Norfolk Southern says reliable, resilient service will lead to long-term volume growth

ATLANTA — Norfolk Southern today (Tuesday, Dec. 6) rolled out a new strategy to provide the kind of reliable and resilient service that over the long term will enable the railroad to grow by luring freight off the highway. NS will balance service, productivity, and growth, CEO Alan Shaw said at the railroad’s investor day. […]

Read More…

Big four U.S. railroads report progress on service recovery goals (corrected)

Train with orange locomotives rounds curve

WASHINGTON – The big four U.S. Class I railroads have told federal regulators that their service is at or near pre-pandemic levels thanks to improved train crew staffing levels. BNSF Railway, CSX Transportation, Norfolk Southern, and Union Pacific each pointed to improvements in their key operating metrics in updated reports filed on Friday with the […]

Read More…

Pennsylvania borough calls for use of Pop Up Metro to connect to SEPTA system

Orange railcar approaches switch on rail line surrounded by trees

WEST CHESTER, Pa. — The West Chester Borough Council is calling for use of the Pop Up Metro concept, instead of conventional rail service, to connect the borough to downtown Philadelphia. The Daily Local News reports that the borough council has passed a resolution supporting a study by the Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority and Chester […]

Read More…

Louisiana provides $3 million in infrastructure grants to two railroads

Logo of the Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development

NEW ORLEANS — Two short lines will each receive $1.5 million grants from the Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development under its Class II and III Rail Infrastructure Improvement Program, the department has announced. The New Orleans Public Belt Railroad will receive funds toward construction of the NOPB Transloading Industrial Park in New Orleans East, […]

Read More…

Shareholder resolutions seek paid sick time for rail workers (updated)

Two men standing by train watch as another train goes by

NEW YORK – Investors who have launched shareholder resolutions seeking paid sick time for railroad employees say that the lack of paid sick days endangers workers’ health, threatens the economy, and has made it harder for railroads to retain their unionized employees. Activist investors today filed the non-binding shareholder resolutions requesting that Union Pacific and […]

Read More…

Massachusetts, Amtrak, CSX pursue grant for East-West Rail improvements

Map of proposed passenger route in Massachusetts

SPRINGFIELD, Mass. — The Massachusetts Department of Transportation, Amtrak, and CSX Transportation are seeking $108 million in federal grants to improve the rail line between Springfield and Worcester, Mass., as part of the proposed East-West Rail project. The three entities announced the grant application Friday, MassLive.com reports, with the goal of adding two daily Amtrak […]

Read More…

News photos: Siemens Amtrak car heads to Canada for testing

Freight locomotive and passenger car pass ornate white two-story passenger station

A single Siemens Venture car, part of the Amtrak Midwest operations, traveled over Canadian Pacific and Canadian National lines in Ontario on Saturday, Dec. 3., en route from Sacramento, Calif., to Canada’s National Research Uplands Campus in Ottawa for testing The special train, Union Pacific SD70ACe No. 8821 and the Siemens car, SIIX 4301, is […]

Read More…

Biden signs bill preventing nationwide railroad strike

Trains Washington Watch logo

Railroad employees picket outside the North American Rail Shippers conference in Kansas City on May 10, 2022. Trains: David Lassen WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden today signed legislation averting a railroad strike that would have shut down the national freight network and snarled Amtrak and commuter service. “Our nation’s rail system is literally the backbone […]

Read More…

Senate approves legislation to impose rail labor settlement (updated)

Trains Washington Watch logo

WASHINGTON — The U.S. Senate has passed legislation this afternoon (Thursday, Dec. 1) imposing a settlement in the labor dispute between railroads and unions, foreclosing the possibility of a national rail strike as soon as Dec. 9. President Joe Biden said he will sign the bill into law “as soon as Congress sends it to […]

Read More…

Aberdeen Carolina & Western to acquire leased trackage from Norfolk Southern

WASHINGTON — Independent North Carolina short line Aberdeen Carolina & Western will acquire the 104 miles of track it has leased from Norfolk Southern since 1989. The Piedmont Subdivision runs from milepost 282.63 in Gulf, N.C., to milepost 386.91 in Charlotte. The deal, outlined in a regulatory filing with the Surface Transportation Board, is expected […]

Read More…

Holiday week sees significant drop in U.S. rail traffic

Weekly table showing U.S. carload traffic by commodity type plus total intermodal traffic

WASHINGTON — U.S. rail traffic showed a significant drop for the week ending Nov. 26, a week including the Thanksgiving holiday, according to the latest statistics from the Association of American Railroads. Overall traffic was 413,305 carloads and intermodal units, a 4.1% drop from the corresponding week in 2021. That included 206,792 carloads, a 1.1% […]

Read More…

IT firm CGI to manage new VIA Rail Canada reservation system

VIA Rail Canada logo

MONTREAL — Information technology and business consulting firm CGI will manage a new online reservation system for VIA Rail Canada to be launched in 2023, the companies announced Wednesday. Under a long-term agreement, CGI will manage critical business applications, building on the business relationship that began in 2020 when CGI was selected to build VIA’s […]

Read More…