railroads

The line serves communities in western New York and eastern Canada near the St. Lawrence River.

Logistics and transport sector ramps up contingency plans for Hurricane Dorian, while continuing to operate until better forecasts are available.

The new appointments could indicate how the companies are preparing to respond to future market trends.

Year-to-date U.S. rail volumes are still slumping this year, due in part to a competitive truck market for intermodal shipments.

The acquisition seeks to build upon the company’s rail assets in Ohio and expand its presence into the Port of Cleveland.

Market Voice Jim Blaze writes about rail intermodal and what is happening to this area of the railroad sector.

The railroad contends the Interstate Commerce Commission Termination Act and the Federal Railroad Safety Act preempt Oklahoma’s law.

The continued slump in U.S. rail volumes is putting pressure on overall North American rail volumes.

Headcount continues to fall at U.S. rail operations as the railroads implement precision scheduled railroading.

Jim Blaze writes about FreightWaves SONAR and how it could be a helpful tool for the freight railroads.

Competition from other grain-producing countries weigh on U.S. grain exports – and on U.S. rail volumes for grain.

Year-to-date North American rail volumes fell 2.3 percent last week. But what about for the rest of the year?

The states of Illinois, Nevada and Washington are seeking to push ahead with state laws requiring a train crew size of at least two individuals, despite a federal declaration saying that such laws have been voided.

Volatility appears to be the only certainty for transportation stocks as trade concerns loom. The transportation stocks walked through a less than stellar earnings season, but renewed trade concerns has them bouncing about.

The announcements confirming Canada’s planned investments in rail infrastructure come as the country prepares for a federal election in October.

As railroads cut less profitable routes, shippers should learn as much as possible about railroads plans for future service.

U.S. rail carloads no longer appear to be following the lead of broader economic indicators. Why? Look to concerns about rail service reliability and trade uncertainty as answers.

CSX and Canadian National’s partnership to create new intermodal service between Montreal and Toronto and the greater New York City area is a strategy to expand each other’s geographical reach and compete with the long-haul trucking market.

Railcar manufacturer Greenbrier will invest $16 million in an American Railcar Industries facility that produces tank cars.

U.S. railroad operations loaded 5.5 percent fewer carloads and intermodal units in July, and trade uncertainty could threaten to maintain that downward trend in rail volumes for the remainder of 2019.

Genesee and Wyoming sees second-quarter operating income decline amid lower freight revenues from its Australian and European operations and flat year-over-year revenue from its North American operations.

U.S. Senator Ron Wyden’s (D-Oregon) new bill would require the railroads to supply information on crude volumes to emergency responders, and it would mandate that the railroads share crude-by-rail data annually.

Jim Blaze writes about the recent history of intermodal rail service and what may happen in the next few years.

Second quarter revenue for BNSF rose 0.3 percent despite lower volumes for agricultural products, consumer products and industrial products.

“If a shipper can share some of its production forecast information to railroads, railroads can plan better to meet that capacity. Conversely, if railroads can open up and show where their empty railcars are to the shipper so that the shipper has a bit more confidence that the right number of railcars are going to show up, then the shipper can more confidently choose rail.”

“I think we’re at a critical juncture. Six months from now I think we’ll be able to take a closer pulse to where things are.”

Ben Thrower examines the costs – in money, lost land and lost businesses – of the high-speed rail line in California.

North American rail volumes are still lower year-over-year, but U.S. carloads recovered somewhat last week.

The Class I railroads have reported their second quarter/first-half of 2019 results. Jim Blaze writes about what may happen during the remainder of 2019.

Train products manufacturer and supplier Wabtec lowered its sales guidance for 2019 but kept its projections for how much profit it expects to make from its operations.

Greenbrier said the acquisition will enable the company to provide customers not only with direct sales or leasing options but also with after-market services. Customers seeking tank cars and covered hoppers will also benefit from Greenbrier’s expanded geographic footprint as a result of the acquisition.

Winchester & Western Railroad is being acquired by OmniTrax in a $105 million deal.

Despite uncertain economic conditions, Trinity Industries (NYSE: TRN) expects rail volumes to improve in the second half of the year, based on “healthy” inquiry levels for its railcars, company leaders said during TRN’s second quarter earnings call on July 25.

U.S. rail volumes fell yet again for the week ending July 20, according to data from the Association of American Railroads.

Total company revenue for Trinity Industries (NYSE: TRN) grew 16 percent to $736 million in the second quarter amid revenue gains for its rail product group.

There is some uncertainty for commodities such as grain, lumber, coal and crude, but Canadian National (NYSE: CNI) leaders are “cautiously optimistic” about volumes and how the company might perform in the second half of the year.

U.S. railroads had fewer employees on their payroll in June amid lower rail volumes overall and company decisions to trim workforce levels as part of changes to their operating models.

