OMAHA, Neb. — Union Pacific today confirmed that it has stopped humping cars at Neff Yard in Kansas City, Mo. Neff is the fourth hump UP has idled amid its shift to Precision Scheduled Railroading. The humps at Proviso Yard in Chicago, Hinkle Yard in Oregon, and Pine Bluff Yard in Arkansas were previously mothballed […]
OMAHA, Neb. — Union Pacific revenue and profits declined in the third quarter as the railroad’s efficiency gains and cost-cutting were not enough to offset an 8% decline in traffic volume. Operating income declined 2%, to $2.2 billion, as revenue sank 7%, to $5.5 billion. Net income also fell 2%, to $1.5 billion. Earnings per […]
Q: Do train crews have the ability to activate or deactivate crossing lights and gates? — Richard Collingwood, Milan, Ohio A: No. Here’s why: Crossing circuits have set approaches based off of warning time required and maximum speed of the trains. The modern day crossing processors — mini computers inside a crossing gate bungalow (the metal […]
Q: One reader recently asked why there were so many empty container trains heading away from the East Coast on railroads? Could it be the West Coast receives more loads and container trains need to be repositioned? — A Trains reader A: That East/Eest balances is one source of empty moves, but there are other […]
Association of American Railroads WASHINGTON — The Association of American Railroads today reported U.S. rail traffic for the week ending Oct. 12, 2019. For this week, total U.S. weekly rail traffic was 510,820 carloads and intermodal units, down 7% compared with the same week last year. Total carloads for the week ending Oct. 12 were […]
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — CSX Transportation’s third quarter profit sank due to declines in intermodal and coal revenue and volume, the railroad announced on Wednesday afternoon. The railroad’s operating income was essentially flat, at $1.28 billion, as revenue declined 5%, to $2.97 billion. Net income declined 4%, to $856 million. Earnings per share grew 3%, to […]
LOWELL, Ark. — Although its overall intermodal freight volumes were flat in the third quarter, J. B. Hunt Transport Services seeks to move more highway freight to trains. And Hunt officials say they’re also making their peace with Precision Scheduled Railroading, based on comments in a Tuesday earnings call with investors. Quarterly intermodal revenue was […]
Wall Street analysts expect Class I railroad earnings to rise an average of 7% for the third quarter as a combination of rate hikes, cost-cutting, efficiency gains, and share buybacks offsets the impact of traffic declines at five of the six publicly traded systems. CSX Transportation, which kicks off the quarterly earnings reports on Oct. […]
NJ Transit uses this AquaTrack equipment to clear rails of falling leaves and their residue during the fall. The trains begin around-the-clock operation on Sunday. Ralph Spielman The AquaTrack equipment sprays the rails with water at a pressure of up to 20,000 pounds per square inch. Ralph Spielman LITTLE FALLS, N.J. — As autumn arrives […]
WASHINGTON — A Missouri bridge outage has prompted Norfolk Southern to seek temporary trackage rights on a parallel Kansas City Southern line. On Wednesday, NS filed a request with the Surface Transportation Board for “expedited” granting of access to the KCS line between Kansas City, Mo., and Mexico, Mo. The filing is the result of […]
Association of American Railroads WASHINGTON — The Association of American Railroads this week reported U.S. rail traffic for the week ending Oct. 5. For this week, total U.S. weekly rail traffic was 515,061 carloads and intermodal units, down 7.1% compared with the same week last year. Total carloads for the week ending Oct. 5 were […]
An eastbound BNSF Railway train passes a stopped BNSF freight at “Summit” in California’s Cajon Pass in 2013 — this meet is one of several conditions which might require a locomotive bell to be sounded. Trains staff Q: What are the rules concerning when a train should ring its bell at a crossing or elsewhere? […]
