A House subcommittee hearing on May 6 focused on improving the efficiency and effectiveness of federal rail grants as U.S. Department of Transportation officials grapple with thousands of awarded-but-unobligated grants. Industry experts testified that reliable funding and faster regulatory processes are critical to infrastructure development. “We need reliable, predictable funding to plan decades’ worth of […]
FORT WORTH, Texas — BNSF Railway has laid off a portion of its technology services staff as part of a departmental restructuring effort, per the Forth Worth Star Telegram. While BNSF did not disclose specific numbers, the cuts are believed to have affected between 140 and 175 workers. The Fort Worth-based carrier is creating a […]
WITTMANN, Ariz. – BNSF Railway held a contentious community meeting this week in Wittmann, Ariz., regarding its proposed $3.2 billion logistics and intermodal hub. The project spans 4,270 acres and would be BNSF’s first to include an intermodal terminal, warehouse and distribution facilities, and rail-served sites for carload and bulk commodity customers. Many residents, particularly […]
OMAHA, Neb. — BNSF Railway posted higher profits in the first quarter thanks to a combination of volume growth and pricing gains, corporate parent Berkshire Hathaway announced on Saturday. “The railroad is earning a little more than last year but it’s not earning what it should be earning at the present time,” Berkshire CEO Warren […]
Despite mounting uncertainty over tariffs, trade policy, and the economy, most major railroads held firm on their 2025 outlooks — contrasting with a wave of guidance cuts across other industries. Among the five publicly traded Class I railroads, Canadian National, Norfolk Southern, and Union Pacific kept their guidance intact, while Canadian Pacific Kansas City and […]
FORT WORTH, Texas — BNSF Railway has eliminated 20 chief dispatching positions at its Network Operations Center. “We consolidated some duties to better reflect the flow of traffic on our network,” railroad spokesman Zak Andersen says. “Those affected will return to their previous roles as dispatchers.” Separately, BNSF is seeking to extend a crew district […]
WASHINGTON— Federal regulators will determine whether BNSF Railway can use its trackage rights over Union Pacific to reach a new short line railroad in Utah. The Surface Transportation Board yesterday rejected Union Pacific’s request to dismiss the case regarding the Savage Tooele Railroad. Savage held a groundbreaking ceremony in November for the railroad [see “Groundbreaking […]
ASHBY, Neb. — A tornado is being blamed for derailing an empty BNSF coal train on Sunday evening (April 27, 2025) near the town of Ashby, News Channel Nebraska reports. The derailment was reported about 6:27 p.m. CT, and involved the derailment of about 130 cars. The lead locomotive was not affected, and the two […]
Since late last year BNSF Railway and Union Pacific have been busy handling a surge of containers from West Coast ports as U.S. companies pulled forward their imports in order to beat potential tariffs. But now with a trade war under way — and tariffs as high as 145% on goods made in China — […]
The rumble of Canadian Pacific’s 4-6-4 Empress No. 2816 and Union Pacific’s 4-8-8-4 Big Boy No. 4014 echoed across thousands of miles in 2024. What made these journeys truly remarkable and deserving a brighter spotlight? Both locomotives were equipped with fully compliant, standalone Positive Train Control (PTC) systems. This means they can independently navigate their […]
WASHINGTON — Every day Union Pacific and BNSF Railway trains battle gravity and curvature as they wind their way up and down the former Southern Pacific main line through the rugged Tehachapi Mountains of Southern California. Now UP and BNSF are engaged in a different sort of fight: The railroads have been unable to come […]
FORT WORTH, Texas — American Airlines has nominated BNSF Railway CEO Katie Farmer for election to the airline’s board of directors. The board will be elected at the annual meeting of stockholders on June 11. If elected, she will serve on the board’s finance and safety committees. “We are very pleased to nominate Katie to […]
