JACKSONVILLE — The Brotherhood of Railroad Signalmen has ratified a paid sick leave agreement with CSX Corp. covering former Seaboard Coast Line properties, CSX announced today (Oct. 19, 2023). The agreement covers close to 400 employees. “We value the hard work and dedication of the Brotherhood of Railroad Signalmen and all our employees who keep […]
Section: News Wire
EPA orders more work to address creeks near site of East Palestine derailment
EAST PALESTINE, Ohio — The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has ordered Norfolk Southern to perform additional cleanup work on creeks in the area of the Feb. 3 East Palestine, Ohio, derailment, saying disturbance of sediment on those streams can lead to an “oily sheen” in the water. The order issued Wednesday covers a 5-mile area […]
Three nominees for Amtrak board advance to full Senate
WASHINGTON — The Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation on Wednesday approved three nominations for the Amtrak Board of Directors, advancing those nominations to the full Senate for approval and ending a deadlock that has seen board members with long-expired terms continuing to serve, pending the approval of new nominees. The news site Roll […]
Charlotte commuter rail proposal revived by Norfolk Southern willingness to discuss deal
CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Norfolk Southern has revived hopes for a long-stalled commuter rail line between Charlotte and communities in the Lake Norman area by indicating its willingness to “consider … a possible transaction” over the NS line that would be a necessary part of the route north of the city — a change from the […]
News photo: Metra SD70MACH makes test run
RIVER GROVE, Ill. — Metra has recently accelerated testing of its SD70MACH locomotives, with the first test run with one of the remanufactured units leading a train taking place earlier this week. Unit No. 509, accompanied by F59PH No. 99, is shown at River Grove on Tuesday, Oct. 17, on a test run that took […]
B&O Railroad Museum schedules move of American Freedom Train locomotive
BALTIMORE — The B&O Railroad Museum has announced plans to begin cosmetic restoration of Reading Co. 4-8-4 No. 2101 — maintained in the museum’s collection as American Freedom Train No. 1 for the role the locomotive played during the Freedom Train’s 1975-76 tour — and will begin that process by moving the locomotive from its […]
Hydrogen fuel conversion planned for Irish EMD-built locomotive
Irish national rail company Iarnród Éireann (IÉ) has announced plans to convert one of its EMD-built locomotives to burn hydrogen instead of diesel fuel. IÉ is working in partnership with Latvian rail engineering firm DIGAS to test the use of a hydrogen-fueled internal combustion engine in an existing Class 071 diesel freight locomotive. Since earlier […]
South Dakota board backs six infrastructure projects for federal grants
PIERRE, S.D. — The South Dakota Railroad Board will support six of the eight projects which have applied for Federal Railroad Administration infrastructure grants, KELO-TV reports. Some $58.9 million is available for projects in the state under the Special Transportation Circumstances program, for states that lack intercity passenger service or are not connected to the […]
Amtrak to implement two-tier fare structure: Analysis
WASHINGTON — Amtrak announced today (Wednesday, Oct. 18) that it will be “soon” be reducing its fare categories from three to two, although details and effective dates have not been revealed. The bottom-tier and most-restrictive “Saver” fares are being eliminated, and the other two categories — “Value” and “Flexible” — are being redefined to allow […]
Southbound lanes of I-25 reopen in Colorado after derailment
PUEBLO, Colo. — Southbound lanes of Interstate 25 reopened this afternoon (Wednesday, Oct. 18) at the site of Sunday’s derailment and fatal bridge collapse involving a BNSF Railway coal train, the Colorado State Patrol reported on social media. Northbound lanes are expected to reopen Thursday Meanwhile, BNSF says the rail line at the site of […]
J.B. Hunt set a weekly intermodal volume record in September as traffic rebounds
LOWELL, Ark. – J.B. Hunt had its biggest intermodal volume week ever in September and demand remains strong this month in a potential indication that the intermodal doldrums are finally over. J.B. Hunt’s intermodal third-quarter volume entered positive territory for the first time in three quarters, executives said on the company’s earnings call on Tuesday. […]
Intermodal growth propels overall gain in weekly rail traffic, AAR says
WASHINGTON – Total U.S. weekly rail traffic eked out a 0.5% gain for the week ending Oct. 14, the Association of American Railroads reported today. Total carloads down 2% compared with the same week in 2022, while U.S. weekly intermodal volume was up 2.8% compared to a year ago. Six of the 10 carload commodity […]