Railroad News

CN, the Canadian government and Vancouver Fraser Port Authority have signed an agreement calling for upgrades to the Burrard Inlet rail corridor that serves the south shore port area in Vancouver.

The work is necessary to increase capacity on a critical segment of trade infrastructure in the Vancouver area, according to a press release. The project calls for double tracking a 2.5-mile section of rail that links expanding import and export terminals on the Burrard Inlet's south shore to the national rail network.

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Milwaukee streetcar system The Hop has introduced a new real-time app aimed at improving the rider experience.

Developed by TransLoc Inc., the TransLoc Rider app provides real-time positioning of all streetcars along the route and vehicle arrival time estimates for each station. Riders also can receive alerts when a streetcar is nearing a particular station or when service is impacted or delayed.

Port Authority Transit Corp. (PATCO) will mark its 50th anniversary tomorrow by rolling back fares to 1969 prices.

On Feb. 15, 1969, PATCO completed its first trip from Lindenwold, New Jersey, to Center City in Philadelphia. From 6 a.m. to 11 a.m. tomorrow, fares will cost 30 cents to 60 cents, depending on the destination.

BNSF Railway Co. will spend $3.57 billion on capital expenditures this year, up from $3.4 billion in 2018, the Class I announced yesterday.

This year's plan will continue to emphasize maintenance and expansion of the network "with an unwavering focus on operating a safe railroad that meets customers' demands," BNSF officials said in a press release.

Compiled By This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it., Managing Editor

By This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it., Managing Editor

By This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it., Managing Editor

The American Short Line and Regional Railroad Association (ASLRRA) in January named Chuck Baker president. He assumed the post Feb. 4.

Norfolk Southern Corp. officials today will provide details of the Class I’s latest strategic plan, which includes targeting an operating ratio (OR) of 60 percent by 2021.

The details — which will be revealed at the railroad’s Investor and Financial Analyst Conference being held today in Atlanta — will cover ways to increase productivity, efficiency and growth.

The U.S. Coast Guard has released a draft environmental assessment (EA) of BNSF Railway Co.'s proposed construction of railroad bridges across Lake Pend Oreille and Sand Creek at Sandpoint in Bonner County, Idaho.

BNSF proposes constructing a second mainline track and associated bridges parallel to existing rail bridges that cross the lake and creek. As structures over U.S. navigable waters, the proposed bridges will require a Coast Guard bridge permit.

By This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it., Senior Associate Editor

Passing a permanent extension of the 45G short-line tax credit. Maintaining existing truck size and weight restrictions. Introducing a comprehensive infrastructure package that includes funding priority for freight and passenger rail. Shoring up the federal Highway Trust Fund. Continuing existing "balanced" regulations for freight railroads.

The "Canada's Top 100 Employers" project has recognized CN as one of Montreal's top employers, the Class I announced yesterday.

This is the third consecutive year that the railroad has been recognized by Canada's Top 100 Employers, an annual competition first published in 2006, CN officials said in a press release.

For the U.S. rail realm, this year’s legislative priorities — passing a permanent extension of the 45G short-line tax credit, maintaining existing truck size and weight restrictions, keeping the regulatory playing field “balanced” for freight railroads — are, for the most part, of the usual-suspect variety, as Senior Associate Editor Julie Sneider reports in this month’s cover story. But rail advocates have a few other concerns they’ll be talking about with lawmakers and their staffers — including the potential monitoring of railroads that implement precision scheduled railroading (PSR).

Last month, Railway Supply Institute Vice President of Government Affairs Nicole Brewin told Sneider she’d heard rumblings that congressional hearings could be in the offing on such topics as PSR. We heard similar comments about oversight interest in PSR late last fall during our annual RailTrends summit.

By Michael Popke

CN employees who are members of United Steelworkers Local 2004 (USW) have approved a new five-year contract, the union and Class I announced yesterday.

For the past several weeks, members have been voting on the tentative agreement reached between CN and Local 2004 in December 2018. The contract covers 3,000 USW members who inspect, maintain and repair CN's system of track, bridges and infrastructure in Canada.

A Canadian Pacific unit grain train began to move on its own prior to a fatal derailment that occurred early Monday near Field, British Columbia, the Transportation Safety Board of Canada (TSB) announced yesterday.

The derailment, which occurred between the Upper and Lower Spiral Tunnel, resulted in the deaths of the train's three crew members. They were identified as conductor Dylan Paradis, engineer Andrew Dockrell and trainee Daniel Waldenberger-Bulmer.

A Canadian Pacific grain train derailed early yesterday near Field, British Columbia, resulting in the deaths of the train's three crew members.

The deceased were identified as conductor Dylan Paradis, engineer Andrew Dockrell and trainee Daniel Waldenberger-Bulmer, according to a statement issued by CP President and Chief Executive Officer Keith Creel.

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Will business be better this year than it was last year? Will it be about the same? Worse? What are the key issues facing the rail finance and leasing sector in 2019? 

Unifor Local 100 members have voted in favor of ratifying a new four-year collective agreement with CN.

The agreement — which covers 2,100 locomotive and freight-car mechanics, electricians and apprentices — represents a "breakthrough in improvements to benefits at CN," Unifor officials said in a press release.

BNSF Railway Co. announced yesterday that plant construction and upgrade investments made by its customers in 2018 totaled nearly $3 billion.

Last year marked the eighth consecutive year that BNSF customers and local economic development organizations have invested more than $1 billion in a calendar year for new or expanded facilities, according to a BNSF press release.