OTTAWA, Ontario — Pablo Rodriguez has been named Canada’s Transport Minister as part of a large-scale reshuffling of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s cabinet announced Wednesday. Rodriguez replaces Omar Alghabra, who departed after announcing he would not seek reelection to Parliament [see “Canadian Transport Minister Alghabra to step down,” Trains News Wire, July 25, 2023]. Rodriguez […]
OMAHA, Neb. — Union Pacific today lowered its volume outlook for the year as soft demand across its bulk, industrial, and premium business segments led to lower second quarter revenue and profits. As recently as June, UP expected its volume this year to exceed the level of industrial production, which at the time was forecast […]
MONTREAL and PITTSBURGH — Canadian National has placed an order with Wabtec to modernize 60 Dash-9 locomotives in CN’s existing fleet, the two companies have announced. The new order builds on a previous 50-unit order and will bring the total modernized fleet to 110 locomotives. The locomotives involved will be converted from DC to AC-powered […]
OMAHA, Neb. — Union Pacific today named Jim Vena, its former chief operating officer, as the railroad’s next chief executive. The announcement comes five months after one of UP’s largest investors publicly demanded that the board oust CEO Lance Fritz and hire Vena as his replacement [see “Union Pacific to seek new CEO …,” Trains […]
MARSHALL, Texas — A wide variety of state and local officials, as well as current and former representatives of Amtrak and its host railroads, assembled last week to honor two people in large part responsible for keeping alive a proposed extension of Amtrak’s Crescent between Meridian, Miss., and Fort Worth, Texas. Retired Harrison County Judge […]
MONTREAL — Canadian National has lowered its outlook for the year in light of the slowing economy and the impact of Canadian wildfires, flooding, and the two-week port strike in British Columbia. CN, in reporting lower earnings on Tuesday, pushed its volume recovery expectations into next year instead of later this year. Second-quarter volume was […]
WASHINGTON — Sixteen tank cars, 15 of them carrying hazardous materials, derailed in the Montana Rail Link incident involving the Reed Point bridge collapse on June 24, the National Transportation Safety Board said in its preliminary report on the incident released on Monday. The NTSB’s investigation is only considering the performance of DOT-111 tank cars […]
Montana Rail Link’s main line was put back into service on Saturday after the rebuilt Reed Point bridge over the Yellowstone River was reopened more than a week ahead of estimates. The bridge collapsed on June 24, sending 10 cars into the river and derailing an additional seven cars. Asphalt was released into the river […]
HARRISBURG, Pa. — Norfolk Southern has paid $1 million to two areas in Pennsylvania as part of its efforts to address the impact of the East Palestine derailment and toxic chemical release. The Beaver County Times reports the office of Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro said Darlington Township will receive $660,000 and Lawrence County will receive […]
MONTREAL — Canada’s largest private-sector union has criticized the latest step in the high-frequency rail project, calling out the selection of two European companies to participate in the Request for Qualifications while also questioning the slow development of the plan. “The federal government continues to ignore the voice of workers throughout this process,” Lana Payne, […]
NORTH LITTLE ROCK, Ark. — Union Pacific has announced the release of a locomotive recognizing its Employee Assistance Program and four other employee-focused programs. The railroad announced last week that SD70ACe No. 8388 “went into service earlier this year” on its network following work at UP’s Jenks Locomotive Shop in North Little Rock. The locomotive […]
HALIFAX, Nova Scotia — Canadian National’s main line to the Port of Halifax, Canada’s fourth-largest port, has been washed out as a result of flooding that caused “unimaginable” damage, according to Nova Scotia Premier Tim Houston. Reuters reports a storm that arrived on Friday left more than 10 inches of rain in a 24-hour period […]
