Railroads continue to play a significant role in North America’s economic infrastructure. According to the U.S. Department of Transportation Federal Railroad Administration, the U.S. rail freight network covers almost 140,000 route miles and is generally considered the largest, safest, and most cost-efficient freight system in the world. In addition, says the FRA, the almost $80 billion rail freight industry creates more than 167,000 jobs across the country.
In essence, rail freight companies charge businesses to carry cargo across their network of rails. Their rates are overseen by the Surface Transportation Board, a federal agency that regulates financial aspects of surface transportation. Major railroads in North America include Union Pacific Railroad, BNSF Railway, CSX, Norfolk Southern, Canadian Pacific Kansas City and Canadian National Railway.
Keep up with the latest news, trends and reports concerning rail freight transport here!
The industries to be most heavily impacted are those in bulk commodities, such as grain, potash and metallurgical coal. In addition, several intermodal corridors will be heavily impacted including long-haul international intermodal lanes, cross-border lanes. US intermodal volume is seeing a boost, but that could lead to congestion.
CN said it received no response from Teamsters after making a final contract offer in a bid to avoid service disruption.
Eastern U.S. railroad operator CSX has reached a deal with several of its unions well before a deadline.
While contract talks between Canadian National, Canadian Pacific Kansas City and union employees continue, a rail shutdown would reverberate through the supply chain connecting Canada and the U.S.
Amid lockout and strike notices, contract bargaining continues as Ottawa makes a push for both sides to come together on a new rail labor contract.
A federal appeals court on Tuesday tossed out the Surface Transportation Board’s streamlined process for resolving rate disputes between shippers and railroads.
Canada’s busiest import gateway is managing port fluidity as railroads issue lockout notices, and Teamsters are warning of a planned strike as the latest contract talks fail.
The Teamsters Canada Rail Conference on Sunday served a 72-hour strike notice to Canadian Pacific Kansas City, saying the union will walk out at 12:01 a.m. on Thursday, barring a last-minute labor agreement.
Construction continues on a Chicago bridge project designed to reduce delays and improve flow by untangling freight and passenger rail lines.
he Surface Transportation Board will hear from more than three dozen participants during its two-day hearing next month regarding recent trends and strategies for growth in freight railroad traffic.
Canada’s labor minister has denied CN’s request to intervene in contract talks with the union representing engineers and conductors.
Teamsters Canada says a breakthrough is possible in talks set for Friday with CN and CPKC, but the union accuses the railroads of not bargaining in good faith.
Canadian railroads CN and CPKC say they support the interests of both rail workers and the Canadian public as a possible strike approaches.
Intermodal traffic continues to drive an overall increase.
Operators of first-mile and last-mile railroads are staffing up for a legislative push ahead of fall elections.
Eastern Class 1 railroads Norfolk Southern and CSX will help reach Midwest cities with double-stack trains from the newly expanded Port of Virginia central rail yard.
The Blue Ridge Connector will improve intermodal services to the northeast Georgia logistics center.
The Canada Industrial Relations Board said today that a work stoppage on CN and CPKC would not present a threat to public health and safety, which cleared the way for a strike if the railways and union cannot reach negotiated settlements.
Rail shipper groups say the poor on-time performance of all 15 Amtrak long-distance trains – which prompted the Justice Department to file a lawsuit last week against Norfolk Southern for its handling of the Crescent – is merely a reflection of Class I railroad freight operations.
The employment report for July showed truck transportation jobs down for the fourth straight month.
Weekly U.S. rail volume showed a solid increase for the seven days ending July 27, with overall traffic up 5.3% over the same period a year earlier.
– With labor negotiations at a standstill, a Canadian rail strike is likely to occur in late August, Canadian Pacific Kansas City CEO Keith Creel said Tuesday.
Canadian Pacific Kansas City had a gangbuster second quarter as
merger-related traffic synergies kicked in faster than expected and boosted revenue and profits,
executives said on Tuesday.
The U.S. Justice Department is taking Norfolk Southern to court, alleging the railroad’s delays of Amtrak’s Crescent violate federal law.
Canadian National’s operations are returning to normal through Jasper, Alberta, where wildfires devastated part of the town and shut down rail traffic last week.
Norfolk Southern highlights ways it’s creating sustainable growth through investments in people and technology.
A key port in New Jersey is adopting propane as a preferred fuel for the vehicles that move around its property.
Before the U.S. Marine Corps veteran, lawyer and author of Hillbilly Elegy was a contender for VP, Vance took the national spotlight as one of three Senate Republicans and three Senate Democrats to introduce The Railway Safety Act of 2023.
Former Kansas City Southern CEO Patrick Ottensmeyer — who led the cross-border railroad through turmoil over free trade, the transition to a Precision Scheduled Railroad operating model, and its historic merger with Canadian Pacific — died over the weekend. He was in his mid-60s.
