MONTREAL — Canadian National’s main line through Jasper, Alberta — which opened briefly on Wednesday afternoon — remains shut down in the wake of a wildfire that burned at least some sections of the resort town to the ground overnight. Firefighters were unable to contain the wind-whipped wall of fire, which quickly advanced on the […]
OMAHA, Neb. — Union Pacific’s profits rose in the second quarter despite a sharp drop in coal traffic. “When you remove coal, our total volume was up 3% in the second quarter. This demonstrates that even in a tough freight environment, we are winning with our customers to bring new business to the railroad,” CEO […]
FREDERICKSBURG, Va. — Last Saturday’s derailment of CSX railcars that damaged garages at a Fredericksburg apartment complex involved runaways, a CSX representative said at a community meeting on Wednesday, July 24. “One section of the train was tied down improperly,” CSX State Relations Director Randy Marcus told the meeting, according to a WUSA-TV report. Those […]
WASHINGTON — U.S. rail traffic was again ahead of 2023 levels for the week ending July 20, 2024, with overall volume up 1.4% compared to the same week last year, according to statistics from the Association of American Railroads. Railroads handled 480,083 carloads and intermodal units. That included 214,348 carloads, a 3.4% decrease from the […]
Chicago & North Western SD45 No. 905 and SD40 No. 927 make a fine sight leading eastbound train No. 576 across the Tiffany Stone Bridge at Tiffany, Wis., on Feb. 15, 1977. The arch bridge, which spans Turtle Creek, was built in 1869. David Franzen photo […]
GARDEN CITY, Kansas — An apparently minor BNSF Railway derailment has led to cancellations of Amtrak’s Southwest Chief. Images on the KSNW-TV website show a small number of covered hoppers, perhaps as few as a half-dozen, involved in the derailment. The viewers who provided the photos said the incident was 15 to 20 miles east […]
MOBILE, Ala. — Amtrak appears to be on the verge of an agreement with the City of Mobile that finally will allow Gulf Coast passenger service to move forward. WALA-TV reports that a spokeswoman for Mayor Sandy Stimpson said the city and Amtrak had finalized language for a funding agreement for Mobile-New Orleans service and […]
MONTREAL — Canadian National was able to reopen its main line through Jasper, Alberta, this afternoon while keeping a close eye on a pair of wildfires that have been threatening the resort town. “CN resumed rail operations at approximately 12 Noon MST on Wednesday, July 24, through Jasper. In collaboration with the Unified Incident Command […]
PITTSBURGH — Wabtec sales and profits increased in the second quarter thanks to growth in its freight and transit divisions, the company announced today. Wabtec also disclosed that it has received a $600 million, multiyear order for Tier 4 locomotives from a North American railroad. It did not name the railroad, and no Class I […]
Second of two parts. Part one is available here. CHARLESTON, W.Va. — U.S. railroads are hiring to meet future freight demand after years of furloughs and cutbacks that only worsened during the pandemic. At the same time, railroads have grappled with steep declines in coal and macroeconomic conditions. Now railroads appear to be rebalancing headcount […]
WASHINGTON — Legislators used a House subcommittee hearing on railroad safety today (Tuesday, July 23) to highlight a new rail safety bill, while committee members and witnesses including regulators, union representatives, and the House member representing East Palestine questioned the rail industry’s own safety efforts. The revised bill, the Railroad Safety Enhancement Act (H.R. 8996), […]
MONTREAL — Canadian National today (Tuesday, July 23) lowered its financial outlook for the year as volume growth slowed during the second quarter, due to slumping lumber traffic and the impact of shippers diverting international intermodal containers to U.S. ports in anticipation of a potential rail strike in Canada. CN’s second-quarter operating income declined 3%, […]
