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 […]
WASHINGTON — Union Pacific has asked the Surface Transportation Board to deny Metra’s request that the board settle the terms of Metra operation on three UP lines, calling it an attempt to stall UP’s appeal of the STB decision granting trackage rights to the Chicago-area commuter railroad. In a Dec. 15 filing, UP says the […]
DENVER – OmniTRAX Co-CEO Dean Piacente will retire at the end of the year as part of a planned leadership transition, the company said on Tuesday. Piacente will continue to serve on the OmniTRAX board and will focus on the shortline holding company’s eastern growth strategy. Co-CEO Colby Tanner, a former BNSF executive, will assume […]
CANCUN — Mexico’s Maya Train continues to sustain massive losses as it marks two years of operation, and one year as a completed route. Latest figures show subsidies are nearly 10 times the operation’s revenue from tickets and merchandise, according to a report by the newspaper Reforma. Mexico News Daily, quoting the paywalled Reforma report, […]
WASHINGTON — A trio of Southern Democratic congressmen have come out in favor of the Union Pacific-Norfolk Southern merger. Calling rail freight “vital to our states and the country’s economy,” a letter from U.S. Reps. Bennie Thompson of Mississippi, and Troy Carter and Cleo Fields of Louisiana urged Surface Transportation Board Chairman Patrick Fuchs to […]
CASA GRANDE, Ariz. — Union Pacific has completed expansion of its Gasa Grande Yard, doubling capacity at the facility about 70 miles west of Tucson on the railroad’s Gila Subdivision. The project added four tracks and a new industrial lead, and included a powered switch, a new yard control point, and upgraded mainline signals. “The […]