Canadian National reopened its main line through Jasper, Alberta, this morning and began moving a backlog of traffic that had built up this week while wildfires threatened and ultimately engulfed part of the resort town.
Operational improvements helped Norfolk Southern win back service-sensitive intermodal and automotive traffic while driving down costs and boosting the railroad’s profitability in the second quarter.
Union Pacific’s profits rose in the second quarter despite a sharp drop in coal traffic.
U.S. rail traffic was again ahead of 2023 levels for the week ending July 20, 2024, with overall volume up 1.4% compared to the same week last year, according to statistics from the Association of American Railroads.
Canadian National was able to reopen its main line through Jasper, Alberta, this afternoon while keeping a close eye on a pair of wildfires that have been threatening the resort town.
Legislators used a House subcommittee hearing on railroad safety Tuesday to highlight a new rail safety bill. But committee members and witnesses including regulators, union representatives, and the House member representing East Palestine questioned the rail industry’s own safety efforts.
xCanadian National today lowered its financial outlook for the year as volume growth slowed during the second quarter due to slumping lumber traffic and the impact of shippers diverting international intermodal containers to U.S. ports in anticipation of a potential rail strike in Canada.
U.S. and Canadian railroads appear to be relatively unaffected by the global tech outage that grounded flights and disrupted businesses today, although Union Pacific and Canadian Pacific Kansas City were experiencing some computer issues.
For the week ending July 13, total U.S. volume was 483,806 carloads and intermodal units, an increase of 1.3% over the same week in a year ago.
Joni Casey, president and CEO of the Intermodal Association of North America, announced Wednesday that she will retire at the end of 2024.
Canada Industrial Relations Board will determine if some shipments must continue even during work stoppage.
This week in Borderlands: Ambitious billion-dollar Tehuantepec rail corridor aims to grab more international trade; GrubMarket acquires Houston-based foodservice distributor; Production of Mexican-built cargo trucks rise in June; and Metrobi launches delivery service in Dallas.
The Biden administration is calling railroad executives to Washington to explain how they plan to reverse negative cargo trends and grow their business.
The Class I railroad, CSW, is now the fourth to become a member of RailPulse.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection agents rescued 23 migrants who were locked inside a train car stationed in Laredo, Texas on Tuesday.
A $73 million rail expansion at the Port of Los Angeles adds five storage tracks, new crossovers and turnouts, and a concrete rail bridge, among other improvements.
The BLS jobs report for June recorded a small drop in the number of truck transportation jobs.
The acquisition of Cincinnati East Railroad brings Regional Rail’s overall number of railroads to 16.
A possible strike by Teamsters Canada Rail Conference members is still on hold pending a decision from the CIRB, but union members voted to reauthorize the stoppage.
A federal judge dismissed a lawsuit against Union Pacific, stating that plaintiff Le’Mon Bass failed to substantiate claims of racial discrimination and retaliation.
Homendy says NS stonewalled the NTSB, sought to influence its investigation and even issued a threat in a recent meeting.
The NTSB Board also concludes Norfolk Southern and its contractors should not have decided to vent and burn tank cars laded with hazardous materials.
As the release of the NTSB’s accident investigation report on the East Palestine, Ohio, derailment looms, policymakers can take several steps to focus on rail safety.
This week in Borderlands: Private sector investment in Mexico $39B so far in 2024; BNSF announces intermodal logistics hub near Phoenix; Trailer manufacturer launches production facility in Eagle Pass, Texas; and Doosan Bobcat begins construction of $300M plant in Mexico.
NSF must pay more than $394 million for transporting oil across tribal land in northwest Washington in violation of an agreement, a judge has ruled.
The threat of a rail worker strike across Canada could be extended through at least mid-July amid stalled negotiations between Teamsters Canada Rail Conference and CN and CPKC railroads.
This week in Borderlands: Evans Transportation launches cross-border service amid trade boom; TexAmericas Center receives Union Pacific “focus site” designation; Chemvest Holdings US acquires Texas rail-served industrial park; and DHL Express expands retail presence in Houston area.
Costs and feasibility of CARB’s anti-pollution rule for locomotives was debated on Capitol Hill.
Another drop in truck transportation jobs in May means the total stands at the same level as it did in November.
A Los Angeles jury awarded more than $58 million to Pablo Scipione, who suffered a microfracture in his foot while working at a train yard in 2016.Independent contractor was injured in 2016 at Kinkisharyo yard
Norfolk Southern will be required to pay an additional $310 million for the 2023 East Palestine derailment. The settlement will go towards measures to improve rail safety, pay for health monitoring and mental health services for the surrounding communities, fund long-term environmental monitoring and more.
DP World is launching an intermodal service to transport finished vehicles by rail from Mexico to the U.S.
