FORT WORTH, Texas — BNSF Railway has made a founding donation of $2 million to the National Juneteenth Museum, the planned Fort Worth facility has announced. “BNSF is proud to partner with the National Juneteenth Museum to help honor American history and foster opportunities for economic and cultural growth, right near our headquarters here in […]
Zone & Region: Plains & Texas
Kansas short line projects receive almost $16.5 million in state funding
TOPEKA, Kan. — Seventeen short line rail expansion and rehabilitation projects in Kansas will receive almost $16.5 million in grants through the state Department of Transportation’s Rail Service Improvement Program, Gov. Laura Kelly announced Tuesday. Railroads and shippers are among the recipients. They will provide a 30% match to the state funding, resulting in total […]
Nebraska bill would limit train lengths, require wayside detectors
LINCOLN, Neb. — Less than two weeks after the Nebraska legislature killed a bill to require two-person train crews, a legislative committee has heard testimony on another rail regulation bill, this one including limits on train length. The unicameral legislature’s Transportation and Telecommunications Committee on Tuesday heard testimony on LB1212, introduced by Sen. Lynne Walz […]
BNSF intermodal train derails in south central Kansas
HAZELTON, Kan. — Seventeen cars of a BNSF intermodal train derailed early this morning (Monday, Feb. 12) east of Hazelton on the railroad’s Southern Transcon, KWNS-TV reports. Officials from Barber County Emergency Management told the station no hazardous materials were involved. BNSF told KWNS in a statement that the crew was not injured in the […]
BNSF coal train derails in Nebraska
CAIRO, Neb. — Three locomotives and 57 cars of a BNSF coal train derailed early this morning (Friday, Feb. 9) near Cairo, News Channel Nebraska reports. No injuries were reported in the incident about 4:45 a.m. along State Route 2, which blocked crossings in a 3-mile stretch from High Street in Cairo to 110th Road southeast […]
North Dakota Supreme Court upholds dismissal of suit over BNSF Bismarck bridge
BISMARCK, N.D. — The North Dakota Supreme Court has rebuffed a preservation group’s latest legal effort to block demolition of BNSF’s Bismarck-Mandan Rail Bridge, upholding a lower court’s dismissal of a suit by Friends of the Rail Bridge on technical grounds. The Fargo Forum reports that the court’s five justices, in a decision released today […]
FRA shuts down Oklahoma short line
WASHINGTON — The Federal Railroad Administration has issued an emergency order shutting down the Blackwell Northern Gateway Railroad, a 37-mile, Class III short line in Oklahoma, saying the railroad is “operating with a complete disregard for the safety of the public and has not taken corrective action to resolve safety issues … posing imminent risks […]
Filibuster kills Nebraska bill to require two-person train crews
LINCOLN, Neb. — A filibuster has halted the Nebraska Legislature’s consideration of a proposal requiring two-person train crews within the state, the news site Nebraska Examiner reports. The filibuster, carried out over parts of three days, stalled the bill when a Friday vote was unable to obtain the 33 votes needed to invoke cloture, the […]
CPKC announces schedule for 2816’s ‘Final Spike Anniversary Steam Tour’
CALGARY, Alberta — Canadian Pacific Kansas City will launch the “Final Spike Anniversary Steam Tour,” featuring 4-6-4 No. 2816 on a Canada-to-Mexico trip to celebrate last year’s Canadian Pacific-Kansas City Southern merger, on April 24 at its headquarters in Calgary. A total of 11 stops are planned for the tour, concluding June 4 in Mexico […]
JB Hunt elects former KCS President and CEO Patrick Ottensmeyer as new board member
LOWELL, Ark. — J.B. Hunt Transport Services Inc. announced the addition of Patrick Ottensmeyer to its board of directors. Effective Jan. 12, 2024, the former Kansas City Southern CEO will serve on the board’s Compensation Committee and Nominating and Governance Committee, according to a recent news release. Beginning in 2006, Ottensmeyer held multiple leadership roles […]
NTSB releases final report on Texas switching fatality
WASHINGTON — A conductor entered the “red zone” where there was an increased likelihood of being struck by equipment, and an engineer did not follow operating procedures to stop his train after failing to hear instructions from the conductor, the National Transportation Safety Board said in determining the probable cause of the fatal Oct. 28, […]
Train time at Canton, S.Dak.
The Milwaukee Road’s station at Canton in the southeast corner of South Dakota is bustling with activity as cars off the Midwest Hiawatha from Chicago are switched into the Sioux Falls section of the Sioux. The year is about 1944; note the sign on the depot: “Canteen. Service men and wives only.” Henry J. McCord […]