WASHINGTON — Coal sinking to record low volumes, lingering trade uncertainty, and a manufacturing slowdown are largely responsible for this year’s rail traffic slump, which is not as bad as it appears due to comparisons with an unusually robust 2018, Association of American Railroads economists said today. Nearly half of the overall drop in carload […]
Tag: Railroad Operations
AAR: Traffic down across the board compared to 2018 for the week of November 30 NEWSWIRE
Association of American Railroads WASHINGTON — The Association of American Railroads today reported U.S. rail traffic for the week ending Nov. 30, 2019, as well as volumes for November 2019. U.S. railroads originated 955,579 carloads in November 2019, down 7.5%, or 77,166 carloads, from November 2018. U.S. railroads also originated 1,019,766 containers and trailers in […]
CSX Transportation may limit line sales to those already on the block NEWSWIRE
Jim Foote, CSX Transportation CEO CSX Corp. PALM BEACH, Fla. — CSX Transportation may limit line sales to the routes that it currently has out to bid. “We’re going to be very, very, very careful before we would ever sell anything,” CEO Jim Foote told an investor conference on Tuesday. “We’re not interested in exiting […]
FRA looks to expand grade-crossing program NEWSWIRE
A Brightline train speeds across Atlantic Avenue in Delray Beach, Fla., in January 2019. The FRA is looking to expand a program to address grade-crossing accidents in Florida and the nine other states with the highest number of grade-crossing incidents, and to require other states to come up with new plans. TRAINS: David Lassen WASHINGTON […]
JB Hunt executives say railroads need to change pricing policies to help promote rail intermodal NEWSWIRE
NASHVILLE — Railroads need to change their pricing if J.B. Hunt is going to increase its intermodal business. “We always want to market and sell intermodal when that’s the best solution,” says Darren Field, J.B. Hunt executive vice president of the company’s intermodal operations, which provide more than half of Hunt’s revenue. J.B. Hunt in […]
AAR: Freight traffic for the week of Nov. 23 is significantly up compared to 2018 NEWSWIRE
Association of American Railroads WASHINGTON — The Association of American Railroads today reported U.S. rail traffic for the week ending Nov. 23, 2019. For this week, total U.S. weekly rail traffic was 521,927 carloads and intermodal units, up 10.6% compared with the same week last year. Total carloads for the week ending Nov. 23 were […]
UP sues to end employment provision in Texas town
PALESTINE, Texas — Union Pacific has filed suit to overturn a contract dating to 1872 that guarantees a certain number of jobs in Palestine, an east Texas community of 18,136 located 110 miles southwest of Dallas. The Palestine Herald-Press reports the suit, filed on Nov. 27, contends the contract should have been invalidated by a […]
CN launches post-strike ‘recovery plan’ NEWSWIRE
MONTREAL — Canadian National has announced it is implementing a “recovery plan” to respond to the traffic backlog created by an eight-day strike, Canada’s longest rail work stoppage in a decade — an effort that could include bringing back some recently laid-off workers. The railroad and Teamsters Canada Rail Conference, representing conductors, train persons, and […]
Electric trucks could be a jolt of bad news for railroad volumes NEWSWIRE
A website screen capture shows an artist’s rendering of an electric truck developed by automaker Tesla. Tesla website NEW YORK CITY — The most immediate threat to railroads is not autonomous trucking but electric powered trucks, which will arrive much sooner and will be significantly cheaper to operate than diesel rigs. That’s the conclusion of […]
Executives insist Precision Scheduled Railroading is about growth, not shrinking the railroad industry NEWSWIRE
E. Hunter Harrison Canadian Pacific NEW YORK CITY — CSX Transportation, Norfolk Southern, and Union Pacific executives insisted last week that Precision Scheduled Railroading is a formula for growth, not a way for the industry to cut its way to prosperity. The three railroads have stored thousands of locomotives and freight cars, idled yards, and […]
Legislator opposes Durbin’s “Fairness” Act NEWSWIRE
The Northbound Saluki speeds through Buckley, Ill., before the 60 mph restriction was imposed by CN. Bob Johnston CHAMPAIGN, Ill. – U. S. Rep Rodney Davis, R–Ill., says legislation proposed by U.S. Sen Dick Durbin, D–Ill., is “a premature step right now,” the Champaign News Gazette is reporting. The comments came at a news conference […]
UP CEO Lance Fritz: Railroad still doesn’t need Brazos Yard switching capacity NEWSWIRE
UP CEO Lance Fritz Union Pacific NEW YORK CITY — Industrial products traffic has been a lone bright spot for Union Pacific this year as plastics, petrochemical, and construction-related carload volume has continued to grow on the U.S. Gulf Coast. But UP has reduced car handlings enough through Precision Scheduled Railroading that it still does […]
