NORFOLK, Va. — Norfolk Southern has issued customer advisories informing shippers of delays because of two derailments on its system. On Wednesday, the railroad reported a derailment near Meridian, Miss., would lead to delays of at least 24 hours on several routes, including its Meridian Speedway interchange with Kansas City Southern, Union Pacific interchange traffic, […]
Type of Train: Freight
Weekly rail traffic shows intermodal drop, but carloads lead to slight overall increase
WASHINGTON — Intermodal traffic slipped below same-week levels for 2020 in the latest statistics from the Association of American Railroads, as Class I railroads continue to deal with congestion in the international supply chain. U.S. railroads moved 269,799 trailers and containers for the week ending Aug. 14, a 3% decrease from the figure for the […]
Grain, the old-fashioned way
Grain, the old-fashioned way Through the end of the 1800s, a lot of grain was shipped in 100-pound sacks. Here, workers load grain sacks into wood boxcars in Minneapolis around 1900. Minneapolis Public Library collection […]
BNSF reopens Arkansas intermodal facility to address Memphis-area demand
FORT WORTH, Texas — BNSF Railway has reopened its Harvard Intermodal Facility in Marion, Ark., to address Memphis-area demand and increase capacity. In a press release, the railroad reports international intermodal shipments originating at Pier T of the Port of Long Beach, Calif., will now terminate at the Harvard facility. The Harvard Intermodal Facility is […]
Savage, KCS partner on new Louisiana transload, storage facility
MOSSVILLE, La. — Infrastructure and supply-chain firm Savage and Kansas City Southern have announced they will build a transload and railcar storage facility on property leased from KCS’s Mossville, La., yard. Savage’s Mossville multi-commodity railport will help serve Lake Charles area refineries, chemical plants, and other businesses. “Savage has a longstanding relationship with KCS and we’re […]
Union Pacific says service is improving after wildfires closed routes in California
OMAHA, Neb. — It will take several more weeks for Union Pacific to fully recover from California wildfires that disrupted service on its I-5 and Feather River corridors. “Everyone here is focused on ensuring that we can get the system ramped back up,” says Eric Gehringer, UP’s executive vice president of operations. “It is not […]
Analysis: Louis Newton left his mark on Norfolk & Western and NS
Not many people get the opportunity to shape the history of a railroad and leave their fingerprints on its system map. But retired Norfolk Southern transportation planner Louis M. Newton, who died Friday at the age of 94, was among this elite group. Newton put his stamp on Norfolk & Western with a move that […]
Investigation determines rail failure caused 2019 CP derailment
EDMONTON, Alberta — An undetected rail defect led to a Canadian Pacific derailment in September 2019 that saw petroleum products spill from three tank cars, the Transportation Safety Board of Canada has determined. The Sept. 27, 2019 derailment near Blackfalds, Alberta — approximately 8.4 miles north of Red Deer and 88 miles south of Edmonton […]
News photo: Norfolk Southern derailment in Georgia
OCONEE, Ga. — An estimated 32 cars of a westbound Norfolk Southern freight train derailed early Monday morning in downtown Oconee, blocking a main street until further notice. The Washington County Sheriff’s Office reports the derailment occurred about 1 a.m., blocking Central Drive in Oconee, a community of 280 about 60 miles southwest of Augusta, […]
Western Pacific Railroad freight trains
All through August, Classic Trains editors are celebrating the grit, the glory, and the grandeur that was the Western Pacific Railroad. Please enjoy this photo gallery of images selected from Kalmbach Media’s David P. Morgan Library. Only from Classic Trains! […]
Norfolk Southern to reopen Pennsylvania intermodal terminal
NORFOLK, Va. — Norfolk Southern will reopen an intermodal facility in Greencastle, Pa., to increase terminal capacity and address the supply-chain congestion that is leading to container delays across the U.S. rail system, the railroad has announced. The Franklin County Regional Intermodal Facility, about 65 miles southwest of Harrisburg and 11 miles north of Hagerstown, […]
Shareholder advisory firms recommend KCS investors hold off on CN merger vote (updated)
KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Two influential shareholder advisory firms say that Kansas City Southern shareholders should abstain from voting on the Canadian National merger proposal until federal regulators make a key ruling. Institutional Shareholder Services and Glass Lewis, which advise large investment firms regarding proxy votes, have recommended that KCS shareholders abstain until after the […]