Norfolk Southern revives Alabama coal branch

A moribund Norfolk Southern coal-hauling branch in Alabama last month hosted its first train in more than a decade. NS coal train 702 rumbled over the revived Berry Branch, carrying Warrior steelmaking coal to export at the Port of Mobile, Ala., via the railroad’s 3-B Corridor. “Right now it is one train a week, and […]

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Livestock shipments and railroads grew together

Double-stack freight cars and livestock cars on a passing trains

Livestock shipments and railroads had a love-hate relationship that kindled in the 1850s, blossomed after the Civil War, matured with the growth of big-city stockyards and giant meat-processing plants, then slowly faded in the 1960s and 1970s. While it lasted, livestock shipments were a major part of the railroad scene. Hammered by aging physical plants […]

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New publication salutes Montana Rail Link

Cover of Montana Rail Link sip

Thirty-seven years ago, Montana businessman Dennis Washington entered into a 60-year lease with Burlington Northern for nearly 1,000 miles of ex-Northern Pacific Railway trackage and launched the Montana Rail Link. The newly created Class II regional stretched from Spokane, Wash., across southern Montana to Huntley, a blink-and-you’ll-miss-it community not far from Billings, Mont. The railroad […]

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Fort Bliss rail yard begins major expansion

Aerial view of rail yard in desert

EL PASO, Texas — Fort Bliss, the 1,700-square-mile Army post in Texas and New Mexico, is undergoing an expansion of its rail capacity. The El Paso Times reports that groundbreaking was held April 22 for construction of 4.3 additional miles of track at its rail yard, built to accommodate 565 railcars in 72 hours — […]

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TSB to investigate CPKC derailment in British Columbia

CPKC logo

FIELD, British Columbia — The Transportation Safety Board of Canada will investigate the derailment of a CPKC train early this morning near Field, the agency has announced. The TSB said it will send a team of investigators to gather information and assess the occurrence, which occurred about 4:30 a.m. today (May 1, 2025) about 12 […]

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CN’s first quarter earnings grow despite impact of severe weather

MONTREAL — Canadian National reported stronger first-quarter earnings today despite the impact of harsh winter weather across its system, which crimped train length and the railway’s ability to meet demand for intermodal and merchandise service. “We are very pleased today to be reporting strong first-quarter results,” CEO Tracy Robinson said on the railway’s earnings call, […]

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CPKC says FRA is open to automated and streamlined track and train inspections

Grain train led by red locomotive

CALGARY, Alberta — Canadian Pacific Kansas City executives say they are encouraged by discussions with the Federal Railroad Administration about rolling out new track and train inspection technology. It’s a turnabout for the FRA, which during the Biden administration stymied Class I railroad efforts to combine automated track and equipment inspections with traditional visual inspections […]

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