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Canadian National’s busy main line through the rugged Thompson and Fraser river canyons, which was damaged by a June 30 wildfire that leveled the town of Lytton, British Columbia, is scheduled to reopen this evening (Tuesday, July 13). “In coordination with local authorities and First Nations, CN staff have inspected the area and carried out […]
LAKE GENEVA, Wis. – Surface Transportation Board Chairman Martin J. Oberman fully supports the White House’s call for more competition in the rail industry and questions whether Class I railroads are shirking their obligations as common carriers due to pressure from Wall Street. Oberman, addressing the Midwest Association of Rail Shippers today, said the Biden administration’s […]
PETALUMA, Calif. — As of Monday, Sonoma-Marin Area Rail Transit is also a freight railroad. The 45-mile, 12-station commuter railroad north of San Francisco on Monday took over the freight operations that had previously been handled by Northwestern Pacific. The Marin Independent Journal reports the move received final approval from the Surface Transportation Board on […]
WEED, Calif. — Union Pacific’s main line linking the Pacific Northwest and California — its Interstate 5 corridor — is likely to remain closed until at least Sept. 1 as a result of the wildfire that destroyed the massive Dry Canyon Bridge in Northern California along with 9 miles of right-of-way. The railroad informed customers […]
WASHINGTON — Amtrak and shipper groups have welcomed the executive order from President Joe Biden which seeks to increase competition among railroads. Biden signed the order on Friday, drawing criticism from the Association of American Railroads and some individual Class 1 roads [see “Biden executive order prods STB …,” Trains News Wire, July 9, 2021]. […]
LYTTON, B.C. — The Transportation Safety Board of Canada, citing information from two other agencies, says it is investigating the possibility a freight train caused the fire which destroyed most of the town of Lytton, killing two people. Meanwhile, Transport Canada on Sunday announced new measures to address wildfire risks. The Canadian Press reports the […]
CALGARY, Alberta — A coupler failure led to a string of cars rolling uncontrolled in a Canadian Pacific yard in Calgary and hitting a group of stationary cars, causing a 22-car derailment, the Transportation Safety Board of Canada determined in its investigation of the January 2019 incident. According to the TSB’s summary of the incident, […]
Collection elevator This small collection elevator near Bayneville, Kans., typical of the thousands of wooden country elevators that were once common across the Midwest and West, is loading a boxcar, while two trucks wait with incoming wheat at the start of the grain rush in June 1952. The small elevator isn’t as wide as the […]
WASHINGTON – President Joe Biden signed an executive order Friday afternoon that encourages the Surface Transportation Board to adopt rail regulatory reforms that shippers have long sought to promote competition. Among the potential changes sure to rile freight railroads: Rules that would permit reciprocal switching for captive shippers and removal of so-called bottleneck restrictions that […]
OTTAWA, Ontario — The Canadian government has shut down Canadian National and Canadian Pacific operations through the area hit by a wildfire that devastated the town of Lytton, British Columbia. An order issued by Transportation Minister Omar Alghabra, effective as of 12:01 a.m. PDT today, required both railroads to halt train movements except for emergency […]
PALESTINE, Texas — A Texas judge has again ruled that Union Pacific must continue employment of workers at its Palestine, Texas, car shop, which the railroad had planned to close last month. The Palestine Herald-Press reports Judge Michael Davis of the 369th Judicial District Court in Rusk, Texas, must continue to observe a 1955 judgment […]
KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Kansas City Southern was indeed the pretty girl at the dance. KCS was pursued by at least two other suitors besides Canadian Pacific and Canadian National – including an unnamed Class I system that was interested in acquiring only part of the cross-border railroad — during the lengthy process leading to […]
