DERBY, England — Thomas the Tank Engine is the subject of a new documentary, An Unlikely Fandom: The Impact of Thomas the Tank Engine. The film will premiere at this summer’s The Greatest Gathering event in Derby, part of the UK’s Railway 200 celebration. Thomas began his adventures in a book published in 1945, the […]
WASHINGTON — Mark Ratto has been promoted to staff director of the House Subcommittee on Railroads, Pipelines, and Hazardous Materials, Transportation and Infrastructure Committee Chairman Sam Graves (R-Mo.) has announced. Ratto joined the committee staff in July 2022 and is credited with helping to draft key sections of the Promoting Innovation in Pipeline Efficiency and […]
NICHOLASVILLE, Ky. — Justin Broyles has been named interim president and CEO of R.J. Corman Railroad Group, the company announced today (June 27, 2025). Broyles succeeds Ed Quinn, who resigned earlier this month to pursue other interests. Broyles, who has spent more than 25 years in the rail industry, rejoined R. J. Corman in 2018 […]
MADRID — Renfe, Spain’s national railway company, has shut down its U.S. affiliate, Renfe of America, giving up on its hopes of operating the Texas Central high speed project. Spanish newspaper El Economista reports Renfe has taken a €4.5 million Euro ($5.17 million) loss in the company’s 2024 financial report, saying that it sees “no […]
SACRAMENTO, Calif. — The battery-electric versions of the Siemens Charger locomotives to be built for MTA’s Metro-North Railroad will be known as the Charger B+AC, Siemens said today (June 27, 2025). In emphasizing the new locomotive’s suitability for commuter operations, the company also announced it will be available in additional power options. Metro-North had announced […]
WASHINGTON — Railroad yardmasters, who supervise traffic moving through rail yards, would receive the same hours-of-service protections as other rail workers under legislation introduced this week. U.S. Reps. Salud Carbajal (D-Calif.) and Mike Lawler (R-N.Y.) reintroduced the Railroad Yardmaster Protection Act, a bill that places yardmasters under the same federal hours requirements that currently cover […]
WASHINGTON — Members of the Transport Workers Union have ratified a new five-year contract with Conrail including a 17.5% wage increase, the union has announced. Journeyman carmen will make more than $100,000 a year by the end of the contract. TWU International President John Samuelsen called the deal “a big win for TWU railroad workers” […]
FORT WORTH, Texas — BNSF Railway and the Transportation Communications Union (TCU) intermodal group have reached a tentative agreement on a new five-year contract. The tentative agreement, announced on Wednesday, covers 791 employees. BNSF now has reached ratified or tentative agreements with 10 of 13 unions representing 45% of the railway’s workforce. “We are pleased […]
WASHINGTON — Canadian Pacific Kansas City’s local service in former Kansas City Southern territory, which faltered after a May 3 computer system cutover, improved considerably last week. First- and last-mile performance now stands at or above 80% on three of the four operating divisions that include portions of the former KCS, CPKC told the Surface […]
WASHINGTON — U.S. weekly rail traffic rebounded slightly in the week ending June 21, 2025, moving narrowly above 2024 levels after two weeks in negative territory. The Association of American Railroads reports total rail traffic for the week was 487,328 carloads and intermodal units, up 0.4% from the same week a year ago. That included […]
WOODBRIDGE, Va. — Virginia Railway Express CEO Rich Dalton, who has led the commuter operation since 2019, has announced plans to retire effective Oct. 3, 2025. Dalton announced his retirement plans at the VRE Operations Board meeting on June 20. Dalton joined VRE in 2009 as Chief Operating Officer, although he had been involved with […]
RICHMOND, Va. — Virginia’s Commonwealth Transportation Board has approved a six-year transportation improvement plan including more than $7 billion for public transi. Some $1.7 billion of that is slated for the Transforming Rail in Virginia project acquiring and developing rail lines for passenger service. Other key rail-related elements of the plan for fiscal years 2026 […]
