Ontario Northland acquires 125 miles of CN’s Newmarket Subdivision

Yellow and blue passenger equipment in yard

NORTH BAY, Ontario — The province of Ontario has purchased 125 miles of track from Canadian National for the Ontario Northland Railway as part of its preparations for the return of Northlander passenger train service, ensuring operational priority for the passenger service. The government announced on Thursday, March 13, that it is purchasing the 205-kilometer […]

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Trona tonnage tumbles, slowing rail operations

Freight train at sunset

TRONA, Calif. — The remote, unincorporated town of Trona is used to earthquakes. But not the type that hit on Feb. 3. Searles Valley Minerals President and CEO Dennis Cruise announced in a company-wide letter that the soda ash mining company would reduce its workforce by about half. Included will be many of its railroad […]

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BLET announces tentative agreement with Indiana & Ohio

Logo of Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen union

INDEPENDENCE, Ohio — The Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen announced it has reached a tentative agreement with Genesee & Wyoming’s Indiana & Ohio Railway, with a ratification vote now in progress. If ratified, the agreement would run through 2031 and provide wage increases of 7% in 2026, 4.5% each year from 2027 to 2030, […]

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Ridgewood Infrastructure acquires Sierra Railroad Co.

Blue, white, and gold locomotive with American flag design on long hood

NEW YORK — Investment firm Ridgewood Infrastructure has acquired a controlling interest in Sierra Railroad Co., the California company including short line Sierra Northern Railway and locomotive builder RailPower. At the same time, with Ridgewood’s investment, Sierra is acquiring Central Valley Ag Transport, an agricultural transload facility owner and operator serving customers along Sierra’s rail […]

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Rare-milage excursion announced for Buckingham Branch Railroad

Gray and red diesel locomotive pulling a silver and red passenger car. Rare-milage excursion announced for Buckingham Branch Railroad.

LOUISA, Va. — The Washington, D.C., Chapter of the National Railway Historical Society has announced a rare-milage excursion over 50 miles of the Buckingham Branch Railway — former Chesapeake & Ohio territory — on Sunday, April 26, 2026, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. The Doswell Special will begin in Louisa and travel the railroad between […]

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G&W’s North Carolina & Virginia to serve new steel manufacturing plant in North Carolina

Logo of the North Carolina & Virginia Railroad, a Genesee & Wyoming affiliate

AHOSKIE, N.C. — Genesee & Wyoming’s North Carolina & Virginia Railroad will service a new specialty steel manufacturing facility in Cofield, N.C., the company announced today. Once operational, the $785 million plant for US Forged Rings will manufacture forged rings, tubular components, and large-scale steel fabrications for use in construction, power generation, oil and gas, […]

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BLET, Indiana Rail Road reach tentative agreement

INDEPENDENCE, Ohio — The Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen reached a tentative agreement on a five-year contract with the Indiana Rail Road earlier this month, the union has announced. The agreement, which would be retroactive to July 1, 2024, would include annual pay raises each year through July 1, 2029, as well as a […]

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OmniTRAX opens new logistics hub in Blue Island, Ill.

Containers in lot

BLUE ISLAND, Ill. — OmniTRAX has signed a long-term lease to operate a new multimodal logistics hub in the city of Blue Island, the company announced today (Feb. 26). The 90-acre parcel is just southwest of Chicago, bordering 119th and Division streets within the Blue Island Commercial Center. Operation of the new hub will begin […]

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Ice storm plagues rehabilitation efforts on Mississippi short line

Downed trees across rail line

TISHOMINGO, Miss. — An unprecedented January ice storm has complicated the efforts of a start-up short line railroad looking to restore freight service in rural northern Mississippi. Jeremy Funderburk, president of the North Mississippi & Alabama Railroad, and his work crew and equipment, have been putting in 10-hour workdays to chew through thousands of downed […]

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Auburn Road Special excursions to benefit URHS

Diesel locomotive leading a passenger train. Auburn Road Special excursions to benefit United Railroad Historical Society of New Jersey.

BOONTON, N.J. — The United Railroad Historical Society of New Jersey will be hosting a weekend of rail excursions along the former New York Central Auburn Road branch on April 18-19, the organization announced in a Facebook post. The Auburn Road Special will offer two excursions covering what is now the east end of the […]

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Cando Rail & Terminals to acquire Savage Rail (corrected)

WINNEPEG, Manitoba — Cando Rail & Terminals has signed an agreement to acquire the rail operations of Salt Lake City-based Savage Enterprises in a deal that will create North America’s largest operator of first- and last-mile rail infrastructure, the companies said today. Savage Rail has operations in key markets across the U.S., including along the […]

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