WASHINGTON — Chicago-area commuter rail operator Metra has come out against the Canadian Pacific-Kansas City Southern merger, telling the Surface Transportation board in a 946-page filing that the merger would bring delays, prevent expansion of service, raise safety issues, and increase Metra’s infrastructure costs. The communter operator also says its traffic modeling indicates the operating […]
CALGARY — Canadian Pacific will lock out the approximately 3,000 members of the Teamsters Canada Rail Conference as of 12:01 a.m. on Sunday, March 20, unless there is an agreement between the railroad and union by then, or the two sides agree to binding arbitration. The railroad announced the move on Wednesday. On Thursday, the […]
CLEVELAND, Ohio — BNSF Railway and Norfolk Southern have declared an impasse in negotiations with unions over crew size, one of the unions has informed its members. The International Association of Sheet Metal, Air, Rail and Transportation Workers-Transportation Division told its members that the two railroads declared the impasse under Section 6 of the Railway […]
WASHINGTON — Overall U.S. rail traffic remained below levels of a year earlier for the week ending March 12, 2022, according to Association of American Railroads statistics. Weekly traffic included 496,134 carloads and intermodal unites, down 4.7% from the corresponding week in 2021. That included 232,388 carloads, a 0.9% increase, and 263,746 containers and trailers, […]
WASHINGTON — Railroads and shipper groups squared off over a proposed reciprocal switching rule during a daylong Surface Transportation Board hearing on Tuesday, with railroads warning of dire operational consequences and sole-served shippers saying they needed relief from high rates and poor service. Federal regulators seemed sympathetic to shippers’ concerns but grappled with how they […]
CHARLESTON, W.Va. — West Texas Intermediate oil has eclipsed $100 a barrel in recent days, a substantial comeback from the record-low, negative-$37.00-per-barrel price during the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in April 2020. Oil’s rally, driven by a recovering economy and exacerbated by the Russian-Ukraine War is pressuring U.S. oil companies to increase shale production. […]
NEW YORK — Commuter railroad Metro-North has released schedules for increased service to begin March 27. The schedule includes the addition of 66 trains on the three East of Hudson lines, bringing frequencies to 89% of pre-pandemic levels and restoring express service at several stations. The schedules will see Hudson Line weekday service increase from 142 […]
CALGARY — While Canadian Pacific workers in Canada have authorized a strike that could have begun as soon as tonight, their union has yet to provide the 72-hour notice necessary before walking out. Canadian agriculture and industry remain concerned about the potential impact of a walkout, and the railroad says on its website that a […]
ATLANTA — Norfolk Southern has introduced a new online carbon calculator to aid customers in their efforts to measure and mitigate carbon emissions resulting from their supply chain decisions. NS, which first introduced a carbon calculator in 2008, says its new version is more accurate because it captures the full cycle of fuel usage, with […]
The thousands of refugees fleeing the Russian invasion of Ukraine have rapidly become millions, and a huge number continue to rely on railways — both in Ukraine to get to the border, and in the European countries to which they are moving. Major stations across Europe, as well as those at previously insignificant rail junctions, […]
WASHINGTON — The Surface Transportation Board has asked parties involved in the upcoming hearing on Amtrak Gulf Coast service to be prepared to report on a meeting with the U.S. Coast Guard over drawbridge operations on the route, as well as several other issues, at the hearing scheduled for April 4. In a decision issued […]
MONTREAL — Without fanfare, VIA Rail Canada this week began allowing passengers on the Canadian and other trains to again sit under glass in dome car seats and have access to onboard lounge facilities. Both had been off limits as a result of health restrictions imposed by the carrier and various provinces since March 2020. […]
