Monday afternoon rail news:
CP sets January record for Canadian grain movement
Canadian Pacific set a record for Canadian grain movement in January, transporting 2.22 million metric tons to better the record set a year earlier by 6%. The railroad has now shipped 16 million metric tons so far in the 2020-21 grain season, an increase of more than 13% over what it had shipped at the same time in the 2019-20 season. “CP, our customers and other supply chain participants have once again collaborated to move record amounts of grain through the month,” Joan Hardy, CP vice-president sales and marketing, grain and fertilizers, said in a press release. “Despite a rainy start in Vancouver, the efficiency and effectiveness of the CP service model and the resiliency of the supply chain allowed for recovery through the month and supported this strong result.”
Yakima trolleys seek National Historic Landmark status
Efforts have begun to gain National Historic Landmark status for Washington state’s Yakima Valley Trolleys, which already have a place on the National Register of Historic Places. The Yakima Herald reports state architectural historian Michael Houser is supporting the effort, which would make the interurban line dating to 1907 eligible for a Save America’s Treasures grant. The non-profit tourist operation of the city-owned line did not open in 2020 because of the COVID-19 pandemic, and operating plans for 2021 are uncertain. The seasonal operation usually begins around Memorial Day weekend.
Pacific Harbor Line names Stokes as chief engineer
Pacific Harbor Line has appointed Monte Stokes as chief engineer of the 75-mile railroad serving the ports of Long Beach and Los Angeles. Stokes, whose appointment was effective Feb.1, joins the Anacostia Rail Holdings railroad from Amtrak, where he had worked since 2017 as deputy division engineer at Washington, D.C.; assistant division engineer at Baltimore; and senior engineer-track, Philadelphia. He previously worked at CSX Transportation from 2011 to 2017 Stokes, who has a degree in electrical engineering from South Carolina State University, succeeds Robert Giannoble, who retired Dec. 31, 2020.
