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!
Two bills, one before the New York State Senate and another before the New York State Assembly, would require Class I and Class II railroads to have a minimum train crew size.
Norfolk Southern issued green bonds in 2021 that enabled it to fund $496 million in projects that aimed to lower carbon emissions.
Rail investors and observers think the Class I railroads’ efforts to bolster train and engine crew counts will improve rail service in the second half of this year. But geopolitical, economic and regulatory uncertainties also abound.
April volumes at the Port of Virginia in Norfolk were at the second highest in port history, right behind December 2021.
A 34% increase in retail imports is driving cargo volumes higher, SC Ports said.
Transport Canada’s proposed changes affect waybill reporting requirements for long-haul interswitching and they detail new traffic reporting requirements for smaller Class I operations.
The Surface Transportation Board wants Union Pacific, BNSF, CSX and Norfolk Southern to provide service recovery plans following reports and testimony about deteriorating rail service.
A hearing at the Surface Transportation Board raised hard questions that could influence the trajectory of the freight rail industry.
Higher revenues contributed to increased profits in the first quarter for BNSF.
Craig Fuller explains the impact of higher diesel prices on the U.S. economy and consumers.
Using data to optimize supply chain efficiencies can reduce costs and greenhouse gas emissions.
Customers are keen to lock in capacity for the year and mitigate risk, executives said during Hub Group’s first-quarter 2022 earnings call.
Canadian Pacific believes its acquisition of Kansas City Southern is still on pace to receive federal approval sometime early next year.
The operating plan, which builds upon the precision scheduled railroading-inspired initiative for NS’ manifest network, will be launched sometime late in the second quarter of this year.
“There’s been a big shock in the supply chains, and we’re working very hard to get our rhythm back and our operation back and to serve our customers well,” says new CEO Tracy Robinson.
CSX, XPO Logistics and AIT Worldwide Logistics were among several companies to make sustainability announcements on Earth Day.
FreightWaves founder and CEO Craig Fuller writes about the impact of Chinese lockdowns on global supply chains and the U.S. trucking industry.
The Coordinated Bargaining Coalition, which represents the unions at the negotiating table, panned the Class I railroads’ offer to advance payments amid stalled talks over a new labor agreement.
The Federal Railroad Administration has established a Climate Challenge initiative, which is targeting net-zero greenhouse gas emissions for the industry by 2050.
Class I railroads’ offer of advance payments is rebuffed by one union as contract talks continue.
The Surface Transportation Board wants ‘act on its own initiative’ to modify rules governing its response to service emergencies
This week’s rail news roundup includes CSX’s to offer SMART-TD members advance payments to improve relations and Wabtec’s latest acquisition.
Norfolk Southern Chief Sustainability Officer Josh Raglin chats with Tyler Cole of FreightWaves about the ways that the freight rail industry is helping stakeholders adopt sustainable practices.
Former EPA Administrator Christine Todd Whitman explains in an Earth Day interview how the freight industry can embrace a more environmentally friendly future.
Precision scheduled railroading will help the western U.S. railroad recover service more efficiently, UP executives argue.
The eastern U.S. railroad says its hiring initiative is going well.
The U.S. railcar lessor doesn’t expect the war in Ukraine to impact company profits, but the conflict is affecting operations in Poland.
As investors and rail stakeholders digest the Class I railroads’ first-quarter 2022 financial results, discussions about service metrics, crews and capacity, and inflation could creep into earnings calls.
The U.S. Maritime Administration issued a final environmental impact statement for the Pier B on-dock rail facility at Long Beach and approved the project.
On its first-quarter call with analysts, management from J.B. Hunt said demand indications from customers have been strong. The path is likely not as easy for smaller players in the space.
The Sweeteners Users Association asks federal regulators to address rail service issues, plus news from Union Pacific, Norfolk Southern and Commtrex.
The Surface Transportation Board gives the green light for CSX to acquire Pan Am Railways.