Maryland Governor Larry Hogan (R) said Maryland has received a $125 million federal grant that the state hopes will lead to an expanded rail tunnel in Baltimore to allow for taller trains to travel to the Port of Baltimore.

Jim Blaze writes about the pros and cons of shippers owning or leasing their own freight railcars to move their products.

The railroad said second quarter revenue totaled $714 million, a 5 percent increase from $682 million for the same period in 2018.

“You’ve heard me say this many, many times – we’re not going to use the lack of volume as an excuse not to make aggressive achievements on our productivity,” Union Pacific chief financial officer Rob Knight said.

Union Pacific set an all-time record for its operating ratio in the second quarter despite lower freight volumes and a decline in freight revenue.

The continued decline of U.S. rail volumes was one of the themes mentioned in the second quarter earnings calls for CSX and Canadian Pacific.

Norfolk Southern and Union Pacific are modifying some of the ways they collect demurrage and accessorial charges for some commodities, but some shippers are questioning the modifications.

“The present economic backdrop is one of the most puzzling I have experienced in my career..”

Despite a drop in profit in the second quarter, CSX’s (NYSE: CSX) operating ratio set a company record.

Canadian Pacific’s (NYSE: CP) second quarter net income rose 66 percent amid a 13 percent increase in company revenue, the railroad reported on July 15. CP’s financials are reported in Canadian dollars, except for earnings per share.

The Cass Freight Index Report offers two questions. “Has economic contraction already begun? Will GDP be negative in Q2?”

Jim Blaze writes about earnings season for the railroads, and what investors, customers and employees should be looking and asking for in the railroads’ quarterly earnings reports.

While operational efficiencies get the credit for a freight railroad’s improved operating ratio, other factors, such as changes in fuel prices and increases in freight rates, play significant roles according to a research paper by a law firm representing shippers in Canada.

As the Class I railroads begin reporting their second quarter earnings results next week, some members of the Wall Street community expect the lower rail volumes from the second quarter to affect the railroads’ financial results.

Year-to-date U.S. rail volumes fell yet again this week, although improving economic indicators signal that rail volumes could moderate in the weeks and months ahead.

Although the U.S. Senate Commerce Committee has voted in favor of the nomination of an additional board member to the Surface Transportation Board (STB), whether and when she will be installed remains to be seen.

When it came to choosing the location for our latest and greatest event, Chicago was a no brainer. The Windy City isn’t just at the heart of the Midwest, it’s […]

“Without documented strategies for how it plans to communicate the results of its research, FRA may lose an opportunity to effectively work with internal and external stakeholders – such as railroads, rail workers and local communities – to address any risks of operating longer trains in support of the agency’s mission of enabling the safe, efficient and reliable transportation of people and goods.”

Jim Blaze writes about railroad movement of scrap – the market today and the future of the market.

Ben Thrower profiles Virgin Trains USA’s plans for private passenger service in Florida, Nevada and California. Richard Branson changed air travel; will he be able to do the same thing with passenger train service in the USA?

FreightWaves’ Freight Intel Group has released a new study of the impact of IMO 2020 on the U.S. trucking industries (and other industries). Read what may happen to diesel fuel prices.

The service problems associated with precision scheduled railroading (PSR) have motivated forest products and scrap recycling shippers to press the Surface Transportation Board to renew a longstanding request for regulatory oversight.

Rail volumes were off again for the week ending June 29, 2019 with U.S. railroads reporting a 5.5 percent decline.

Blocking railroad crossings in Oklahoma now could come at a financial cost for freight railroads.

In the longer-term, rail industry observers are waiting to see how and whether Genesee & Wyoming will be able to make the capital investments needed to maintain its infrastructure.

GBX management explains soft guidance and provides outlook for sequential earnings improvement.

Barge grain movements on Mississippi 85 percent lower than a year ago

Jim Blaze writes about the movement of grain by rail. This is a huge business for U.S. and Canadian railroads, and is also critical to the export market of the two countries.

GWR acquired in $8.4 billion deal that many investors view as the plan all along.

Some members of Congress remain determined to address the question of whether having more crew members on a train makes that train safer.

Year-to-date U.S. rail volumes fell again amid a loosening truck market, receding floodwaters in the Midwest and overall economic uncertainty.

An additional $300 billion in proposed U.S. tariffs against China could result in lower railroad freight volume , but economic uncertainty and competition from trucks appear so far to be bigger threats for rail volumes.

Market expert Jim Blaze writes about the railroads’ transportation of fracking sand, as well as stone and gravel, aggregates and phosphates.

Should the Class I railroads see U.S. rail volumes sustainably increase, furloughed workers could be called back to meet network capacity needs, resulting in a bump up of headcount levels. But another factor that could affect headcount levels in the long-term is the deployment of automation technologies.

