Rail
TRB panel: East Coast ports reaping rewards of investments
WASHINGTON — With recent estimates that the combined U.S. East Coast and Gulf Coast has passed the West Coast as the largest destination for U.S. imports, a panel at the annual meeting of the Transportation Research Board here suggested that there are plenty of reasons for the shift to continue.
Capital spending by East Coast ports gained praise from panelists, who said the investments have yielded facilities with greater ability to take in the world’s biggest ships. It’s a factor in the change...
https://www.freightwaves.com/news/trb-panel-east-coast-ports-reaping-rewards-of-investments
Rail Roundup: Patriot makes Louisiana purchase; BNSF joins Midwest hydrogen project
Patriot Rail completes acquisition of Louisiana short lineJacksonville, Florida-based Patriot Rail has completed its acquisition of Delta Southern Railroad (DSRR), which operates two line segments in Louisiana.
DSRR operates over 40 miles of track between two lines and it serves two port facilities on the Mississippi River, Lake Providence Port and Madison Parish Port. The short-line operator first announced plans to acquire DSRR in September.
DSRR interchanges with Kansas City Southern and Union...
Greenbrier terminating rail car production at Portland facility
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Rail car manufacturer Greenbrier will cease production of rail cars at its Gunderson facility in...
https://www.freightwaves.com/news/greenbrier-terminating-rail-car-production-at-portland-facility
4 Class I railroads seek stay of federal order for rate disputes
Four Class I railroads want the Surface Transportation Board to pause the implementation of an arbitration program to resolve rail rate disputes involving smaller financial amounts.
CSX (NASDAQ: CSX), Norfolk Southern (NYSE: NSC), Union Pacific (NYSE: UNP) and the U.S. subsidiaries of Canadian railway CN (NYSE: CNI) argue that STB’s deadline for the Class I railroads to commit to a five-year arbitration program as prescribed in STB’s December order is too soon.
They contend that the sign-up...
https://www.freightwaves.com/news/4-class-i-railroads-seek-stay-of-federal-order-for-rate-disputes
December jobs report shows signs of sputtering in truck transportation industry
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The December employment report for the truck transportation sector showed an industry that is...
US freight rail traffic slips nearly 3% in 2022
U.S. rail traffic in 2022 was generally lower than 2021 levels amid concerns about an economic recession and subpar rail service.
The U.S. operations of freight railroads handled about 25.4 million carloads and intermodal units in 2022, down 2.8% from 2021, according to data from the Association of American Railroads. Of that, U.S. carload traffic was flat to lower, slipping 0.3% to nearly 12 million carloads, while intermodal volumes fell 4.9% to about 13.4 million containers and trailers. The...
https://www.freightwaves.com/news/us-freight-rail-traffic-slips-nearly-3-in-2022
Rail Roundup: Union Pacific ordered to fix service to Foster Farms
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STB orders UP to resolve service issues at Foster FarmsThe Surface Transportation Board wants Union...
https://www.freightwaves.com/news/rail-roundup-union-pacific-ordered-to-fix-service-to-foster-farms
Expect to hear more about rail service issues in 2023
The Surface Transportation Board’s regulatory to-do list, train crew sizes and merger conditions related to Canadian Pacific’s acquisition of Kansas City Southern are just some of the big issues that rail industry stakeholders will be watching in 2023.
One of the biggest issues that the U.S. freight industry will tackle is how to improve rail service. Closely related to that are the potential actions that STB could take to address that issue.
“After being dormant for much of the last decade, the...
https://www.freightwaves.com/news/expect-to-hear-more-about-rail-service-issues-in-2023
States press Supreme Court to address blocked railroad crossings
Nineteen states plus the District of Columbia have filed a legal briefing in support of Ohio’s request that the Supreme Court hear a case on whether states can have the authority to regulate railroad traffic at grade crossings.
Ohio is asking the Supreme Court to appeal a lower court ruling that determined that the Surface Transportation Board is the sole authority to regulate railroad activities. Ohio had argued that long trains operated by CSX (NASDAQ: CSX) were frequently blocking grade...
https://www.freightwaves.com/news/states-press-supreme-court-to-address-blocked-railroad-crossings