CSX touts Pan Am merger as STB questions competitive aspects of deal

Side-by-side photos of less- and more-maintained yard tracks

WASHINGTON — CSX Transportation executives touted their proposed acquisition of Pan Am Railways during a daylong Surface Transportation Board hearing Thursday, saying their deal to acquire the New England regional will significantly improve freight and passenger service. But board members questioned several aspects of the merger, including concerns surrounding the Pan Am Southern and CSX’s projections […]

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Federal court strikes down Oklahoma blocked-crossing law

Seal of the state of Oklahoma

OKLAHOMA CITY, Okla. — A federal appeals court has struck down a state law prohibiting railroads from blocking grade crossings for more than 10 minutes, the latest state effort to run afoul of the federal government’s authority to regulate rail carriers. The Oklahoman newspaper reports that the 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled earlier […]

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Metrorail 7000-series cars to be sidelined at least 90 days more

WMATA (DC Metro) logo

WASHINGTON — DC Metrorail’s 7000-series cars will remain sidelined for at least 90 days as experts seek the root cause of a problem with wheelsets that has kept the Kawasaki-built rapid transit equipment out of service since October. The website DCist reports Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority General Manager Paul Wiedefeld provided the update on […]

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AAR head sees ‘disconnect’ in potential rail regulations

Man with suit and red tie

LOMBARD, Ill. — Ian Jefferies, CEO of the Association of American Railroads, says he isn’t concerned by idea of a “dynamic” regulatory group at the U.S. Surface Transportation board. “The [STB] chairman, Marty Oberman, has made it clear that he has a new hearing room, and he wants to use it, and he likes open […]

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BNSF unions threaten strike over attendance policy (updated)

Logos for BLET, SMART-TD unions

CLEVELAND — Members of the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen and the Transportation Division of the International Association of Sheet Metal, Air, Rail, and Transportation union, who work for the BNSF Railway, initiated steps to go on strike following the railroad’s announcement of its so-called “Hi-Viz” attendance policy. Collectively, the unions represent more than […]

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BNSF and NS may seek trackage rights over KCS as part of CPKC merger

Train with two locomotives and hopper cars on track parallelling street

WASHINGTON – BNSF Railway and Norfolk Southern may both seek trackage rights over Kansas City Southern routes in order to preserve competition as part of the proposed Canadian Pacific-KCS merger. The railroads disclosed their intentions in regulatory filings posted today on the Surface Transportation Board website. The board’s deadline for such responsive applications is Feb. […]

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New NS president admits problems, promises solutions

Man speaking at conference

LOMBARD, Ill. — Alan Shaw introduced himself to the Midwest Association of Rail Shippers with a statement he clearly would have preferred to avoid. “We don’t have a good product right now,” Shaw said. “That’s unacceptable to me, that’s unacceptable for our employees, and it’s unacceptable to our customers,” continued the new president of Norfolk […]

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CP CEO makes case for intermodal service from Mexican port

Man speaking at podium

LOMBARD, Ill. — Mexico’s port of Lazaro Cardenas will become a significant option in addressing congestion at U.S. West Coast ports and a “necessary” addition to the intermodal supply chain under the Canadian Pacific-Kansas City Southern merger, CP CEO Keith Creel contends. Creel and KCS CEO Patrick Ottensmeyer, appearing jointly at the Midwest Association of […]

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Amtrak, PennDOT open new Keystone Corridor station at Middletown, Pa.

Passenger train led by cab car at new station

MIDDLETOWN, Pa. — After delays of more than a dozen years, Amtrak and the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation on Monday (Jan. 10) opened a $24.5 million station at Middletown, on the passenger railroad’s Keystone Corridor. With a population of about 9,500 people, Middletown stands 10 miles east of the state capital of Harrisburg, the western […]

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