(The following article by Christopher Dinsmore was posted on the Virginian-Pilot website on November 9.)
NORFOLK, Va. — Cutting 330 miles and as many as two days off rail shipments between eastern Canada and the eastern United States, a new freight-hauling agreement was announced Monday by Norfolk Southern Corp., Canadian National Railway Co. and Canadian Pacific Railway.
The deal gives Canadian National and Norfolk Southern seamless, direct service over Canadian Pacific’s north-south rail lines south of Montreal.
Under the arrangement, Canadian Pacific trains will haul Canadian National traffic destined for Norfolk Southern over its line between Rouses Point, N.Y., and Saratoga Springs, N.Y. Norfolk Southern trains will haul the traffic over Canadian Pacific’s line from Saratoga Springs to near Harrisburg, Pa.
This agreement extends the gains of an agreement Norfolk Southern reached with Canadian Pacific on June 30.
Canadian National traffic destined for Norfolk Southern currently is interchanged in Buffalo, N.Y. The new agreement will cut 330 miles and as many as two days off that circuitous route from eastern Canada.
To be implemented Nov. 19, the agreement will affect about 20,000 shipments a year when it goes into effect, the railroads said.
“We continue to identify and implement efficiencies benefiting shippers throughout North America,” said David R. Goode, chairman and chief executive officer of Norfolk-based Norfolk Southern. “This agreement demonstrates our commitment to aggressively pursue opportunities to improve service.”
The agreement will benefit all three railroads and their customers, said E. Hunter Harrison, Canadian National’s president and chief executive officer. His railroad’s customers in Quebec and the Maritime provinces will have faster access to the big eastern U.S. consumer market, he said.
“This is an important initiative that takes costs out of the rail industry by placing freight traffic on the most efficient routing without regard to ownership,” said Rob Ritchie, Canadian Pacific’s president and chief executive officer.
Norfolk Southern’s 21,500-mile rail network covers 22 states in the eastern United States and reaches into Ontario, Canada. Canadian National’s 19,560-mile system spans Canada from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and reaches south from the Great Lakes to the Gulf of Mexico in the United States. Canadian Pacific’s 14,000-mile railroad also spans Canada and reaches into the U.S. Midwest and Northeast.
Norfolk Southern’s stock rose 41 cents to $35.24 in Monday trading.