Illinois-based CF Industries says UP’s plan would hamper CF Industries’ ability to deliver fertilizer during the spring application season.
STG Logistics has made nearly a dozen acquisitions over the last five-plus years. However, its latest deal for XPO’s intermodal unit is its most transformative yet.
If UP and customers can’t reduce the number of active railcars on the network, the railroad may temporarily resort to metering.
The letter sent by the National Grain and Feed Association to regulators about subpar rail service is finding support among other rail industry stakeholders.
FreightWaves Founder and CEO Craig Fuller explains the boom and bust cycle of the trucking industry.
SC Ports handled 264,334 TEUs in March, up 6% year-over-year.
The Class I railroads say they have been trying to improve service, which has deteriorated amid the COVID-19 pandemic. But the Surface Transportation Board questions whether headcount reductions come into play.
Democratic leaders urge the Federal Railroad Administration to act on worker fatigue, while the Port of Montreal’s new container terminal will be served by rail.
With record inventories building and bottlenecks easing is deflation next?
March volumes at the Port of Virginia were the highest yet for 2022.
The Western European and North American railcar markets could benefit from shifting global markets due to the invasion of Ukraine, executives said during Greenbrier’s second fiscal quarter earnings call.
The evidentiary hearing before the Surface Transportation Board, which was originally scheduled for two days, will likely tack on two more days as the board collects lots of data and testimony over how Amtrak’s service could affect freight and port operations.
The union coalition calls on federal agencies and railroads to ensure attendance policies don’t result in overly fatigued locomotive engineers and train conductors.
Carbon offsets are a growing alternative or additional step toward reducing emissions in sectors like transportation.
Large-scale real estate developer Focus Equities will oversee the construction. Its head explained to FreightWaves why Winnipeg is a prime location for customers.
BNSF Railway Co. last week acquired 3,508 acres in the Phoenix region with plans to develop it as its Western hub.
FreightWaves rounds up recent freight rail-related news items.
U.S. Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack wants the Surface Transportation Board to move forward with proceedings that would address rail service for grain and agricultural products shippers.
The Transportation Safety Board of Canada has released the results of its investigation into a fatal February 2019 grain train derailment. But Canadian Pacific refutes some of the findings.
Near-term deployment of long-term technologies such as automation isn’t as far away as one might think.
The sustained year-over-year gains propel the Georgia Ports Authority to expedite more than $538 million in funding for projects aimed at increasing capacity at the Port of Savannah.
The National Grain and Feed Association is asking the Surface Transportation Board to compel three Class I railroads to provide weekly and annual service updates.
The new container cranes will enable the terminal to accommodate multiple ultra-large container vessels simultaneously.
Data can help identify causes of inefficiency and inform better decision-making.
Four Class I railroads have donated funds to support humanitarian relief efforts in Ukraine and surrounding areas. Also, U.S. and European rail sector officials form a task force to support Ukrainian freight and passenger rail.
Key speakers announced for The Future of Supply Chain.
Short line operator G&W and Class I railroad BNSF announce their industrial development results for 2021.
BLET and SMART-TD have decided to pursue binding arbitration in front of a third-party board instead of an appeal.
With Wabtec’s help, NS will retrofit locomotives so that they can last 20 more years.
The railcar manufacturer sees elevated scrapping levels and higher leasing rates.
The COVID-19 pandemic highlighted the need for federal, state and local governments to develop inland ports to improve network flows, say stakeholders.
Canadian Pacific Railway and the Teamsters union agreed to settle a labor dispute through binding arbitration, averting a supply chain crisis.
The shutdown of Canadian Pacific’s rail network is putting additional strain on the supply chain as shipments grind to a halt with backups looming at ports.
Supply chains are at risk after Canadian Pacific shut down its rail service amid a contract battle with the Teamsters.
American Made Chassis, an alliance of LB Steel and Integrated Industries, will build the chassis at an Illinois facility.
