SMART-TD president questions whether emergency board’s recommendations are enough to retain, attract rail workers

Mean standing near railroad tracks as train approaches

Presidential Emergency Board recommendations for a new rail labor contract are a “vast improvement” over offers from the railroads, the president of a major rail union says, but “do not go far enough” in addressing quality-of-life issues. Jeremy R. Ferguson, president of the Sheet Metal, Air, Rail, and Transportation-Transportation Division, said in a statement Thursday […]

Read More…

CN, energy firm Keyera to look at new terminal in Alberta

Canadian National logo

CALGARY — Canadian National and oil and gas service and transportation firm Keyera will evaluate development of a new terminal to ship conventional and clean energy in Alberta’s “industrial heartland,” the companies announced Wednesday. The facility would be on adjoining land belonging to CN and Keyera and would provide a single terminal to transport energy […]

Read More…

Iowa town turns down CP offer to address increased rail traffic

Red locomotive with gondola cars

CAMANCHE, Iowa — The city of Camanche has rejected an offer for $200,000 from Canadian Pacific to mitigate the impact of the pending CP-Kansas City Southern deal, with Mayor Austin Pruett telling KWQC-TV the offer is “very offensive.” The funds would have addressed closing two of the seven grade crossings in the community of 4,570, […]

Read More…

Reading & Northern 2102 to handle freight train on Friday

Steam locomotive pulling freight cars rounds curve

PORT CLINTON, Pa. — This is turning out to be the summer of steam on Pennsylvania’s Reading & Northern Railroad. Less than a week after a spectacular doubleheaded public excursion [see “News photos: Doubleheaded ‘Iron Horse Ramble’ …,” Trains News Wire, Aug. 14, 2022], the railroad’s Passenger Department has posted on social media that R&N […]

Read More…

Ohio Supreme Court strikes down blocked-crossing law

Seal of the Ohio Supreme Court

COLUMBUS, Ohio — The Ohio Supreme Court has struck down a state law prohibiting stopped trains from blocking railroad crossings, citing federal jurisdiction in regulation of railroads. The Cincinnati Enquirer reports that in a ruling issued Wednesday, the opinion by Justice Sharon Kennedy acknowledged “the significant danger to the public” created when trains obstruct the […]

Read More…

BNSF intermodal train derails in Texas (updated)

BNSF Railway logo

HEREFORD, Texas — Seventeen cars of a BNSF Railway intermodal train derailed early Wednesday morning on the railroad’s Southern Transcon near the town of Hereford, the Amarillo Globe-News reports. The derailment occurred about 5 a.m. on the Hereford Subdivision, between the towns of Dawn and Hereford, about 45 miles southwest of Amarillo. No injuries were […]

Read More…

Weekly U.S. rail traffic down slightly from 2021

Weekly table showing U.S. carload traffic by commodity type, plus intermodal totals

WASHINGTON — Weekly U.S. rail traffic remains below 2021 levels, albeit only by a slight margin for the week ending Aug. 13, according to the latest statistics from the Association of American Railroads. For the week, U.S. Class I railroads moved 502,775 carloads and intermodal units, down 0.3% from the same week in 2021. That […]

Read More…

Presidential board recommendations a ‘useful basis’ for labor agreement, AAR says (2nd update)

Man in orange vest climbing onto black locomotive

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Presidential Emergency Board recommendations for ending the current railroad labor dispute “provide a useful basis to reach a resolution” although they “markedly exceed the rail carriers’ proposal,” Association of American Railroads CEO Ian Jefferies says in a statement issued this morning (Wednesday, Aug. 17). The group representing railroads in the long-running negotiations, […]

Read More…

Presidential Emergency Board issues rail contract recommendations meant to avert strike

Man climbing on front steps of orange locomotive

WASHINGTON — The Presidential Emergency Board charged with making recommendations to resolve the longstanding contract differences between the U.S. Class I railroads and their unionized workforce today submitted its report to the White House, railroads, and organized labor. The board recommended a 22% wage increase, along with $5,000 in service recognition bonus payments, over the […]

Read More…

Union Pacific operations recovery continues as crew ranks rise

Yellow locomotives leading train of double-stacked containers over bridge

OMAHA, Neb. — Union Pacific’s operations are recovering as more conductors graduate from training classes and are deployed in revenue service, executives said at an investor conference today. UP’s traffic is up 2% in the quarter to date, but would be higher if not for ongoing service problems related to crew shortages, particularly on the […]

Read More…

CP-KCS deal receives government clearance for foreign investment

Logos for Canadian Pacific and Kansas City Southern

CALGARY — The proposed Canadian Pacific-Kansas City Southern merger has received regulatory clearance from the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States, CP has announced. The interagency committee reviews business moves and some real estate transactions involving foreign companies or individuals to determine the potential national security impact of those transactions. More information about […]

Read More…

European proposal to change rail gauge in Finland causes debate

Green and white electric locomotive pulling freight cars

Politicians in Finland have spoken out against a European Union (EU) proposal that would see Finland’s 5-foot gauge (1524mm) rail network at least partly rebuilt to standard gauge, or most likely dual 5foot/standard gauge, although some politicians and business organizations support the idea. Finland’s use of 5-foot gauge reflects its history as part of the […]

Read More…