VANCOUVER, British Columbia — In light of the coronavirus situation, Wheel Rail Interaction 2020, scheduled for April 28-May 1 in Vancouver, has been rescheduled to Aug. 31-Sept. 3, presenter Wheel Rail Seminars has announced. Trains Magazine is the presenting sponsor for the event, which will remain at its original site, the Hyatt Regency Vancouver. Those […]
Class I railroads have been updating customers on their response to the COVID-19 outbreak, with four offering information through their company websites. Here’s the most recent information: — Norfolk Southern, in a March 14 note from Alan Shaw, executive vice president and chief marketing officer, said it is allowing remote work for employees whose jobs […]
Association of American Railroads WASHINGTON — The Association of American Railroads today reported U.S. rail traffic for the week ending March 7, 2020. For this week, total U.S. weekly rail traffic was 462,303 carloads and intermodal units, down 9.1% compared with the same week last year. Total carloads for the week ending March 7 were […]
A Pacific Harbor Line train works at the Port of Los Angeles in January 2018. Traffic at the port was down significantly in February, and railroad officials anticipate a significant decrease in international intermodal traffic, because of the coronavirus. TRAINS: David Lassen NEW YORK – The full impact of the global coronavirus epidemic will soon […]
A Metra Milwaukee North train arrives in Deerfield, Ill., on Oct. 27, 2019. Deerfield is one of the partners with Metra in a reverse-commute pilot program on the Milwaukee North line. TRAINS: David Lassen Still more rail news for a busy Friday: — Metra’s reverse-commute pilot program on its Milwaukee District North line is exceeding […]
WASHINGTON – Today, 450 railroad industry employees will knock on 330 doors on Capitol Hill, exercising their first Amendment right to petition their government and tell their story. The annual gathering of freight rail professionals, known as Railroad Day on Capitol Hill, was first held nearly twenty years ago. The gathering is unique as it […]
Association of American Railroads WASHINGTON — The Association of American Railroads today reported U.S. rail traffic for the week ending Feb. 29, 2020, as well as volumes for February 2020. U.S. railroads originated 927,084 carloads in February 2020, down 7.3%, or 73,058 carloads, from February 2019. U.S. railroads also originated 997,683 containers and trailers in […]
UP performance numbers presented this week at a conference in Florida. Union Pacific GRANDE LAKES, Fla. – Union Pacific’s intermodal on-time performance improved in January, but the reliability of the railroad’s merchandise and automotive traffic deteriorated, partly due to the impact of the idling of the hump at Davidson Yard in Fort Worth, Texas. For the […]
Government officials and an indigenous group in British Columbia have reached a tentative deal on a gas pipeline, the subject of protests which led to blockades of rail lines across Canada. While one blockade remains in place, Canadian National has begun recalling workers laid off during the protests, while VIA Rail Canada expects to restore […]
A CSX train passes through Blue Island, Ill., in September 2019. CSX led Class I railroads in operating ratio in 2019. TRAINS: David Lassen The operating ratio at every Class I railroad fell below 65% for the first time in 2019 as the industry average improved to an all-time low of 61.9%. The increased profitability […]
Friday morning rail news: — Norfolk Southern has informed customers that Pan Am Railways’ Hoosac Tunnel in Western Massachusetts is now expected to remain out of service until mid-March, following the partial collapse of a wall in the 145-year-old tunnel on Feb. 12. The closure affects the line between Mechanicville, N.Y., and Ayer, Mass.; NS […]
Transport Minister Marc Garneau says Canada’s freight rail system faces “many, many weeks” of delays as a result of protests by and in support of indigenous groups across the country. As of this morning, just one of the blockades that have appeared over the last three weeks is reported to remain in place. In a […]
