Terminal dwell is (mostly) down across Class I railroads as service recovery continues

Container train with orange locomotives

CHICAGO — Remarks from top railroad officials during the most recent round of earnings calls have been encouraging and analysts, without direct ties to railroads, agree. With railroads reporting its weekly performance to the Surface Transportation Board, the numbers don’t lie. As 2025 arrives, railroads have showed improvements to terminal dwell, and train speeds are […]

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Engineers’ union ratifies Berkshire & Eastern contract

Logo of Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen union

INDEPENDENCE, Ohio — Members of the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen have ratified a five-year contract with Genesee & Wyoming’s Berkshire & Eastern Railroad, the union announced this week. The contract, ratified unanimously, includes wage increases totally 22.5% over the life of the contract: 5% at signing, 5% in 2025, 4% in 2026, 4% […]

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Following court ruling, Manhattan congestion pricing set to begin

Map of Lower Manhattan

NEW YORK — Manhattan’s congestion pricing program is set to begin Sunday, Jan. 5,  following a ruling by a federal court judge in New Jersey — although the parties on either side of the lawsuit involved disagree whether the ruling allows that to happen. The congestion pricing plan, which will charge a $9 toll for […]

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Canadian Pacific E8 with the Alouette

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CP owned just three E units: E8’s 1800–1802, the only E units purchased by a non-U.S. railroad. Less than a month old, No. 1800 leads the Boston–Montreal Alouette out of Woodsville, N.H., and across the Connecticut River into Vermont on December 30, 1949. Philip R. Hastings photo […]

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News Wire’s stories of the year, 2018-2024

Train with black locomotives with steel mill as backdrop

Welcome to a new year. As we wait to find out what 2025 has in store for us, here’s one final look at our top stories of 2024, as well as a review of previous top stories, to give this year’s events some context. Norfolk Southern ends up in the top spot for the second […]

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News Wire recommended reading

Short passenger train on single track surrounded by trees

Trains News Wire’s occasional roundup of noteworthy articles is back for your New Year’s Day enlightment, this time with three recent stories on commuter and passenger rail: — The news site MinnPost looks at Amtrak’s Borealis and barriers to further service; even adding another car to the consist would require negotations. — The Boston Globe […]

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Delray Beach fire chief says department will ‘learn and grow’ from train collision

Image of fire truck on grade crossing from locomotive

DELRAY BEACH, Fla. — The fire chief in Delray Beach has pledged that the collision between one of the city’s fire trucks and a Brightline passenger train will be “a moment from which we will learn and grow.” In a post today (Dec. 31, 2024) on the Delray Beach Fire Rescue Facebook page, Fire Chief […]

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Nancy L. Bartol, longtime Trains staffer, dies at 83

Head shot of woman with glasses in red sweater

OSHKOSH, Wis. — Nancy L. Bartol, a longtime member of the Trains magazine editorial staff and later Kalmbach Publishing Co.’s librarian, died Dec. 29 at age 83. With 43 years at Kalmbach, she was one of the longest-tenured employees in the company’s history, most of her career reporting directly to Trains Editor David P. Morgan. […]

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‘One CSX’ locomotive unveiled by railroad

Nose view of blue locomotive with One CSX lettering

WAYCROSS, Ga. — CSX has introduced a new specially painted locomotive commemorating its “One CSX” initiative to recognize and involve the railroad’s employees. As with the railroad’s fleet of heritage locomotives, the newly painted unit — SD70MAC No. 4720 — was unveiled by CEO Joe Hinrichs in a posted on the business social media site […]

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News Wire top stories of 2024, No. 1: Turmoil at Norfolk Southern

Front view of black locomotive entering curve

For Norfolk Southern, 2024 was the second turbulent year in a row that the railroad probably would like to forget. As the year began, NS executives held private meetings with a Cleveland-based activist investor that sought seats on the company’s board and wanted the railroad to improve its lagging financial performance in the wake of […]

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CPKC train derails in eastern North Dakota

CPKC logo

CUBA, N.D. — No injuries were reported when 17 cars of a Canadian Pacific Kansas City train derailed Monday (Dec. 30, 2024) near the town of Cuba. The derailment occurred just before noon. Barnes County Emergency Manager Jessica Jenrich told KFGO Radio that the cars involved were either empty or carrying sand. Cuba is about […]

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