WASHINGTON — The Surface Transportation Board has asked parties involved in the upcoming hearing on Amtrak Gulf Coast service to be prepared to report on a meeting with the U.S. Coast Guard over drawbridge operations on the route, as well as several other issues, at the hearing scheduled for April 4. In a decision issued […]
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MONTREAL — Without fanfare, VIA Rail Canada this week began allowing passengers on the Canadian and other trains to again sit under glass in dome car seats and have access to onboard lounge facilities. Both had been off limits as a result of health restrictions imposed by the carrier and various provinces since March 2020. […]
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SAN BRUNO, Calif. — National Transportation Safety Board officials say they will be trying to determine why positive train control didn’t prevent the accident as part of their investigation of the March 10 collision and fire involving a Caltrain commuter train. Thirteen people were reported injured after the train struck on-track equipment involved in the […]
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Canadian Pacific trains were involved in two derailments on Saturday, one in Saskatchewan and one in Minnesota. An unknown number of cars were involved in the derailment of a train carrying corn near Drinkwater, Sask., but at least 20 cars are visible on their sides or otherwise off the track in a video posted to […]
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NEW YORK — East Coast ports are handling a record number of containers due to ongoing supply chain issues in California and the West, but railroads aren’t seeing this equate to more intermodal volume for a number of reasons. First, rail doesn’t have the same international intermodal market share in the East as it does […]
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WASHINGTON — Railroad Workers United, which describes itself as “an inter-union, cross-craft solidarity caucus of railroad workers and their supporters,” has expressed its support for Amtrak’s efforts to launch service on the Gulf Coast — while taking more than a few shots at CSX and other Class I railroads. In a statement filed with the […]
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CHICAGO — In a brief ceremony in Chicago, Amtrak CEO Stephen Gardner has recognized Canadian Pacific for its sixth straight year with the industry-leading A grade on the passenger carrier’s annual Host Railroad Report Card. The report card measures the freight railroads’ performance in keeping Amtrak trains on time. Gardner presented a plaque commemorating the […]
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MONTREAL — The Canadian government will seek “world-class knowledge and private sector expertise” for VIA Rail Canada’s proposal to build passenger-only trackage for parts of its Quebec City-Toronto corridor rather than directly financing the project, Transport Minister Omar Alghabra announced Wednesday. Proposal dates to 2015 First unveiled by then-VIA CEO Yves Desjardins-Siciliano in 2015, the […]
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LA CROSSE, Wis. — Departments of Transportation in Wisconsin and Minnesota will receive a $31.8 million grant for infrastructure upgrades to allow a second Twin Cities-Chicago passenger train, as well as improved freight operation, on the route through La Crosse, Wis., and Milwaukee. Federal Railroad Administration Administrator Amit Bose, Amtrak CEO Stephen Gardner, and officials […]
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HARRISBURG, Pa. — Re-laying a third track on the historic Rockville Bridge over the Susquehanna River and building a new 5-mile-long main line track through the Altoona, Pa., yard are part of a proposed Norfolk Southern-Pennsylvania Department of Transportation plan to add a second Pennsylvanian daily passenger train. In addition, the plan would install three […]
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CHICAGO — In a preview of operations planned if their merger is approved, Canadian Pacific and Kansas City Southern have launched interline intermodal service between Mexico’s port of Lázaro Cárdenas and Chicago. The first train arrived at CP’s Bensenville Yard in Illinois on Tuesday. CP said in a press release the service was launched “out […]
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WASHINGTON — A combination of Precision Scheduled Railroading and pressure from Wall Street has prompted railroads to slash costs and raise rates while providing less reliable service, rail shippers and labor told Congress on Tuesday. The House Transportation & Infrastructure subcommittee hearing was focused on the reauthorization of the Surface Transportation Board and how the […]
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