CALGARY, Alberta and NORFOLK, Va. — Norfolk Southern Corporation and Canadian Pacific Railway announced that CPR has granted Norfolk Southern Railway Company (NS) trackage rights between Sunbury, Pennsylvania and Mechanicville, New York. The granting of trackage rights is part of a continuing joint effort by both companies to improve freight service to upstate New York, northern Pennsylvania and New England.
“This agreement is part of our mission to build strong strategic partnerships with North American railways that deliver value to customers and shareholders alike,” said Fred Green, CPR’s Senior Vice President of Marketing & Sales. “The agreement is in line with CPR’s strategy to maximize the value of its network in the Northeastern U.S. by creating additional traffic density on our Delaware & Hudson (D&H) lines, which will aid in improving the financial performance of the D&H substantially.”
“This agreement further improves our competitive routes between New England and the Midwest and Southeast,” said Jim McClellan, Norfolk Southern’s senior vice president Strategic Planning. “We also gain a new, direct and efficient route between central New York state and points south.”
To accommodate the increase in traffic, a new passing siding will be constructed on CPR’s D&H line at Clarks Summit, Pa. CPR, NS and the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania will jointly fund the $2 million project. Additionally, the new agreement modifies existing trackage and haulage agreements.
The agreement expands on the successful partnership between NS and CPR in the Northeast. In 1998, NS and CPR completed a $12 million upgrade of the Sunbury Line between Sunbury and Scranton. In 2001, CPR and NS introduced a new intermodal service between the Port of New York/New Jersey, Montreal and Toronto.
Canadian Pacific Railway is North America’s first transcontinental railway, and is the only transcontinental carrier with direct service to the U.S. Eastern Seaboard. CPR’s 14,000-mile network serves the principal centres of Canada, from Montreal to Vancouver, as well as the U.S. Midwest and Northeast regions, and links North America with Europe and the Pacific Rim. Alliances with other carriers extend CPR’s market reach beyond its own network in the U.S., and into the major business centres of Mexico. For more information, visit CPR’s website at www.cpr.ca.
Norfolk Southern Corporation is a Virginia-based holding company with headquarters in Norfolk. It owns a major freight railroad, Norfolk Southern Railway Company, which operates approximately 21,500 route miles in 22 states, the District of Columbia and the province of Ontario. For more information, visit Norfolk Southern’s website at www.nscorp.com.