FORT MYERS, Fla. — Florida’s Seminole Gulf Railway could be shut down for up to six months because of damage suffered from Hurricane Ian, the Tampa Bay Business Journal reports. Executive Vice President Robert Fay told the Business Journal the railroad had lost six bridges as a result of the storm, including three totaling 1,300 linear […]
Train Topic: Railroad Operations
Brightline to begin 110-mph testing north of West Palm Beach
ORLANDO, Fla. — For the first time, Brightline will begin test runs of passenger trains at 110 mph in preparation for its expansion of service to Orlando in 2023, the company has announced. Testing will occur on an 11-mile stretch of Martin and St. Lucie counties the week of Oct. 17 and is slated to […]
Train dispatchers ratify Class I railroad contract agreement
WASHINGTON — Train dispatchers today became the fourth union to ratify their contract agreement with the Class I railroads. The American Train Dispatchers Association, which represents 1,500 dispatchers, voted in favor of the deal by a 64%-36% margin, the union said in a statement. The agreement follows the recommendations of the Presidential Emergency Board, which […]
CP and KCS to make their case for merger in final day of STB hearings
WASHINGTON – Canadian Pacific and Kansas City Southern will make their closing arguments for their merger on Thursday, the sixth and final day of Surface Transportation Board hearings on the first Class I railroad combination in two decades. CP and KCS also will rebut criticism and comments from other railroads, state and local officials, and […]
Final segment of LIRR Third Track project opens
WESTBURY, N.Y. — The Long Island Rail Road opened the third and final segment of its Third Track project on Monday, completing the capacity expansion on 9.8 miles of its main line between Floral Park and Hicksville, N.Y. In a press conference in Westbury following a ceremonial ride from Hicksville with officials including Gov. Kathy […]
Orange County agency approves emergency repairs on rail line (updated)
SAN CLEMENTE, Calif. — State and Orange County officials have declared a state of emergency over the instability that has closed the rail line along the Pacific Coast in San Clemente, allowing them to approve $6 million in repairs, the San Diego Union-Tribune reports. Passenger and commuter rail service along the Surf Line could resume […]
CN releases 2022-23 Winter Plan
MONTREAL — Canadian National has published its 2022-23 Winter Plan, which outlines measures by the railroad to meet operating needs during winter weather as required by the Canada Transportation Act. The railroad says those measures include an increase of 850 employees between the start of 2022 and the end of June, with 500 additional conductors […]
STB gets an earful about KCS-NS Meridian Speedway joint venture
WASHINGTON – Surface Transportation Board members appear skeptical about CSX Transportation’s bid to force its way on to the Kansas City Southern-Norfolk Southern Meridian Speedway. The Meridian Speedway — which runs from Meridian, Miss., to Shreveport, La., — is the shortest, fastest route between the Southeast and Southwest. NS and KCS formed the Meridian Speedway […]
J.B. Hunt adding transload locations in Laredo, Pacific Northwest
LOWELL, Ark. — J.B. Hunt Transport Services will open new transload facilities to transfer cargo between international and domestic 53-foot containers in Seattle and Laredo, Texas, giving it facilities at four of the nation’s largest ocean ports as well as the largest land port of entry into the U.S. “The complexities of international shipping continue to […]
BNSF’s Truxton Flyover: improving traffic flows on Southern Transcon
BNSF’s Truxton Flyover project Truxton, Ariz., is not exactly one of the metropolitan centers of the American Southwest. “Population: very small,” says Craig Rasmussen, BNSF Railway assistant vice president, engineering services and structures. Officially, as of the 2020 census, 104 people live in the hamlet 42 miles northeast of Kingman, Ariz., on U.S. Route 66. […]
Class I railroads’ chemical carload growth continues amid economic uncertainty: Analysis
CHICAGO — U.S. Class I railroads continue hauling more chemicals than before, an area of growth even though higher interest rates are raising fears that the U.S. economy could begin contracting. Railroads’ diverse chemicals portfolio supports manufacturing, automotive, energy, and a hodgepodge of other industries, indicative that growth within this carload segment is generally a […]
MBTA needs an additional $1 billion for Orange, Red line improvements
BOSTON — The Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority needs another $1 billion to complete infrastructure improvements on its rapid-transit Orange and Red lines, the Boston Herald reports. That’s beyond the $1.6 billion already budgeted in its capital investment plan. While the agency recently completed a 30-day shutdown of the Orange Line to address pressing maintenance needs, […]