RailPulse — the consortium of railroads, railcar manufactures, railcar owners, and other industry firms developing GPS and other telematics use — and rail telemetry vendor Nexxiot have announced an agreement to make it easier for car owners to access Nexxiot products and services and join the RailPulse platform. The agreement, announced today (March 7) but […]
Train Topic: Rail Industry
STB must give CN-Iowa Northern deal more scrutiny, CPKC says
WASHINGTON — Canadian Pacific Kansas City insists that it did not miss any deadlines when it asked federal regulators to give Canadian National’s proposed acquisition of Iowa Northern Railway a more thorough review. CN this week claimed that CPKC missed two deadlines when it asked the Surface Transportation Board to consider the $230 million deal […]
U.S. rail traffic up in February
WASHINGTON — U.S. rail traffic was up 4.9% in February compared to the same month a year ago, according to statistics from the Association of American Railroads, while volume for the week ending March 2 was also up, the sixth straight week of gains compared to 2023. The February gains came after January’s traffic levels […]
NTSB chair tells Senate hearing East Palestine chemical burn could have been avoided
WASHINGTON — The controlled burn of vinyl chloride following last year’s derailment in East Palestine, Ohio, was unnecessary, National Transportation Safety Board chair Jennifer Homendy told a Senate hearing today — and might have been avoided with better communication. Homendy, testifying at a Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation hearing on NTSB investigations, said in […]
Bill to end cuts to railroad unemployment insurance advances in Senate
WASHINGTON — The Senate Budget Committee has unanimously voted to advance a bill that would permanently exempt railroad workers’ unemployment and sickness insurance benefits from sequestration cuts, and end current cuts. Industry and labor groups had jointly written members of the committee earlier this week asking for support for S.1274, the Railroad Employee Equity and […]
Contractor on Amtrak Philadelphia station project faces bribery charges
PHILADELPHIA — A contractor on the project to restore Amtrak’s 30th Street Station in Philadelphia is facing a federal bribery charge after allegedly providing more than $300,000 in gifts and favors for an Amtrak employee, who altered a contract to nearly double the value of the contractor’s contract, KYW Radio reports. A court document says […]
CPKC’s concerns about CN’s acquisition of Iowa Northern are too little, too late, CN says
WASHINGTON — Canadian National says Canadian Pacific Kansas City missed two deadlines when it asked federal regulators to give CN’s proposed acquisition of Iowa Northern Railway a more thorough review. The Surface Transportation Board on Feb. 29 designated the acquisition as a minor transaction. CPKC on March 1 asked the board to consider the $230 […]
Norfolk Southern, Florida East Coast further expand intermodal service
ATLANTA — Norfolk Southern and Florida East Coast have announced further expansion of their international and domestic interline service, with logistics, marine, and energy company Crowley using the two railroads’ Florida Express service to move textile products to and from Charlotte, N.C., for garment and apparel manufacturing. “We are focused on providing reliable service and […]
Rail industry, labor urge Senate to pass bill addressing cuts to unemployment benefits
WASHINGTON — A rare coalition of rail industry and labor groups have asked the Senate Budget Committee to approve legislation which would permanently exempt railroad unemployment and sickness benefits from sequestration budget cuts. The bill in question, S.1274, the Railroad Employee Equity and Fairness Act, or REEF Act, was introduced by Sen. Deb. Fischer (R-Neb.); […]
Court blocks CN plans for new Toronto-area intermodal facility
MILTON, Ontario — A Canadian court has blocked Canadian National Railway’s plans for its Milton Logistics Hub, a $250 million intermodal project first proposed in 2015 and approved by the federal government in 2021. While the government attached 325 environmental conditions to the approval [see “Canadian National’s proposed Toronto-area intermodal terminal …,” Trains News Wire, […]
Former CN CEO says NS should consider a different approach in fight with activist investor
Norfolk Southern needs to make some concessions to activist investor Ancora Holdings if the railroad wants to maintain control of its board and keep its current management team, retired Canadian National CEO JJ Ruest says. Ruest knows a thing or two about proxy battles: He tamped down activism from one of CN’s largest investors after […]
CPKC and Iowa Interstate ask regulators to take closer look at CN-Iowa Northern deal
WASHINGTON — Canadian Pacific Kansas City and Iowa Interstate on Friday asked federal regulators to designate Canadian National’s proposed acquisition of Iowa Northern as a “significant” transaction that would require a longer and more rigorous review process. Last week the Surface Transportation Board accepted CN’s application to acquire Iowa Northern and said the $230 million […]