The board held a two-day hearing on reciprocal switching to help it determine how it should move forward.
The railway has issued a 72-hour notice to the Teamsters Canada Rail Conference that it would lock out its members from working starting Sunday should labor agreement negotiations fail.
J.B. Hunt announced plans to expand its intermodal container count to 150,000 units in efforts “to substantially improve capacity” as part of a joint initiative with BNSF Railway.
CP and the Teamsters Canada Rail Conference are still in talks over a new labor agreement. The union had said earlier this month that a strike could occur as early as Wednesday.
The second-generation carbon calculator helps customers and shippers gauge the carbon emissions their shipments produced.
Calls for the Canadian government to head off a strike at Canadian Pacific are coming from both sides of the U.S.-Canada border.
The North American rail system can learn a lot from the Europeans as both seek to incorporate battery and autonomous technologies into their freight rail networks.
The Surface Transportation Board will hold a two-day hearing on reciprocal switching next week. Here is some background on the issue.
SC Ports has seen record container volumes for 12 months straight.
Congress should fund the Surface Transportation Board, agreed panelists at a U.S. House hearing on the board’s funding reauthorization. But they disagree on what STB’s role should be in regulating the freight railroads.
Ocean liner Zim will include the Port of Boston in a China-Vietnam trade route.
Canadian Pacific is launching an international intermodal service between Mexico and Chicago, while state DOTs and Amtrak say a $31 million federal grant will add to existing passenger rail service and improve freight efficiency.
The cost curve is pointing downward in the production of green hydrogen, according to the head of a company that builds fuel cells.
Union Pacific will test B20 biodiesel and R55 renewable diesel on the locomotives that it acquired from Wabtec. The western U.S. railroad also said it reduced fuel consumption for three years in a row.
The new facility will reduce wait times and port congestion, according to Transport Canada.
The donation will help relief efforts in Poland.
Bill Ackman, Pershing Square founder and CEO, has been acquiring shares of Canadian Pacific, according to SEC filings and news reports.
Amtrak limits Acela and Northeast regional service.
A Norfolk Southern spokesman said Saturday he’s unclear whether two cavers will face trespassing charges after they were rescued early Wednesday in a cave located on railroad property at the base of Lookout Mountain in Tennessee.
Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson is a leader in computer science education; Jonathan Hoffman has expertise in national defense.
The vast majority of Teamsters Canada Rail Conference members working for Canadian Pacific agreed to conduct a work stoppage should negotiations fail.
TRAC Intermodal establishes a partnership with startup incubator ZEBOX; OminiTRAX subsidiary NSR of northern Ohio gets a battery-electric locomotive; and Missouri-based Jaguar starts operations in St. Louis.
Access to interchanges, treatment of American grain shippers compared to Canadian ones and service impacts weigh on shippers’ minds as they evaluate the proposed merger between Canadian Pacific and Kansas City Southern.
A FreightWaves roundup of oil markets and other supply chain news related to the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
North American rail equipment manufacturers have customers and offices in the region, and they’re assessing what steps to take next as the situation unfolds.
CN and three other Class I railroads outlined to the Surface Transportation Board conditions that should be met before the board approves a merger between Canadian Pacific and Kansas City Southern.
The South Atlantic Chassis Pool 3.0, will be ready in October 2023 and will have 60,000 chassis available.
Tekorius has also served as COO and CFO for the railcar manufacturer, among other roles.
Despite a 3% decrease in overall volumes, BNSF’s net income was $1.7 billion for the fourth quarter of 2021.
Georgia Ports Authority outlined projects that would take container capacity to 9.5 million TEUs by 2025.
A South Carolina company that remanufactured locomotives and provided railcar servicing and repairs filed Chapter 7.
The Russian invasion of Ukraine this week has caused uncertainty not just for the energy markets but also for global agricultural trade.
The railroad says it is taking steps to grow capacity, both on its network and in places where more volumes need to push through, such as Charleston, South Carolina.
