Wednesday morning rail news:
Lineage buys refrigerator car firm Cyro-Trans in $500 million deal
Cold-storage specialist Lineage Logistics announced it is purchasing Cryo-Trans, which has more than 2,200 refrigerated and insulated railcars, North America’s largest privately owned fleet, and manages more than 40,000 annual rail shipments. Lineage, a real estate investment trust based in Novi., Mich., represents more than 330 temperature-controlled warehouses worldwide, with nearly 2 billion cubic feet of capacity in 15 countries, and adds Cryo-Trans to transportation services including less-than-truckload consolidation, port logistics, drayage, and customs brokerage. Lineage co-founder Kevin Marchetti said in a press release that the acquisition is part of an effort to invest “in creative and truly end-to-end solutions for our customers. “ Terms were not announced, but Bloomberg reports the deal values Cryo-Trans at more than $500 million.
NTSB sees no foul play in early stages of BNSF derailment investigation
No evidence of foul play has surfaced in the investigation of last month’s derailment and fire involving a BNSF oil train in Custer, Wash. The Bellingham Herald reports National Transportation Safety Board spokesman Christopher O’Neil told the newspaper there has been “no evidence found by our investigators” indicating the derailment was an intentional act. O’Neil said the investigation is in its early stages and preliminary findings would likely be available in one to three months. The Dec. 22 derailment and fire of the unit train of Bakken crude oil in the community near the Canadian border led to evacuations within a half-mile of the accident site, but resulted in no injuries [see “BNSF oil train derails in Washington, two cars catch fire,” Trains News Wire, Dec. 22, 2020].
NTSB sets online discussion of PTC’s history, future for Jan. 14
The National Transportation Safety Board will hold an online discussion on the history of positive train control and a look at the future of rail safety on Jan. 14, marking the completion of PTC implementation by the Dec. 31, 2020, deadline. NTSB member Jennifer Homendy will moderate a discussion featuring current board chairman Robert L. Sumwalt; former chairs Christopher A. Hart, Deborah A.P. Hersman, and James E. Hall; and other NTSB staff members. The webcast of the event at 1 p.m. EST will be available here.
