WASHINGTON — Federal regulators have scheduled a May hearing on Class I railroads’ higher demurrage and accessorial charges, which can hit shippers who don’t load or unload freight cars quickly enough. The May 22 hearing, which the Surface Transportation Board announced on Wednesday, comes as shippers are complaining about the charges that have become more […]
Train Topic: Railroad Operations
Weather taking a toll on rail traffic, but economic factors are in play, too NEWSWIRE
The spate of harsh winter weather and flooding that has wreaked havoc with operations on BNSF Railway and Union Pacific has helped submerge traffic volumes, too. UP’s carload traffic fell 12 percent in the week ending March 16, while intermodal volume was down 9 percent, amid record flooding in Nebraska and a rock slide and […]
Man in a hurry
Making 90 mph on an E7, a Chicago, Burlington & Quincy road foreman of engines whistles for a grade crossing east of La Crosse, Wis., in July 1955. W. A. Akin Jr. photo […]
AAR: Carload traffic declines; crude oil, motor vehicles moves rise NEWSWIRE
Association of American Railroads WASHINGTON — The Association of American Railroads today reported U.S. rail traffic for the week ending March 16. For this week, total U.S. weekly rail traffic was 501,001 carloads and intermodal units, down 6.8 percent compared with the same week last year. Total carloads for the week ending March 16 were […]
Indiana politicians on blocked crossing commission opt for act of Congress NEWSWIRE
CHICAGO — Indiana residents frustrated by train-blocked grade crossings must wonder if it will take an act of Congress to clear their commutes. Fed up with the failure of state laws and federal bureaucracy to carry freight with the railroads, local politicians are aiming to do just that. Officials at a Monday meeting of the […]
Canadian union backs government handbrake rule under appeal by railroads NEWSWIRE
OTTAWA — Days after Canada’s two Class 1 railroads announced they would appeal a government order requiring the use of handbrakes on trains stopped on mountains grades, one of the county’s largest unions says it’s standing by the Crown. Last month, Transport Canada announced a new rule requiring the application of handbrakes on trains in mountainous […]
UP updates customers on Midwest weather woes NEWSWIRE
OMAHA, Neb. – Union Pacific has issued the following customer service advisory following a week of extreme weather in the Midwest. The troubles essentially close the railroad’s main line between Boone, Iowa, and Gibbon, Neb., a source close to the railroad tells Trains News Wire. Announcement Number: CN2019-13 Categories: General Announcements Posted Date: March 14, […]
Switch heaters
A northbound BNSF coal train passes Coal Creek Junction, Wyo., in July 2008. Steve Glischinski Q The picture on page 42 of the March 2016 issue shows some interesting trackside equipment. It looks like they could be switch heater propane tanks, however, I don’t see any switches. – Bruce Bussert, Saratoga Springs, N.Y. A The […]
AAR: Most commodities carloads decline for the week of March 9 NEWSWIRE
Association of American Railroads Association of American Railroads WASHINGTON — The Association of American Railroads today reported U.S. rail traffic for the week ending March 9. For this week, total U.S. weekly rail traffic was 508,958 carloads and intermodal units, down 4.7 percent compared with the same week last year. Total carloads for the week […]
CSX Transportation management turnover gives analysts reason for concern NEWSWIRE
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — One of the things CSX Transportation aimed to accomplish at its investor day a year ago was to showcase its next generation of leadership and calm investor concerns after the death of CEO E. Hunter Harrison. Wall Street analysts reacted positively to the seven vice presidents and senior vice presidents who talked […]
House committee’s goal: Infrastructure bill by May NEWSWIRE
WASHINGTON — Members of the U.S. House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, speaking on a panel this morning as part of the National League of Cities congressional conference, say they are aiming to complete an infrastructure bill by May. “I know May is probably a little ambitious, but that’s our goal,” says Rep. Rodney Davis, R-Ill., […]
CP, CN to appeal Canadian government rule on use of handbrakes NEWSWIRE
CALGARY, Alberta — Canadian Pacific and Canadian National will appeal an order by the Canadian government requiring the use of handbrakes when trains stop on mountain grades, an order issued in the wake of a fatal CP accident in February. In a press release issued Friday, CP President and CEO Keith Creel said the railroad […]