HARRISBURG, Pa. — A bill including a limit on freight train lengths and a prohibition on blocking grade crossings for more than five minutes has advanced in the Pennsylvania General Assembly. HB 1191, sponsored by state Rep. Robert Matzie (D-Beaver, Pa.) passed the Consumer Protection, Technology, and Utilities Committee of the House by a 23-3 […]
BNSF Railway and Union Pacific have filed lawsuits against North America’s largest producer of rail, arguing that Orion Steel’s Rocky Mountain Steel Mills broke long-term supply deals by refusing to ship more rail unless the railroads agree to price increases of more than 50%. The railroads say Rocky Mountain’s halt in rail shipments threatens safety […]
OMAHA, Neb. — Union Pacific and Norfolk Southern will file their merger application with federal regulators on Friday, the railroads said today. The document, which will be filed with the Surface Transportation Board, will allow the railroads to show how their combination will deliver economic benefits, enhance competition, and protect union jobs, the railroads said. […]
PIERRE, S.D. — Genesee & Wyoming’s Rapid City, Pierre & Eastern Railroad is proposing to buy two sections of state-owned rail lines totaling 19.5 miles from the state of South Dakota. At a Dec. 17 meeting of the state Railroad Board and Railroad Authority, the RCP&E proposed to pay $3.125 million for 4.2 miles of […]
WASHINGTON — U.S. rail traffic has remained below 2024 levels for an eighth straight week, according to statistics from the Association of American Railroads. Figures for the week ending Dec. 13, 2025, show U.S. weekly traffic of 518,904 carloads and intermodal units, a decrease of 1.4% from the same week a year ago. Both carloads […]
OMAHA, Neb. — Union Pacific has announced plans to develop a 2,000-acre industrial park outside Houston that will feature 1,300 acres of rail-served land. The Mainline Texas Industrial Park is just west of Rosenberg, Texas, and about 40 miles southwest of downtown Houston. It will be bordered on one side by the main line of […]
WASHINGTON — Improvement of communications with project partners and within the company could help Amtrak reduce risks in its role in the $16 billion Hudson Tunnel Project, as could better management of project documents, the Amtrak Office of Inspector General says in a report issued today (Dec. 17). The report did find that the company […]
The Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen and the Brotherhood of Maintenance of Way Employes Division will oppose the Union Pacific-Norfolk Southern merger despite UP’s promises of lifetime job protection. “This debt-ridden tie-up won’t make rail more competitive with trucks as merger proponents claim,” BLET National President Mark Wallace said in a statement on Wednesday […]
OTTAWA, Ontario — VIA Rail Canada CEO Mario Péloquin is stepping down, Canadian Transport Minister Steven MacKinnon has announced. In a Tuesday, Dec. 16, statement, MacKinnon said he has accepted Péloquin’s resignation “effective Jan. 16, 2026, in order to enjoy retirement after a 41-year career in the industry. I would like to thank Mario for […]
WASHINGTON — The Surface Transportation Board has renewed the charter of its Passenger Rail Advisory Committee, the group created to assist the board on issues related to passenger service. The board announced creation of the committee in 2023 and selected 21 members from a group of 90 nominees for the first version of the board […]
NEW YORK — The Metropolitan Transportation Authority, financial company JPMorgan Chase, and real estate investment firm Vornado have announced public-private partnerships to rebuild the train shed at Grand Central Terminal, which is deteriorating from decades of water, chemical, and salt damage. That deterioration has damaged the concrete and steel beams that hold up Park Avenue […]
Genesee & Wyoming continues to add to its series of locomotives marking the 250th anniversary of American independence, with the latest unit also honoring railroading’s place in U.S. history. Arizona Eastern Railway No. 4028, a B40-8, features an image of the Jupiter, the diamond-stacked Central Pacific 4-4-0 that took part in the Golden Spike ceremony […]
