State of the art A classic A-B-B-A set of EMD FTs — the state of the locomotive art in 1940 — lead a Santa Fe freight over Southern California’s Cajon Pass. Santa Fe photo […]
State of the art
Type of Train: Freight
CSX train derails in Indiana (updated)
FOUNTAINTOWN, Ind. — Fourteen cars of a CSX train derailed this morning in an unincorporated area near Greenfield, Ind., blocking a state highway and knocking down some local power lines. CSX says in a statement that the derailment occurred about 8:11 a.m., and involved six empty cars and eight loaded cars. No hazardous materials were […]
KCS shareholders to vote on CN merger on Sept. 3 (updated)
KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Kansas City Southern shareholders will vote on the proposed merger with Canadian National on Sept. 3. KCS this morning convened and adjourned its previously scheduled special meeting of shareholders, delaying the vote in the absence of a Surface Transportation Board decision on CN’s request to put KCS into a voting trust […]
Norfolk Southern service slowed by two derailments
NORFOLK, Va. — Norfolk Southern has issued customer advisories informing shippers of delays because of two derailments on its system. On Wednesday, the railroad reported a derailment near Meridian, Miss., would lead to delays of at least 24 hours on several routes, including its Meridian Speedway interchange with Kansas City Southern, Union Pacific interchange traffic, […]
Weekly rail traffic shows intermodal drop, but carloads lead to slight overall increase
WASHINGTON — Intermodal traffic slipped below same-week levels for 2020 in the latest statistics from the Association of American Railroads, as Class I railroads continue to deal with congestion in the international supply chain. U.S. railroads moved 269,799 trailers and containers for the week ending Aug. 14, a 3% decrease from the figure for the […]
Grain, the old-fashioned way
Grain, the old-fashioned way Through the end of the 1800s, a lot of grain was shipped in 100-pound sacks. Here, workers load grain sacks into wood boxcars in Minneapolis around 1900. Minneapolis Public Library collection […]
BNSF reopens Arkansas intermodal facility to address Memphis-area demand
FORT WORTH, Texas — BNSF Railway has reopened its Harvard Intermodal Facility in Marion, Ark., to address Memphis-area demand and increase capacity. In a press release, the railroad reports international intermodal shipments originating at Pier T of the Port of Long Beach, Calif., will now terminate at the Harvard facility. The Harvard Intermodal Facility is […]
Savage, KCS partner on new Louisiana transload, storage facility
MOSSVILLE, La. — Infrastructure and supply-chain firm Savage and Kansas City Southern have announced they will build a transload and railcar storage facility on property leased from KCS’s Mossville, La., yard. Savage’s Mossville multi-commodity railport will help serve Lake Charles area refineries, chemical plants, and other businesses. “Savage has a longstanding relationship with KCS and we’re […]
Union Pacific says service is improving after wildfires closed routes in California
OMAHA, Neb. — It will take several more weeks for Union Pacific to fully recover from California wildfires that disrupted service on its I-5 and Feather River corridors. “Everyone here is focused on ensuring that we can get the system ramped back up,” says Eric Gehringer, UP’s executive vice president of operations. “It is not […]
Analysis: Louis Newton left his mark on Norfolk & Western and NS
Not many people get the opportunity to shape the history of a railroad and leave their fingerprints on its system map. But retired Norfolk Southern transportation planner Louis M. Newton, who died Friday at the age of 94, was among this elite group. Newton put his stamp on Norfolk & Western with a move that […]
Investigation determines rail failure caused 2019 CP derailment
EDMONTON, Alberta — An undetected rail defect led to a Canadian Pacific derailment in September 2019 that saw petroleum products spill from three tank cars, the Transportation Safety Board of Canada has determined. The Sept. 27, 2019 derailment near Blackfalds, Alberta — approximately 8.4 miles north of Red Deer and 88 miles south of Edmonton […]
News photo: Norfolk Southern derailment in Georgia
OCONEE, Ga. — An estimated 32 cars of a westbound Norfolk Southern freight train derailed early Monday morning in downtown Oconee, blocking a main street until further notice. The Washington County Sheriff’s Office reports the derailment occurred about 1 a.m., blocking Central Drive in Oconee, a community of 280 about 60 miles southwest of Augusta, […]
