TORONTO — Canadian National outlined its plans to remain the railroad industry’s growth leader during an investor conference today. CN pioneered scheduled railroading 15 years ago, CEO J.J. Ruest noted, and has led the big systems in growth for more than a decade. “How do we evolve the model that we have that’s produced such […]
OMAHA, Neb. — Union Pacific is relaxing some of its demurrage and accessorial charges in the wake of shipper complaints and scrutiny from federal regulators. UP announced in November that it would charge customers $10,000 if they cancelled a unit train less than 48 hours prior to its original release date. Effective immediately, UP has […]
BISMARCK, N.D. — The State of North Dakota will continue its 4-year-old rail safety inspection program for at least two more years, the Associated Press reports. The program was set to expire in July, but Gov. Doug Burgum signed a bill extending the program through 2021, and state Senate Majority Leader Rich Wardner said he […]
NEW YORK — Railroads need to take advantage of their investments in positive train control, but the industry likely will move slowly toward one-person crews and autonomous operations, CSX Transportation CEO Jim Foote says. Foote likens PTC to the advent of wayside detectors and end-of-train devices that allowed railroads operate more safely, while eliminating cabooses. […]
James “Jim” Foote, CSX Transportation CEO CSX Transportation NEW YORK — CSX Transportation is leading the industry in merchandise traffic growth this year due to its faster and more reliable service, CEO Jim Foote says. “We are the leader in growing that business at about 2.5% so far this year,” Foote told an investor conference […]
Association of American Railroads WASHINGTON — The Association of American Railroads today reported U.S. rail traffic for the week ending May 25. For this week, total U.S. weekly rail traffic was 527,966 carloads and intermodal units, down 6.7 percent compared with the same week last year. Total carloads for the week ending May 25 were […]
Jean-Jacques Ruest, Canadian National CEO Canadian National NEW YORK — Canadian National’s strategy to rely on the American consumer to help fill up its railroad east of Chicago just got bigger. CN has been aiming to turn the Port of Halifax, Nova Scotia, into the Port of Prince Rupert of the East, an uncongested gateway […]
A Union Pacific train passes under a signal bridge and past a positive train control installation on BNSF Railway track in Cajon Pass, Calif., in 2013. Trains: Steve Sweeney Even as railroads continue to roll out their positive train control solutions, one question remains front and center: Are the systems vulnerable to a cyber-attack? Can […]
Loop Capital Markets SAN ANTONIO, Texas – Rail service has been poor more often than it’s been good during the past five years because railroads run too lean and get caught short of crews, locomotives, or both and can’t recover quickly from the impact of unexpected events. So says Rick Paterson, a one-time Australian railroader […]
WASHINGTON — The Federal Railroad Administration will not implement a rule requiring a certain number of people in the cab of freight trains, the agency announced this week. On Thursday, the FRA withdrew a notice of proposed rulemaking that dated back to 2016, when the federal agency was considering requiring at least two people aboard […]
ALTOONA, Pa. – Norfolk Southern has laid off about 50 workers at its former Conrail locomotive shop in Altoona, the Altoona Mirror reports. The employees will be offered positions elsewhere in the company. An unnamed employee at the facility, known as the Juniata Shops, attributes to the reduction to Norfolk Southern’s implementation of Precision Scheduled […]
New Canadian National Chief Operating Officer Rob Reilly speaks at his alma mater, Washburn University, in 2017. Reilly was a starting guard on Washburn’s 1987 NAIA men’s basketball national championship team. Washburn University CN Chief Operating Officer Mike Cory will retire at the end of June after 38 years with the railway. Canadian National MONTREAL […]
