July U.S. rail traffic still down, but amount of decline decreases

Weekly table showing U.S. rail traffic by commodity type, plus intermodal totals

WASHINGTON — U.S. rail traffic remained below 2021 levels, although by a decreasing margin, during July, with overall traffic showing a 1.5% decrease. Statistics from the Association of American railroads show U.S. railroads originated 906,903 carloads for the month, up 0.2% from July 2021, while intermodal traffic of 1,033,906 carloads represented a 3% decline. In […]

Read More…

BNSF train derails in East Galesburg, Ill.

BNSF Railway logo

EAST GALESBURG, Ill. — Some 30 to 40 cars of an eastbound BNSF Railway train derailed Tuesday night, according to East Galesburg’s mayor, blocking both tracks on the Chillicothe Subdivision of the railroad’s Southern Transcon mainline. The Galesburg Register-Mail reports the accident occurred about 9 p.m. Tuesday. Mayor Darrell Corbin said he was told no […]

Read More…

House bill seeks to allow some online training of new railroad hires

Man in suit standing in front of American flag

WASHINGTON — An Ohio congressman has introduced a bill which would allow trainees for railroad jobs to complete some aspects of their training online. U.S. Rep. Troy Balderson (R-Zanesville, Ohio) introduced the Rail Employee Training Modernization Act last week, saying that existing regulations require employees to take part in classroom instruction, which delays training because […]

Read More…

Texas Coastal Bend Railroad, newest Watco line, begins operations

Blue locomotive with light blue curving stripe

CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas — Watco’s newest short line, the Texas Coastal Bend Railroad, is scheduled to begin operation today (Wednesday, Aug. 3, 2022), taking over 12 miles of trackage owned by the Port of Corpus Christi along with 8.5 miles of Union Pacific trackage rights. The railroad unveiled two locomotives with the port’s logo at […]

Read More…

House bill would expand STB’s authority over railroad service

WASHINGTON — The Surface Transportation Board would get more teeth under a shipper-friendly bill that would reauthorize the agency that regulates freight railroads. The Freight Rail Shipping Fair Market Act, introduced Tuesday, would give regulators more authority to deal with service emergencies, require railroads to include service standards in contracts with customers, and give shippers […]

Read More…

ScaleTrains debuts Pullman-Standard 5,820-cubic-foot capacity covered hopper

Photo of blue HO scale covered hopper on scenicked base.

Pullman-Standard 5,820-cubic-foot capacity covered hopper A Pullman-Standard 5,820-cubic-foot capacity covered hopper was unveiled at the ScaleTrains booth during the St. Louis Railroad Prototype Modelers Meet in Collinsville, Ill., on July 29. The HO scale freight car, scheduled for release in February 2023, will be offered in the company’s Rivet Counter and Operator lines. Road names […]

Read More…

Competing claims complicate Amtrak-CN STB filings: Analysis

Train crosses diamond in small town

WASHINGTON — The question of how Canadian National should receive incentives or penalties for handling of Amtrak trains has no doubt chalked up hundreds — maybe thousands — of billable hours for the companies’ attorneys. The inability of the two sides to reach a new operating agreement first came to the Surface Transportation Board in […]

Read More…

CN train derails in northern Minnesota

Canadian National logo

COOK, Minn. — Fourteen cars of a Canadian National train derailed Saturday night north of the town of Cook, KMSP-TV reports. The St. Louis County Sheriff’s Office reported the accident occurred about 7:45 p.m. and involved a 123-car northbound train. A county emergency management team responded because some of the cars involved contained hazardous materials, […]

Read More…

Canadian National releases 2022-23 Grain Plan

Cover of document with CN locomotive

MONTREAL — The continued addition of more new grain hoppers, along with the addition of new locomotives and ongoing hiring efforts, are key elements in Canadian National Railway’s 2022-23 Grain Plan, released last week. The plan outlines CN’s preparations for moving up to 27 million metric tons of grain from western Canada in the crop […]

Read More…

On the old BR&P

20140814

At Du Bois, Pa., on Baltimore & Ohio’s former Buffalo, Rochester & Pittsburgh lines, a B&O Pacific swings by Tower CM with Pittsburgh–Buffalo train 252, discontinued not long after this September 1955 photo. Philip R. Hastings photo […]

Read More…