FRA makes safety recommendations for hotbox detector warnings

Black cloud of smoke above town

WASHINGTON – The Federal Railroad Administration today encouraged railroads to improve the way they collect and use data from wayside hotbox detectors in order to prevent catastrophic derailments like the Feb. 3 Norfolk Southern hazardous materials wreck in East Palestine, Ohio. “Preliminary investigation of recent train derailments indicates the cause of, or contributing factor to, […]

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Former Kansas City Southern CEO David Starling dies

Former Kansas City Southern CEO David Starling, who returned to the railway as its independent trustee as part of its proposed merger with Canadian Pacific, died on Feb. 24. Starling was 73. “On behalf of the entire Kansas City Southern family, we feel shock and profound sadness for the sudden loss of our former leader […]

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Class I railroads 101

Class I railroads Class I railroads: If you’re in your car watching a long 100-car freight train roll over a grade crossing, chances are good that the train belongs to one of the Class I systems. The Class Is operate 70% of the total track miles in the U.S., employ 73% of the labor force, […]

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CPKC offers plan to address traffic issues in Chicago-area suburbs

Passenger train passing wooden passenger station

WASHINGTON — As part of their merger, Canadian Pacific and Kansas City Southern will work with a group of Chicago-area communities on voluntary measures to address traffic concerns in those communities, the railroads say in the final Environmental Impact Statement released today (Friday, Jan. 27) by the Surface Transportation Board’s Office of Environmental Analysis. The […]

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Final environmental review finds few problems with Canadian Pacific-Kansas City Southern merger

Red locomotive leads multicolored locomotives in snow

WASHINGTON — The Canadian Pacific-Kansas City Southern merger would cause few adverse environmental impacts aside from increased train noise in some locations, the Surface Transportation Board said in its final environmental impact statement today. The three-volume environmental impact statement, or EIS, incorporates comments the STB received at public hearings along CP and KCS routes in […]

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EGR and SCR locomotive systems: What do they mean?

Blue and silver passenger locomotive

EGR and SCR locomotive systems EGR and SCR locomotive systems are just two ways locomotives meet U.S. Environmental Protection Agency emission regulations, specifically Tier 4, standards implemented for new locomotives built for service in the United States. The emission regulations are designed to reduce the amount of nitrous oxide, particulate matter, hydrocarbons, and carbon monoxide […]

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KCS, CN offers first looks at 2023 capital plans

Illustration of trains meeting on parallel bridges

BOCA RATON, Fla. — It is probably no surprise that, as Kansas City Southern’s north-south main line becomes a focal point in its pending merger with Canadian Pacific, that route is also front and center in its capital spending plans for 2023, as well. A number of capacity projects on that route figured in the […]

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