall Subdivision and its Morris Subdivision, the former Great Northern mainline. It allows eastbound Morris Subdivision trains to head onto the […]
NEW YORK — Canadian Pacific’s experimental hydrogen-powered locomotive made its maiden revenue run last month in Calgary, Alberta, taking the first step in determining whether the technology could one day replace diesel-electric locomotives. “I’ll tell you, the excitement around it, the potential of it, is real,” CEO Keith Creel told the RailTrends conference on Tuesday. […]
FORT WORTH, Texas – BNSF Railway has given four new locations its Certified Sites designation, clearing the way for rail-served development along its network. The new sites, which are ready for development, are located in Kansas, Nebraska, Washington, and Wyoming. The include Dodge City Business Park in Dodge City, Kan.; Seward/Lincon Regional Rail Campus in […]
CHICAGO – This column intends to consider the intricacies of today’s carload business in an environment constantly influenced by what’s happening in the world. Labor unions, pandemics, the economy, equipment usage, and technology all effect how railcars move. These factors shape what type of freight goes where, the volume, the urgency, and how the service […]
