Several freight rail business developments did not rank among our Top 10 stories of the year — but were still important in the grand scheme of things. They include: New Southeast-Mexico corridor CSX and Canadian Pacific Kansas City on Dec. 1 began service over the former Meridian & Bigbee short line that serves as a […]
DARTMOUTH, Nova Scotia — A broken rail caused by an undetected fatigue flaw led to the derailment of a Canadian National train new Dunsinane, New Brunswick in October 2023, the Transportation Safety Board of Canada said in an investigation report released today (Tuesday, Dec. 17). Four cars derailed in the Oct. 30, 2023, incident, with […]
For many of us today, Amtrak has been the only inter-city passenger railroad. While the six Class I railroads can find passenger trains in component railroads, only the Union Pacific has a direct corporate lineage to passenger service. Long gone is the competition between railroads to provide a better passenger train experience. Also, in the […]
CHICAGO — Speaking today at an event to celebrate new grants for Chicago’s CREATE project, U.S. Sen. Dick Durban (D-Ill.) called on passenger carriers and freight operators to reach an agreement wrapping up details of a federal grant application for the Chicago Hub Improvement Program, which would involve infrastructure work in the region as well […]
TORONTO – Teamsters Canada union leaders are urging federal officials in Ottawa to stay out of the collective bargaining process and back railway workers’ right to strike. “The transportation industry’s most powerful chief executives have developed a way to sidestep union negotiations,” Francois Laporte, national president of Teamsters Canada, and Paul Boucher, president of the […]
MONTREAL — Canadian National Railway and Canadian labor union Unifor have reached a tentative agreement on a new four-year contract, the railroad has announced. CN said no details will be released publicly until the agreement is ratified. The union represents about 3,300 mechanical, clerical, and intermodal employees, CN said; Unifor recently placed the number about […]
OTTAWA, Ontario — Canadian National, Genesee & Wyoming Canada, Metrolinx, and VIA Rail Canada are recipients of the Railway Association of Canada’s 2024 Safety Awards, which honor innovations and proactive measures by the nation’s railways to maintain and improve safety. “Safety is at the heart of everything we do,” Marc Brazeau, president and CEO of […]
WASHINGTON — One year ago this week Canadian National announced its $230 million deal to acquire the 218-mile Iowa Northern Railway. Today CN should be 100 days into integrating Iowa Northern into its 18,800-mile system, assuming regulatory approval of the acquisition. Or CN should be licking its wounds, in the unlikely event that the Surface […]
MONTREAL — In a move similar to Amtrak’s efforts to address issues with host railroads with the Surface Transportation Board, VIA Rail Canada has asked the Canadian Transportation Agency to impose a new track access agreement with Canadian National Railway. But VIA’s filing, made in June 2023, has gone nowhere, the Canadian Press reports, in […]
President-elect Donald Trump’s plans to impose 25% tariffs on goods imported from Mexico and Canada could have a chilling impact on cross-border rail traffic, which has been one of the few sources of volume growth for North American Class I railroads. Trump announced the plans last night in a social media post, saying that he […]
MONTREAL — Members of Canadian labor union Unifor have voted to authorize a strike against Canadian National Railway if a new contract agreement is not reached by Jan. 1, 2025. Unifor said in a press release that members of the two groups representing CN workers — Council 4000 and Local 100 — had voted 97% […]
WINNIPEG, Manitoba — A semi truck went off an overpass and struck a Canadian National train today (Friday, Nov. 22) in Winnipeg, sending the truck’s driver to the hospital and derailing an unknown number of railcars. “It appears the semi hit the train,” Winnipeg police spokeswoman Dani McKinnon told the Winnipeg Free Press. “There is […]