Well-known transportation equity research analyst Amit Mehrotra is leaving Deutsche Bank, which for now at least is ending equity coverage of transportation companies.
BNSF Railway has filed an appeal for an asbestos trial verdict that ruled the railroad was liable in the deaths of two people in Montana.
A federal lawsuit alleges CSX inflated the amount of time employees were charged for taking leave under the Family Medical Leave Act, punished workers for taking the leave, and terminated or suspended over 100 employees for allegedly taking FMLA leave fraudulently.
Federal officials have pushed back a potential CN and CPKC rail worker strike in order to review whether a work stoppage would jeopardize Canadians’ health and safety.
About $10 million in Minnesota Department of Transportation grants will support 11 freight rail projects, making the state more competitive in the global and national economy, officials said.
Activist investor Ancora elected three members to the Norfolk Southern board, failing to oust CEO Alan Shaw. An Ancora official says “passive investors” are to blame if safety issues recur.
RailState’s new $4 million investment will be used for the strategic expansion of the company’s network coverage, including along the U.S.-Mexico border, and product investments to provide customers with accurate, real-time rail network information.
Late in the game, the head of the Surface Transportation Board is speaking out against replacing Norfolk Southern management, suggesting the effort threatens the U.S. rail network.
Truck transportation jobs posted a small decline in April after six straight months of relatively minor gains.
In competitive lanes, loads shift from rail to road.
After five months of discussions, Teamsters Canada voted to strike at Canadian National Railway and Canadian Pacific Kansas City. The strike could start as early as May 22, after a mandatory 21-day mediation period.
Gulf & Atlantic Railways LLC announced on Wednesday that it is rebranding as Pinsly Railroad Co. The name change comes after the October 2023 acquisition of Pioneer Valley Railroad, the final railroad company owned by Pinsly.
A second proxy adviser is backing big changes on the Norfolk Southern board, but this one is calling for CEO Alan Shaw to stay.
An “influential” proxy advisory company has come out in favor of Ancora’s efforts to oust the leadership of Norfolk Southern.
Soft freight market conditions continue to create market headwinds as Hub Group’s first-quarter revenue declines 13% year over year.
Wyoming locomotive engineer Andrew Kirol claims in a lawsuit that he was injured when an AI system used by Union Pacific gave incorrect information to locomotives on the train on which he was working.
New Norfolk Southern COO John Orr made his debut on the railroad’s earnings call, but there was little talk about an ongoing proxy fight.
SONAR sets up intermodal trading ideas ahead of earnings.
This week in Borderlands: Experts push infrastructure to boost cross-border trade; Korean EV supplier begins construction of plant in Mexico; Kirchhoff Automotive expanding operations in Mexico; and WSI named operator of CPKC transload terminal.
“This is the first locomotive that’s actually 100% remanufactured for hydrogen,” said Dragan Jankovic, CSX director of locomotive engineering.
A preliminary report on how Norfolk Southern did in the first quarter comes as the showdown over its future nears a climax.
Recent incidents involving Norfolk Southern trains exposed the continued need for rail safety to the greater public. Here are some ways rail can drive safety.
Norfolk Southern announced Tuesday that it will pay a $600 million settlement of a class-action lawsuit after a train derailed in East Palestine, Ohio, in February 2023.
Truck transportation jobs in March recorded an increase in the midst of a generally weak trucking market.
Eight men from the Bronx are accused of swiping hundreds of thousands of dollars’ worth of beer from train cars and distribution facilities for nearly two years.
The Federal Railroad Administration has lowered the gates on railroads looking to move to one-person crews.
New debt to pay a big dividend has led the two largest ratings agencies to reduce their rating of short-line rail operator Genesee & Wyoming.
An unusually warm and dry winter might herald drought conditions in key areas of the Mississippi River Basin over the coming months.
The Port of Baltimore’s indefinite closure could cost the state of Maryland as much as $1 billion in total value of goods and services, analysts say.
Hauling autos into Baltimore is a big business that is going to scale back dramatically in coming weeks and months.
Norfolk Southern’s annual meeting will be May 9, when the push to oust current management comes to a head.
The Port of Huntsville in Alabama reported 24% year-over-year growth at its intermodal container yard in 2023.
Union Pacific CEO Jim Vena defended the railroad’s safety record, which recently has come in for criticism from Federal Railroad Administration Chairman Amit Bose.
Union Pacific recently won a state court ruling in a legal battle to close a rail car shop in Palestine, Texas.
Truck transportation jobs in the monthly BLS report were slightly down, but that couldn’t be said for plunging warehouse numbers.
NTSB head Jennifer Homendy told a Senate committee that the burning of chemicals on derailed Norfolk Southern rail cars in East Palestine, Ohio, was not necessary.
Norfolk Southern has defended its safety measures and CEO pay package amid criticism and calls to action from activist investor Ancora Holdings.
