LPG cars involved, but no leaks reported, in CN derailment in Minnesota

Canadian National logo

FIELD TOWNSHIP, Minn. — Two carloads of liquefied petroleum gas were among those involved in a derailment of nine cars of a Canadian National train in rural northern Minnesota on Monday, July 17, according to a press release from the St. Louis County Sheriff’s Office. As reported by KRFO radio, the derailment occurred about 8:20 […]

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Florida Gulf & Atlantic crew members vote to join BLET

Logo of Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen union

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — Train and engine service workers on the Florida Gulf & Atlantic Railroad have voted to join the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen, the BLET announced Friday. Roughly 75% of employees at the railroad signed authorization cards in April indicating they would like to be represented by the BLET, leading the National […]

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Landowners on Lac-Mégantic bypass route seek injunction to stop expropriations

Map of Lac-Megantic Bypass

LAC-MÉGANTIC, Quebec — Lawyers representing some of the residents whose land will be expropriated by the Canadian government for a planned Lac-Mégantic rail bypass are seeking an injunction to halt the process, the Canadian Press reports. The government announced it would pursue expropriation in February after it was unable to negotiate purchase of the necessary […]

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Fox reappointed as chair of Transportation Safety Board of Canada

Head shot of woman with Canadian flag in background

GATINEAU, Quebec — Kathy Fox has been reappointed as chair of the Transportation Safety Board of Canada for a one-year period as the search continues for her successor, the TSB announced on Twitter. The reappointment is effective Aug. 21. Fox has been a member of the board since July 2007. She was first appointed chair […]

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Amtrak begins process to upgrade maintenance facilities at Seattle, three Northeast Corridor sites

Amtrak logo.

WASHINGTON — Amtrak has published Requests for Qualifications for maintenance facilities in Boston, New York City, Washington, D.C., and Seattle, part of a program build or upgrade more than 20 sites nationally for new trainsets. Two requests are currently active. One is for Seattle, where Amtrak is hoping to gain permission to close a street, […]

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Worker killed at Chicago-area CSX intermodal facility

CSX logo

BEDFORD PARK, Ill. — A contract worker was killed Saturday morning in an accident at the CSX Transportation intermodal facility at Bedford Park, the Chicago Tribune reports. Jacory Ceaser, 24, of Chicago’s Roseland neighborhood, was killed about 12:30 a.m. when crushed between two intermodal chassis, according to the Cook County medical examiner’s office. The death […]

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British Columbia ports strike ends with tentative agreement

Locomotive switching at container terminal

VANCOUVER, British Columbia — Workers have returned to work at British Columbia ports after their union and employers reached a tentative agreement on Thursday, ending a 13-day strike. The two sides accepted terms drafted by a federal mediator on Thursday morning, about 10 minutes before a deadline set by Canadian labor minister Seamus O’Regan, according […]

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Fight over BNSF bridge moves to North Dakota Supreme Court

Steam-powered passenger train on large truss bridge over water

BISMARCK, N.D. — The group seeking to prevent BNSF Railway from demolishing a 141-year-old bridge over the Missouri River is taking its long-running effort to the North Dakota Supreme Court. The Bismarck Tribune reports that the Friends of the Rail Bridge preservation group, joined by the Downtown Business Association of Bismarck, is seeking to overturn […]

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Cincinnati Southern sale to go to voters in November

Map of rail line from Cincinnati, Ohio, to Chattanooga, Tenn.

CINCINNATI — Voters will have their say on the sale of the Cincinnati Southern Railway on Nov. 7. WXIX-TV reports that  Thursday, the railway board of trustees voted unanimously to place the proposed sale of the line from Cincinnati to Chattanooga, Tenn., on the ballot. If a majority of voters approve, the nation’s only municipally […]

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Officials begun mulling expansion of DC Metrorail system

Map of Washington DC Metro rail system with proposed changes to Blue Line

WASHINGTON — Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority officials have begun considering expansion of the DC Metrorail system, the Washington Post reports, and are weighing multiple proposals that include a new rail tunnel under the Potomac River. The plans come as the Metro system is facing a projected $750 million deficit in its next fiscal year, […]

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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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Santa Fe No. 3751 to appear at LA Union Station event in September

Steam locomotive on a turntable

LOS ANGELES, Calif. – Santa Fe steam locomotive No. 3751 will make its first public appearance of 2023 at Los Angeles Union Station’s Trainfest Sept. 9-10, the San Bernardino Railroad Historical Society announced today. The event, “Trainfest 2023: A Celebration of Past, Present & Future,” will be held each day from 10 a.m. to 6 […]

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