Wabtec to build three FLXdrive locomotives for Brazil’s Vale

Rendering of red and gray locomotive

RIO DE JANEIRO — Wabtec has landed the first South American order for FLXdrive battery locomotives, with Brazilian-based, multinational mining and logistics firm Vale placing an order for three of the locomotives. The companies will also collaborate on a study of ammonia as an alternative locomotive fuel. The three locomotives, to be built at Wabtec’s […]

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Weekly U.S. rail figures remain down

Weekly table showing U.S. carload rail traffic by commodity type, plus intermodal totals

WASHINGTON — U.S. rail traffic for the week ending July 8, 2023, was down 5.1% compared to the same week a year earlier, according to statistics from the Association of American Railroads. The total of 407,843 carloads and intermodal units included 197,086 carloads, down 2.3% from the corresponding week in 2022, while the 210,757 containers […]

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House Republicans propose 64% cut to Amtrak budget for fiscal 2024

Passenger train with electric locomotive

WASHINGTON — U.S. House Republicans have released a proposed budget for fiscal 2024 that would effectively force Amtrak “to radically reduce or suspend service on various routes across the nation,” according to Amtrak CEO Stephen Gardner. The legislation marked up Wednesday also calls for substantial reductions in infrastructure programs benefitting passenger rail. Its release begins […]

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Vermont Rail System recovers from flood damage

Railroad bridge partially under water

Vermont Rail System was hit as hard as its namesake state by storms early this week, but the company is beginning to get a handle on the damage. “I am feeling better today than I did yesterday,” president Selden Houghton said in a a telephone interview today (July 12) with Trains News Wire. VRS received […]

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TTX to move headquarters to Charlotte, N.C.

Logo of TTX

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Railcar pooling company TTX will move its headquarters to Charlotte, the City of Charlotte announced Tuesday. TTX, currently based in Chicago, will invest at least $13.8 million and create 150 jobs in Charlotte’s central business district. “We believe Charlotte presents a unique opportunity for TTX that provides for strategic partnerships to strengthen […]

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VIA breaks ground on new Toronto maintenance facility

Rendering of interior of shop building

TORONTO — VIA Rail Canada has broken ground on a new maintenance facility for its fleet of Quebec City-Windsor corridor trains. Groundbreaking for new facilities at VIA’s Toronto Maintenance Centre was held Monday. The project involves demolition of part of an existing structure; construction of a new state-of-the-art facility; infrastructure improvements throughout the maintenance yard; […]

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Record number of short lines earn Jake Safety Awards

American Short Line and Regional Railroad Association logo

WASHINGTON — The American Short Line and Regional Railroad Association has recognized a record number of its member railroads for a 2022 Jake Safety Award, as well as for the award “with distinction” for zero reportable injuries. The ALSRRA announced Monday that 383 railroads had qualified for the Jake Award and 350 for the award […]

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Three rail employees arrested in India rail disaster

Aerial view of collision site in India.

NEW DELHI — Three employees of Indian Railways have been arrested over the three-train collision in June that killed almost 300 people, Agence France-Presse reports. The country’s Central Bureau of Investigation said the men — two signal engineers and one technician — have charged with culpable homicide not amounting to murder and destruction of evidence. […]

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