WASHINGTON — U.S. railroads continue to show significant traffic increases over pandemic-depressed figures from 2020, according to the latest figures from the Association of American Railroads. Statistics for the week ending May 15 show U.S. railroads moved 242,806 carloads, a 31.6% increase over the corresponding week in 2020, and 291,066 containers and trailers, a 25.6% […]
Intermodal engineering Wood planks were common for building piggyback ramps. Large planks formed rub rails (well-used judging by the scars) along the edges, with a notch for the flatcar coupler and a steel bridge plate on the right. Classic Trains magazine collection […]
NORFOLK, Va. – Norfolk Southern’s chief financial officer says the term “one-person crew” is a misnomer that has only stoked controversy about the rail industry’s proposal to use ground-based conductors on routes protected by positive train control. “It’s unfortunate the terminology on one-man crew or one-person crew … because I don’t think it’s really the […]
WASHINGTON — BNSF Railway and Union Pacific are locked in a dispute over BNSF haulage rights traffic that moves over UP rails along the Texas Gulf Coast. As part of UP’s acquisition of Southern Pacific in 1996, BNSF gained access to customers along UP between Houston and Brownsville, Texas, which also is a gateway to […]
Bill would provide grants for accessibility upgrades to transit systems Three U.S. Senators have introduced legislation that would provide $1 billion annually in grant funding to improve public transit accessibility for passengers with disabilities. Democratic Sens. Tammy Duckworth (Ill.), Sherrod Brown (Ohio), and Bob Casey (Pa.) have put forward the All Stations Accessibility Program Act […]
CHICAGO — Anacostia Rail Holding’s six short lines have become certified partners of the Environmental Protection Agency SmartWay Transportation Partnership, a collaboration between industry and environmental groups to track and reduce emissions and fuel use in the transportation sector. The more than 3,000 partners in the program, which launched in 2004, including railroads, trucking, air, […]
An 11-car Union Pacific passenger train pauses at the east portal of Colorado’s Moffat Tunnel on Tuesday while passengers inspect the tunnel’s fan house and control room. The train arrived at Winter Park, Colo., on Monday morning, and departed about 2 p.m. today, stopping at the tunnel before continuing to Denver, where it is laying […]
Demolition work began Monday on Union Pacific’s Lenox Tower in Mitchell, Ill., about 20 miles north of St. Louis. The tower is being razed to streamline the interlocking and remove a troublesome puzzle switch as part of a realignment project that will allow increased speeds for Amtrak Lincoln Service trains between Chicago and St. Louis. […]
LANSING, Mich. — Maximum speeds for Amtrak trains on one segment of the Chicago-Pontiac, Mich., corridor will increase to 110 mph as of Tuesday, May 25, and that corridor will see an additional round trip beginning July 19. The higher speed limit will come on 45 miles of state-owned tracks between Kalamazoo and Albion, Mich., […]
U.S. Supreme Court asks Solicitor General for opinion in case involving injured Union Pacific engineer The U.S. Supreme Court is asking the Biden Administration to take a position in a case involving Union Pacific that could affect the railroad’s liability for worker injuries. Reuters reports the court asked the U.S. Solicitor General’s office for an […]
SIBLEY, Iowa — For the second time in about 24 hours, a Union Pacific train derailment in the Midwest has created a hazmat situation. This time, the derailment has triggered a fire that is leading to an evacuation of part of Sibley, a town of about 2,800 just south of the Iowa-Minnesota border and about […]
ALBERT LEA, Minn. — Some 28 cars of Union Pacific train MITDM derailed in Albert Lea at approximately 1:45 p.m. today. The southbound train was en route from Itasca Yard in Superior, Wis., to Des Moines, Iowa. The derailment occurred along Goose Lake in Albert Lea, just north of the small UP yard in town, with […]
