Norfolk & Western Railway freight trains

Diesel locomotives with coal train on steel viaduct

Classic Trains editors are celebrating the history, heritage, and style of the Norfolk & Western Railway all through January 2022. Please enjoy this photo gallery of Norfolk & Western freight trains selected from the archives of Kalmbach Media’s David P. Morgan Library. The Norfolk & Western was a coal-oriented road linking Cincinnati and Columbus with […]

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BNSF Railway needed to end Montana Rail Link lease – analysis

A blue Montana Rail Link train works alongside a river with mountains in the background.

BNSF Railway is taking back Montana Rail Link’s lease on the former Northern Pacific main line across Montana and Idaho for one simple reason: To control its own destiny. In recent years the growth-minded BNSF has made significant capacity investments on its routes to and from the Pacific Northwest. To the east of MRL, BNSF […]

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CSX quarterly profits and revenue grow despite crew-shortage limitations

Blue and yellow locomotives llead train of hopper cars

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — CSX Transportation’s profits and revenue grew in the fourth quarter but the railroad could have moved more freight if not for the ongoing train crew shortage related to the tight labor market and pandemic infections and quarantines. “We are putting the resources in place to deliver a high-quality service product,” CEO Jim Foote […]

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Union Pacific CEO signals interest in autonomous intermodal cars

Genesee & Wyoming plans for first test of autonomous container equipment. Container moving independently on railroad track

CULVER CITY, Calif. — Union Pacific has expressed interest in a new autonomous battery-electric intermodal car concept developed by a group headed by three former Space X engineers. The concept under development by Parallel Systems would see intermodal containers carried by pairs of powered battery-electric wheelsets, moving in “platoons” of cars, but capable of splitting […]

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Union Pacific reports record profits for 2021, has bright outlook for this year

Train with yellow locomotives and coal hoppers on overcast day

OMAHA, Neb. — Union Pacific on Thursday reported record profits for 2021 despite the impact of the pandemic, wildfires, and congestion in the global supply chain. CEO Lance Fritz says the railroad expects another record-setting year in 2022, when UP will mark its 160th anniversary. But UP’s safety and service did not meet expectations last year […]

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Union Pacific lands Schneider intermodal contract

Orange container on well car

GREEN BAY, Wis. — Transportation and logistics firm Schneider will shift its primary western U.S. rail service to Union Pacific from BNSF Railway in January 2023, the companies have announced. “Schneider’s intermodal business is a great fit for Union Pacific’s diverse network,” Union Pacific CEO Lance Fritz said in a press release. “We look forward […]

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We need transcontinental railroad mergers — Analysis

CREATE

Railroads fall short of trucks in so many ways. The inability to offer seamless service from Point A to Point B shouldn’t be among them. But the Surface Transportation Board has said, in so many words, that Canadian Pacific-Kansas City Southern will be the last merger of Class I railroads. That’s a colossal mistake. Why? […]

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Union Pacific, Norfolk Southern, CSX to use new freight scheduling platform

Logo of technology frim Blume Global

PLEASANTON, Calif. — Supply-chain technology firm Blume Global has announced a collaborative information platform to coordinate cross-country shipments. Union Pacific, Norfolk Southern, and CSX will be partners in the end-to-end freight scheduler, intended to allow shippers and intermodal firms to synchronize shipments across railroads. “Coordination among railroads is essential, Seana Fairchild, assistant vice president of […]

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Never-used Talgo trainsets find buyer in Africa

Parked Talgo trainset

MILWAUKEE — The long-orphaned Talgo trainsets built but never used for extended Hiawatha service to Madison, Wis., have finally found a home. In Nigeria. The website Urban Milwaukee reports Talgo will sell the equipment to the Nigerian government. According to a press release, it will be for a new 23-mile, 11-station commuter line in the […]

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Plans set for new Genesee & Wyoming dispatching center

Orange and yellow logo of Genesee & Wyoming

ST. ALBANS, Vt. — Work is set to begin in April on a new dispatching center for short line company Genesee & Wyoming near downtown St. Albans, the Valley News reports. The 10,000-square-foot building, on a long-vacant site, will replace an older facility in the building. St. Albans City Manager Dominic Cloud said the company […]

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Carload Considerations: Boxcars thrive as trucking issues persist… but for how long?

Graffiti-covered boxcars on rail spur

CHARLESTON, W.Va. — Supply-chain woes stemming from COVID-19’s economic rebound have been thoroughly scrutinized in the past year, specifically the interwovenness of intermodal container rail shipments and its role in the supply chain. Trains’ Bill Stephens summarized the topic as part of 2021’s year-end countdown of major stories: “News Wire Top 10, No. 3, a […]

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When I cast my ballot for the RS3

NKPRS3s

Nickel Plate 535 and 555 make a persuasive case for the RS3 as they accelerate east at Malinta, Ohio, in 1960. J. David Ingles Many of us who cotton to such things probably can pinpoint the exact time, or place, where we realized we had a favorite locomotive type. For me, the locomotive was the […]

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