CALGARY, Alberta – Other Class I railroads should not be able to use the Canadian Pacific-Kansas City Southern merger process as a way to improve their competitive positions, CP CEO Keith Creel says. BNSF Railway, Canadian National, and Norfolk Southern have sought concessions related to the merger, which is currently under review at the U.S. […]
CALGARY, Alberta — Canadian Pacific’s fourth-quarter earnings declined due to a combination of harsh weather, a smaller Canadian grain crop, and costs related to the Kansas City Southern merger. CEO Keith Creel said on the company’s earnings call Thursday afternoon that while railroading is an outdoor sport, the extreme conditions in November and December tested the […]
CHARLESTON, W.Va. — Steelmakers around the world continue to have a strong appetite for America’s metallurgical coal, with railroads in a position to benefit in 2022. The U.S. Energy Information Administration’s short-term outlook expects demand for coal used in steelmaking to increase 16% in 2022. Brazil and India have historically been the largest buyers of […]
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Sam Sexhus, a veteran of more than 25 years in Class I railroading, has been named as president and chief operating officer of short line company Patriot Rail. “Patriot Rail is experiencing tremendous growth, and Sam Sexhus’ leadership will enable the company to further solidify our shortline railroad footprint in the U.S.,” […]
WASHINGTON — Rail traffic continues to lag behind 2021 levels in the early stages of 2022, according to weekly statistics from the Association of American Railroads. For the week ending Jan. 22, 2022, overall U.S. rail volume was 477,462 carloads and intermodal units, a 9.8% drop from the same week in 2021. Through three weeks […]
Three Liberty ships, including the Cardinal Gibbons (closest to camera), are loaded at the Western Maryland’s Port Covington piers in Baltimore during World War II. WM photo […]
WASHINGTON — Short line holding company R.J. Corman plans to operate 154 miles of Norfolk Southern branches through a combination of acquisitions and leases in Tennessee, Kentucky, and Virginia. R.J. Corman’s Knoxville & Cumberland Gap Railroad will acquire 112 miles of NS lines, including the Jellico Line from Clinton, Tenn., to Lot, Ken., and from […]
ATLANTA — Norfolk Southern on Wednesday reported record fourth-quarter and full-year operating income as well as a record low operating ratio. CEO Jim Squires said the railroad hit or exceeded the three-year financial targets set in 2019 when NS adopted a Precision Scheduled Railroading operating model. “Through a multiyear effort, we delivered on our commitments, […]
ATLANTA — Norfolk Southern service will improve this spring as crew shortages ease and the railroad rolls out a new operating plan, executives said on Wednesday. “Our service quality was significantly below where we needed it to be” in the fourth quarter due to ongoing crew shortages on several portions of the NS system, Chief […]
OMAHA — Union Pacific on Tuesday announced its Loup Logistics subsidiary had acquired the Precision Components Inc. transload facility in Phoenix, a UP-served location that processes more than 8,000 railcars and 38,000 trucks annually. The facility in central Phoenix covers more than 100 acres, with 125,000 square feet of covered storage and 3 miles of […]
MONTREAL — Canadian National reported record fourth-quarter financial results on Tuesday, despite the impact of severe flooding that shut its main line through southern British Columbia for three weeks. CN’s “Full Speed Ahead” plan to improve the company’s financial results, announced in September amid a proxy contest launched by activist investor TCI Fund Management, gained […]
FORT WORTH, Texas — A judge has granted BNSF Railway a temporary restraining order, blocking a threatened strike by two of its unions over new work rules. The Fort Worth Star-Telegram reports U.S. District Court Judge Mark Pittman said that his ruling does not address whether the dispute between BNSF and the unions — the […]
