WASHINGTON — Amtrak is scrapping plans for a new generation of bi-level passenger equipment to replace its aging Superliner fleet, announcing that it will instead move ahead with developing a single-level fleet for use across its system. The company said in a press release that the move reflects “extensive analysis of the challenges associated with […]
BLUE ISLAND, Ill. — OmniTRAX has signed a long-term lease to operate a new multimodal logistics hub in the city of Blue Island, the company announced today (Feb. 26). The 90-acre parcel is just southwest of Chicago, bordering 119th and Division streets within the Blue Island Commercial Center. Operation of the new hub will begin […]
WASHINGTON — Union Pacific and Norfolk Southern have asked the Federal Railroad Administration to waive cab-signal requirements that otherwise would restrict where UP’s 4-8-8-4 Big Boy No. 4014 could operate on its historic eastern swing this summer. In Feb. 10 letters to the FRA, the railroads sought permission to operate the Big Boy in cab-signal […]
WASHINGTON — U.S. Reps. Troy Nehls (R-Texas) and Seth Moulton (D-Mass.) have introduced the Railroad Safety Enhancement Act, which includes components of the never-passed Railway Safety Act of 2024. Many elements of the bill introduced on Wednesday, Feb. 25, parallel those in the Railway Safety Act of 2026, introduced in the Senate on Tuesday [see […]
WASHINGTON — Led by a major increase in carload volume, U.S. rail traffic showed a big jump for the week ending Feb. 25, gaining 10.7% from the same week last year. According to statistics from the Association of American Railroads, traffic for the week was 507,712 carloads and intermodal units. That included 227,124 carloads, an […]
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Technology firm Infosys announced it has completed a data modernization program for CSX, consolidating the railroad’s fragmented data systems into a unified cloud-based platform. Infosys says the program is one of the largest deployments of its kind in the field of transportation and logistics. It uses Infosys Topaz, a set of services, […]
LONDON — Freight service through the Channel Tunnel, which ended in 2024, is set to resume after the British government announced it would take control of the only intermodal facility in the United Kingdom able to handle freight cars with European dimensions. The government announced today (Wednesday, Feb. 25) that national rail infrastructure company Network […]
WASHINGTON — A bipartisan group of U.S. senators led by Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.) and Jon Husted (R-Ohio) introduced a new version of the Railway Safety Act today (Feb. 24). The new legislation includes a mandate for wayside defect detectors, an expanded list of hazardous materials subject to higher safety standards, and a two-person crew requirement. […]
NEW YORK — Work is resuming this week on the Hudson Tunnel project, the Gateway Development Commission said today (Feb. 24), with nearly 1,000 jobs being restored following layoffs that occurred when the project was shut down on Feb. 6. The resumption of work is being funded through approximately $235 million the commission received from […]
DENVER — The Front Range Passenger Rail District has scheduled the first in a series of town hall meetings to hear from residents as part of the ongoing planning for proposed service between Fort Collins and Pueblo, Colo. The first meeting is Thursday, Feb. 26, in Colorado Springs, followed by meetings in Pueblo on March […]
WINNEPEG, Manitoba — Cando Rail & Terminals has signed an agreement to acquire the rail operations of Salt Lake City-based Savage Enterprises in a deal that will create North America’s largest operator of first- and last-mile rail infrastructure, the companies said today. Savage Rail has operations in key markets across the U.S., including along the […]
MIAMI BEACH, Fla. — CSX CEO Steve Angel says it should be no surprise that railroads are struggling to grow their freight volumes. “When you look around the world, there really isn’t much growth,” Angel told an investor conference last week in his first detailed public remarks outside of earnings calls since becoming CEO in […]
