CHICAGO — BNSF Railway will pay $75 million to settle a biometric privacy lawsuit in which it was originally assessed a $228 million penalty, only to have that award thrown out on appeal, Reuters reports. The settlement was originally reported last September, but terms had not been disclosed until a Monday filing in federal court […]
WASHINGTON — The National Transportation Safety Board and Surface Transportation Board both announced the addition of new staff members on Tuesday. At the NTSB, Warren Randolph has been appointed as the board’s first chief data officer, while Jen Adler will head the Office of Safety Recommendations of Communications. At the STB, Dr. Kristen Monaco has […]
The proxy battle that activist investor Ancora Holdings is waging against Norfolk Southern isn’t just about the direction NS should take and who should run the company. It’s a fight for the future of the railroad industry. The Cleveland-based activist investor seems to be taking the position that railroads shouldn’t grow. They argue that intermodal, […]
INDEPENDENCE, Ohio — The Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen today said it will “vigorously oppose” an activist investor’s attempt to gain control of the Norfolk Southern board and oust CEO Alan Shaw and Chief Operating Officer Paul Duncan. Cleveland-based Ancora Holdings is waging a proxy battle and has proposed a slate of eight directors […]
WASHINGTON — The state of Oklahoma and Blackwell Industrial Authority have asked the Surface Transportation Board to allow emergency service on the Blackwell Northern Gateway Railroad, the short line shut down by the Federal Railroad Administration for safety reasons earlier this month. In a Monday filing, the state and the industrial authority, operator of an […]
STUART, Fla. — Brightline will build a new intermediate station in Stuart, Fla., the TC Palm newspaper reports. Stuart City Manager Mike Mortell informed employees on Monday that the passenger operator had selected Stuart’s downtown site near the Martin County Courthouse. Brightline did not respond to the newspaper’s request for comment. At least two other […]
WASHINGTON — Amtrak’s Office of Inspector General has released a report explaining how the company’s lack of effective parts inventory management is responsible for numerous service failures. The 62-page report released Monday, “Asset management: Company has opportunities to more effectively manage and safeguard maintenance of equipment inventory,” asserts a lack of key parts to keep […]
NEW YORK — The Metropolitan Transportation Authority, which had previously announced it was placing much of its capital spending on hold because of uncertainty over implementation of Manhattan’s congestion pricing plan, on Monday detailed the projects at risk while the lawsuits against congestion pricing are pending. Congestion pricing, intended to discourage driving in Manhattan below […]
NEWARK, N.J. — NJ Transit has unveiled a locomotive wrapped to commemorate Black History Month, featuring historical contribution of African Americans to American history and society. The unveiling today (Monday, Feb. 26) of wrapped dual-mode Bombardier ALP-45DP No. 4508 at Newark Penn Station was accompanied by the release of two NJ Transit buses also wrapped […]
ATLANTA — Amid its proxy fight with an activist investor, Norfolk Southern today nominated former Amtrak and Delta Air Lines CEO Richard Anderson and former U.S. Sen. Heidi Heitkamp to serve on the company’s board of directors. The NS board also confirmed its unanimous support for CEO Alan Shaw and the railroad’s “better way forward” […]
OMAHA, Neb. — Berkshire Hathaway Chairman Warren Buffett’s widely read annual letter to investors, released on Saturday alongside the company’s 2023 financial results, included a long passage on railroads in general and BNSF Railway in particular. BNSF’s revenue and profits fell last year, which Buffett termed a disappointment. But he noted that the national labor […]
OMAHA, Neb. — BNSF Railway’s revenue and profits tumbled in 2023 due to a combination of lower volume and lower revenue per carload and intermodal unit. Pre-tax earnings declined 14.2%, to $6.6 billion, as revenue declined 6.9%, to $23.4 billion, BNSF parent company Berkshire Hathaway reported on Saturday. The railway’s operating ratio increased 2.5 points […]
