WASHINGTON — Amtrak has extended its cancellations of Auto Train and the Silver Star, and shortened the route of the Palmetto, for at least another day. The passenger operator announced Friday that it had cancelled Saturday departures for the north- and southbound Auto Train between Lorton, Va., and Sanford, Fla., and the north- and southbound […]
WASHINGTON – Canadian Pacific and Kansas City Southern executives say there’s plenty of capacity in Houston to handle the eight additional trains per day they’ll run through the busy terminal within three years after their merger. But Union Pacific and BNSF Railway told federal regulators, in testimony Thursday and Friday, that they have grave concerns […]
WASHINGTON – The three-day Surface Transportation Board hearing on the proposed Canadian Pacific-Kansas City Southern merger has ballooned to a six-day hearing. Testimony and questioning are taking longer than anticipated, STB Chairman Martin J. Oberman said at the start of the session this morning (Friday, Sept. 30) , which had been scheduled to be the […]
Railroads have what you could call a one-train problem. That is to say they offer but one daily departure from Point A to Point B. A case in point is Amtrak’s Pennsylvanian, which links New York City and Pittsburgh. Earlier this month I wanted to ride Amtrak to a rail shippers conference in the Steel […]
SAN CLEMENTE, Calif. — Amtrak’s Pacific Surfliner and LA-area commuter rail operator Metrolink have suspended service until further notice between Irvine and Oceanside, Calif., over “safety concerns” regarding the right-of-way in San Clemente, according to a notice on the Surfliner website. The Los Angeles Times reported earlier this week that erosion along the beach in […]
WASHINGTON — Amtrak continues to adjust its operations in the Southeast as a result of Hurricane Ian, which is now projected to make a second landfall in South Carolina today (Friday, Sept. 30) Today’s operations of the Palmetto, which normally runss between New York and Savannah, Ga., will now terminate or originate in Washington, D.C., […]
CHICAGO — Class I railroads’ focus on efficiency and simplifying service is making trailer-on-flatcar service obsolete. Despite strong e-commerce demand and a persistent shortage of truck drivers and chassis, intermodal trailer traffic has continued to decline. So far this year, the four major Class I railroads have hauled nearly 160,000 fewer trailers, down 20% year […]
BOSTON — Delivery of new rapid-transit cars by a local affiliate of Chinese manufacturer CRRC are falling farther behind schedule, the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority board was told Thursday, and officials are expressing growing concerns about the quality of the cars being built. CommonWealth Magazine reports CRRC says it will need to add several more […]
DENVER — The Regional Transportation District A-Line, which connects Denver International Airport to Denver Union Station, will operate at a reduced frequency for most of October, the RTD has announced. Trains will run at 30-minute intervals between Oct. 3 and Oct. 29 to accommodate right-of-way repairs, departing Union Station on the hour and half-hour, and […]
BEVERLY, Mass. — The City of Beverly created an unsafe situation by instituting a no-train-horn “quiet zone” within city limits, according to a lawsuit filed by the family a man killed by a Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority commuter train in October 2019. MassLive.com reports that the lawsuit by the family of Moses Shumow, a professor […]
ATLANTA — Norfolk Southern will make grants of $400,000 to 31 food banks in 22 states served by the railroad, the company announced this week. “Every community is home to families impacted by food insecurity,” Kristin Wong, NS director of corporate giving, said in a press release. “Norfolk Southern is furthering its partnership with more […]
WASHINGTON — Canadian National, which lost the battle for Kansas City Southern to rival Canadian Pacific last year, tried to plant seeds of doubt about the CP-KCS merger in lengthy testimony before federal regulators on Thursday. CN was critical of the operating plan CP and KCS prepared, telling the Surface Transportation Board that it was […]
