JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – CSX CEO Joe Hinrichs says the tentative agreements the railroad and five labor unions reached this week were the result of a mutual desire to avoid a replay of the contentious and prolonged round of national bargaining that began in 2019 and concluded with a contract Congress imposed in December 2022. Since […]
ST. LOUIS — Intramotev, the startup company that converts conventional freight cars to battery-electric, self-propelled vehicles, has debuted an autonomous double-stack car. The company showed off the TugVolt well car in a video released this week. The 20-year-old former TTX car carries two 40-foot international containers as it moves independently along trackage in Intramotev’s facility. […]
Canadian National Railway and Canadian Pacific Kansas City are now shut down in Canada after locking out Teamsters Canada Rail Conference operating crews beginning at 12:01 a.m. today (Aug. 22) — the first time both railroads have been hit by a work stoppage at the same time. A lockout of CPKC rail traffic controllers began […]
PORTLAND, Maine — Following a pair of community outreach sessions that began last April, the Northern New England Passenger Rail Authority has settled on a site for a relocated Portland station that would eliminate the time-consuming backup move for Downeaster service that dates to its launch in December 2001. The agency is soliciting further public […]
A locomotive on fire Since railroading’s very inception, fire has been one of the most frightening things that can occur, and it can happen on any unit from any manufacturer at any time, usually without warning. And thinking about it, why not? You have a constantly vibrating platform with multiple moving parts surrounded by myriad […]
WASHINGTON — Perhaps reflecting the prospects of a Canadian labor stoppage, weekly U.S. rail traffic experienced a significant boost in the seven days ending Aug. 17, 2024. U.S. volume for the week, as reported by the Association of American Railroads, included 516,819 carloads and intermodal units, an 8% gain over the same week in 2023. […]
MONTREAL — Canadian National Railway called for government intervention this evening as Canada moved closer to a shutdown of its two Class I railroads, but earlier today [Aug. 21] Prime Minister Justin Trudeau simply called on the two sides to reach a deal. CN plans to lock out members of the Teamsters Canada Rail Conference […]
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — CSX Transportation has reached contract agreements with three of its unions, four months before their existing contracts faced a key date under the Federal Railway Act. A company spokesman called the move “unprecedented,” and said the workers covered by the new contracts represent about 25% of CSX’ unionized workforce. The deals were […]
CHICAGO — Short line and regional railroads interchanging with Canadian National and Canadian Pacific Kansas City say it’s business as usual — for now — despite the growing threat of a railroad strike and lockout later this week between the Canadian railroads and the Teamsters Canada Rail Conference. Michael Martinez, the director of business development […]
The potential strike by CPKC rail traffic controllers — set to begin Thursday morning — will scramble commuting in Canada’s three largest cities. Commuter rail operations in Vancouver, Toronto, and Montreal all rely on CPKC dispatching to varying degrees, and those operations will cease during a strike by controllers. Hardest hit will be Montreal, where […]
WASHINGTON — A federal appeals court today tossed out the Surface Transportation Board’s streamlined process for resolving rate disputes between shippers and railroads, saying the 2022 Final Offer Rate Review rule exceeded the board’s authority. Union Pacific and the Association of American Railroads had challenged the Final Offer Rate Review process. The U.S. Court of […]
WASHINGTON — The Surface Transportation Board will wrap up the discovery portion of its investigation into the on-time performance of Amtrak’s Sunset Limited on Friday and has set a schedule for the remainder of the proceeding. In a decision issued yesterday, the STB also ordered Amtrak to provide an opening statement that addresses several key […]
