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Pandemic-related economic upheaval tangled the global supply chain in 2021, leading to unprecedented congestion at ports and intermodal terminals. At the onset of the pandemic, imports were reduced to a trickle because Chinese factories shut down. American consumers shifted their spending from experiences to goods, which increased demand and depleted retail inventories to historically low […]
WASHINGTON — The Surface Transportation Board has released details on its previously announced hearing on proposed reciprocal switching regulations, to be held March 15-16. The hearing will begin at 9:30 a.m. each day at the board’s headquarters in Washington, and will be streamed online on the board website. The board will announce no later than […]
WASHINGTON — In filings that maintain if not elevate the level of acrimony between the two sides, CSX and Norfolk Southern have attacked almost every aspect of Amtrak’s response to their initial argument in the dispute over Gulf Coast passenger service that is before the Surface Transportation Board. The main document filed by the two […]
MOBILE, Ala. — Amtrak’s intention to begin two daily round trips between New Orleans and Mobile in 2022 has led to a Surface Transportation Board proceeding likely to determine the rights and obligations of host railroads in granting access over routes that currently don’t have passenger service. The case before the STB grows out of […]
At the onset of the pandemic in 2020, Class I railroads furloughed train crews as volume sank at its fastest rate ever. When volume rebounded, crew members were not called back to work at the same rate as traffic returned because railroads were moving their tonnage on fewer but longer trains. Then three things happened […]
ATLANTA — Norfolk Southern has introduced an incentive program to improve container movement in and out of international intermodal facilities in Chicago and Kansas City, Mo. The “Dual Mission Reward Program” offers truck carriers and steamship lines a $200 incentive every time a drayage driver both delivers and departs with a shipping container, completing what […]
Precision Scheduled Railroading has become a target for members of Congress, federal regulators, shippers, and rail labor. Hunter Harrison’s low-cost operating model — in place on all of the Class I railroads except BNSF Railway — has come under criticism as rail traffic has rebounded from pandemic lows. Intermodal terminals faced monumental congestion this summer. […]
SYCAMORE, Ga. — Some 14 cars of a Norfolk Southern intermodal train derailed Friday near Sycamore, closing an adjacent highway. No injuries were reported and no hazardous materials were involved. Turner County Fire/Emergency Management Agency reported U.S. 41 had been blocked by the derailment, which occurred about 7:30 a.m. Friday. Part of the route was […]
Q: What is dynamic braking on trains? – Mark Kroll A: Unlike a typical diesel-powered car or truck, a diesel locomotive doesn’t have a direct mechanical linkage between its diesel engine and its wheels. These locomotives are more properly called diesel-electrics. Rather than turning a driveshaft that drives the wheels, the engine (or “prime mover”) […]
Do railroad mergers live up to the hype? It’s a question that’s been rattling around in my head as federal regulators review the Canadian Pacific-Kansas City Southern merger, the first between Class I railroads in two decades. First, the projections. Within three years of the merger, Canadian Pacific Kansas City expects to gain 80,000 carloads […]
DAUPHIN, Pa. — A 27-year-old Kingsport, Tenn., man has been identified as the victim of a fatal accident on a Norfolk Southern project earlier this month. The Kingsport Times-News reports Kolton Parker Helbert, an employee of National Salvage & Service Corp., was killed in the Dec. 8 accident. National Salvage provides demolition and dismantlement services. […]
LAKE OSWEGO, Ore. — Railcar manufacturer The Greenbrier Companies has joined the Rail Pulse coalition, becoming the first company beyond the five founding members to join the effort to develop GPS and telematic technology for railcar tracking and other applications. Norfolk Southern, Genesee & Wyoming, Watco, GATX Corp, and TrinityRail formed Rail Pulse in 2020. […]