The implementation of precision scheduled railroading has contributed to dwindling morale and could result in creating unsafe working conditions should the federal government withhold intervention, according to union witnesses at a June 20th Congressional hearing on rail safety.

Autonomous trains might be fully running in remote Australia, but it will take awhile before those kinds of trains will be rolling down the North American countryside.

U.S. rail volumes trended downward again for the week ending June 15, with weekly volumes falling over 5 percent and year-to-date volumes declining nearly 3 percent, according to the latest data from the Association of American Railroads.

Market expert Jim Blaze writes about the movement of coal by rail. He explores the history of rail-coal; more importantly, he writes about what the future may hold for coal in the U.S. and how that will impact the railroads.

The Federal Railroad Administration is awarding more than $326 million in grants to help states and localities repair, maintain and build rail infrastructure supporting freight rail and intercity passenger rail.

Flooding impacts, cheap natural gas prices, and trade and economic uncertainty could be factors contributing to a significant slump in weekly U.S. rail volume.

The American Short Line and Regional Railroad Association is urging Congress to pass legislation that would make permanent the tax credit that short lines receive for infrastructure improvements.

The transition to e-commerce and anticipated advances in automated trucking are forcing the freight railroads to adapt to supply chains that require railroads to be more responsive and nimble. One way that the railroads are seeking to address this challenge is by hiring executives outside of the railroading community, in the hopes that placing a non-rail executive in a leadership role will help the railroad weather systemic changes within the supply chain.

Railroad market expert Jim Blaze writes about the movement of chemicals by rail and how that sub-set of railroad traffic is profitable and may grow significantly in the near future.

U.S. coal export volumes are down 12.7 percent in the first four months of this year and the outlook looks even worse for 2020.

“It’s just a confusing time for all of us in transportation and anybody in manufacturing or business in general to have a really good sense of why we’re seeing this kind of softness,” said CSX chief executive officer Jim Foote.

U.S. intermodal volumes fell 5.9 percent in May, while carloads fell 2.1 percent amid economic uneasiness and uncertainties surrounding U.S. trade between Mexico and China.

Market expert Jim Blaze explores what railroads need to do to capture more of the market share of oversize loads, which are essential to the economy and profitable as well.

Canadian National’s (NYSE: CNI) strategy to build up its eastern network could include even more partnerships with trucking and intermodal partners, the company’s chief executive officer said at an investor conference.

e railroad industry is “concerned” about a possible disruption of the North American supply chain should the U.S. impose tariffs on imports from Mexico. But for now, the rail industry is taking a wait-and-see stance.

While the degradation was seen across most sectors, the transports are seeing outsized declines.

U.S. rail volumes tumbled 6.7 percent for the week ending May 25 as slumping intermodal volumes dragged total volumes lower. Softness in the housing and manufacturing sectors could be contributing to lower U.S. rail volumes year-to-date.

“The board has the authority to define reasonable practices. If you were in our shoes, what would you do?” said Surface Transportation Board vice chairman Patrick Fuchs to a panel representing BNSF, Canadian National and Canadian Pacific.

U.S. rail volumes fell again for the week ended May 18, while Canadian volumes grew, according to the latest data from the Association of American Railroads. The theme of higher U.S. carloads but lower intermodal volumes was also expressed by CSX this week.

FreightWaves SONAR now features railroad-related data from Commtrex. The article provides insight about the Commtrex, the data it will provide to SONAR and how SONAR users will benefit from it.

“The economy feels pretty good right now,” GWR chief executive Jack Hellmann said at an investor conference on May 14.

Market expert Jim Blaze explains the economics behind railcars. He also provides information about the various types of railcars and what market conditions the railroads are facing as they seek to “right-size” their fleets.

A Trinity Industries subsidiary has bought 230 acres in Iowa to construct a multi-million-dollar railcar maintenance facility. The facility’s location in Butler County will give Trinity access to the Class I railroad network and the upper Midwest, Trinity said.

Nevada joins Colorado in requiring freight trains to have at least two crew members on board. Meanwhile, preliminary data from the Surface Transportation Board shows April rail headcount level to be the lowest so far in 2019 and since January 2017.

Rail congestion in regions such as Chicago and Houston may have eased for now, but the railroads will still need to find ways to increase capacity at those busy city locations as the U.S. population grows, Class I railroad executives said at an investor conference this week.

Executives with eastern railroads CSX and Norfolk Southern expressed confidence this week that they can compete alongside trucks for e-commerce business.

Canadian rail volumes rose again year-to-date for the week ended May 11, while U.S. rail volumes continued downward amid U.S. tariff uncertainty and a fuzzy economic picture.

Rail market expert Jim Blaze discusses how FreightWaves SONAR can help determine how best to ship freight.