LEE’S SUMMIT, Mo. — Missouri River Runner service has been canceled today, the second day of cancellations because of a Union Pacific derailment early Sunday near Kansas City, according to the Amtrak Alerts feed on social media site X.
The through Lincoln Service/Missouri River Runner trains that operate between Chicago and Kansas City are originating or terminating in St. Louis. Substitute bus transportation is being provided for trains 311, 316, 318, and 319 between St. Louis and Kansas City.
The engineer and conductor were injured in a Sunday derailment of locomotives and up to 20 cars of a 144-car UP train in Lee’s Summit, Mo., on Sunday [see “Crew members injured …,” Trains News Wire, April 28, 2024].
One of my thoughts is wondering what effect these many derailments have on the freight car supply. Plus the actual bottom line cost to the roads to replace cars and reimburse shippers for all the damages and delays.
When shipping cars across the ocean, just a malfunctioning ballast tank which causes the ship to list will create a claim that all the cars onboard are damaged and must be covered.
This happened to Mazda and the insurance company set up a disposal center for all of the cars to remove oil, A/C and most important the air bag. 80% of the cars had no physical damage, none, but insurance demanded none of the cars be sold, but disposed.
What about auto racks (I see some in the derail photo)? Is every car in the racks that derailed listed as a loss? Who pays, shippers insurance, railroad insurance?
If the shippers pay for the insurance, then I would think they would take the premiums bump and look for a cheaper option. Or passed along to the auto makers “destination fee”.
If the railroad pays for the coverage, the loss probably doesn’t even meet the deductible for such a large firm. For grain or bulk liquids, the materials can be transferred to another hopper/tank.
This is why I ask who is bearing the largest amount of cost when these derails go down.
Still would like to see some statistical analysis for root cause of these derail events. Bad trucks, flat wheels, broken or misaligned rail, improper load bearing, car age, etc. (all or none)
Where are the AAR reports on this? When does it stop being a rounding error and insurance companies start to really put the heat on railroads?
Are the losses that small (relatively speaking?) Auto insurance rates are going up because they total cars for a scratched bumper, yet I don’t hear any complaining about the losses on rail coverage or the raising on rates to the Class 1’s.
Would love to see an article about how this works.