CSX taps former Ford Motor Co. executive as next CEO

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — CSX Transportation on Thursday named former Ford Motor Co. executive Joseph R. Hinrichs as its next chief executive officer. Hinrichs, 55, will succeed CEO Jim Foote, who will retire on Sept. 26. Hinrichs has more than 30 years’ experience in the global automotive, manufacturing, and energy sectors, previously serving as president of […]

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LA’s Metrolink prepares for cancellations, Metra updates plans in event of freight rail stoppage (updated)

Amtrak_Metrolink_Lassen

UPDATE: Railroads and unions have reached a tentative agreement as of early Thursday morning, averting a work stoppage. Watch Trains News Wire for more information. Los Angeles-area commuter rail operator Metrolink, which operates some of its trains on BNSF Railway and Union Pacific trackage, has informed customers that some operations will be suspended on Friday […]

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NJ Transit, online wagering site announce naming-rights deal

Detail of map showing route named "BetMGM Meadowlands Rail Line"

NEWARK, N.J. — NJ Transit announced Wednesday it had signed a three-year naming-rights agreement with Jersey City-based online wagering site BetMGM to rename the transit agency’s rail line to the station serving MetLife Stadium, home of the area’s two NFL teams, as the “BetMGM Meadowlands Rail Line.” NJ Transit did not announce the value of […]

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Patriot Rail completes acquisition of Pioneer Lines

Map of U.S. showing location of Patriot Rail short lines

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Patriot Rail Co. has completed its acquisition of Denver-based Pioneer Lines, nearly doubling the company’s short line operations. The transaction closed Wednesday following regulatory approval, Patriot said. It will expand the company from 16 to 31 railroads, with operations in 23 states. “We are pleased to bring Pioneer Lines railroads into Patriot […]

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Weekly U.S. rail traffic dips

Weekly table showing U.S. carload rail traffic by commodity type, plus overall intermodal traffic.

WASHINGTON — After a brief taste of positive numbers, weekly U.S. rail traffic slipped back below 2021 figures for the week ending Sept. 10. According to the latest statistics from the Association of American Railroads, total traffic for the week was 464,261 carloads and intermodal units, down 0.9% from the corresponding week in 2021. That […]

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Sanders blocks Senate resolution to impose rail settlement

Trains Washington Watch logo

WASHINGTON — An objection by Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) on Wednesday blocked a resolution offered by two Republican senators seeking to avert a rail work stoppage by imposing the recommendations made in August by a Presidential Emergency Board. The Capitol Hill website Roll Call reports Sens. Richard Burr (R-N.C.) and Roger Wicker (R-Miss.) had sought […]

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WMSR debuts Western Maryland-painted locomotive

Black locomotive with Western Maryland Railroad logos and lettering

CUMBERLAND, Md. — Western Maryland Scenic Railroad’s locomotive roster continues to diversify with the unveiling of a Western Maryland-painted GE B32-8, NIWX No. 558. The nearly 33-year-old General Electric four-axle Dash 8 locomotive now sports Western Maryland’s black-and-yellow fireball paint scheme. It arrived at the railroad earlier this year with former Norfolk Southern paint and […]

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Pullman-Standard 60-foot double-door auto parts boxcar

Model of green boxcar in front of white background

Pullman-Standard 60-foot double-door auto parts boxcar Scale: HO (1:87.1) Price: $34.98 ($29.98 undecorated) Era: 1960s to 2000s Manufacturer: Wm. K. Walthers Inc., 5601 W. Florist Ave., Milwaukee, WI 53218; 414-527-0770; walthers.com 60-foot Pullman-Standard double door auto parts boxcar features: Updated tooling with new car sides Based on cars with 10- and 6-foot doors 70-ton trucks […]

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CN CEO hopes railroads and labor can avert a strike

Train of hopper cars rounds curve

LAGUNA, Calif. — Canadian National CEO Tracy Robinson hopes U.S. railroads and their labor unions can reach a tentative contract deal and avoid a strike. “We need to fix this labor situation down here in the United States,” she told an investor conference on Wednesday. “And it’s a critical one for all of us … […]

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