Rail Industry News

(Source: Spokesman-Review, October 30, 2017) BOISE, Idaho — Eight years after paying out $482 million to fund cleanup from a century of mining contamination in North Idaho’s Silver Valley, the copper mining firm Asarco is back in court, demanding that Union Pacific...

(Source: Television station WSMV, October 30, 2017) SPRING HILL, Tenn. — First responders in Spring Hill say freight trains are sometimes adding 10 minutes to their emergency response times. Full story: www.wsmv.com

(Source: International Brotherhood of Teamsters press release, October 30, 2017) WASHINGTON, D.C. — The following is the official statement of Teamsters General President James P. Hoffa on the report that the U.S. Department of Justice today filed an appeal of the...

(Source: Herald and News, October 31, 2017) KLAMATH FALLS, Ore. — A former rail yard employee accused of killing his supervisor in 2014 is standing trial this week in Klamath County Circuit Court. James Harold Forshee, 62, is facing a single count of murder for the...

(Source: Philadelphia Inquirer, October 30, 2017) PHILADELPHIA — Jeff Knueppel refers to the railroad he runs with language reminiscent of “Humpty Dumpty,” speaking of broken pieces that need to be put “back together.” Full story: Philadelphia Inquirer

(Source: Bloomberg, October 26, 2017) NEW YORK — Three top executives don't leave a company when everything is going swimmingly. CSX Corp., the railroad that replaced its CEO with storied cost-cutter Hunter Harrison amid pressure from an activist investor, announced...

(Source: CBC News, October 30, 2017) MONTREAL — Two days after a runaway train derailed in Lac-Mégantic, exploding and killing 47 people, Transport Canada inspector Alain Richer found another train belonging to the Montreal, Maine and Atlantic (MMA) railway parked in...

(Source: CBC News, October 31, 2017) OTTAWA — With new oilsands megaprojects commencing operations in the next few months, the amount of oil traveling on rail lines could escalate, especially as construction of new pipelines is delayed. Full story: www.cbc.ca

(Source: Roanoke Times, October 30, 2017) ROANOKE, Va. — Amtrak brought back passenger rail Monday. A blue passenger train reached downtown Roanoke at 12:05 p.m., drawing applause from people in the street. What fueled the excitement was a decision by Amtrak to revamp...

(Source: Television station WSLS, October 31, 2017) ROANOKE, Va. — The first Amtrak passenger train to take off out of Roanoke in nearly 40 years has left the Star City. More than 240 passengers booked a ticket for the 6:19 a.m. trip out of Roanoke. The train will...

(Source: Operation Lifesaver press release, October 27, 2017) WASHINGTON, D.C. — Operation Lifesaver, Inc., (OLI) President Bonnie Murphy announced that she will complete her term with the nonprofit on November 1 to join Dallas Area Rapid Transit (DART) as Vice...

(Source: Opinion column by Virginia Secretary of Transportation Aubrey Layne, October 30, 2017) ROANOKE, Va. — When Amtrak Northeast Regional Train 176 blows its horn and departs from downtown Roanoke at 6:19 a.m. Halloween morning, it will signal more than the return...

(Source: Opinion column by Larry Penner at www.metro.us, October 30, 2017) NEW YORK — Proposals by Amtrak to delay the decades-overdue major repairs to the four East River tunnels until after the LIRR begins service into Grand Central Terminal in December 2023 is bad...

(Source: Associated Press, October 30, 2017) ATLANTA — One of the nation's largest railroads says it must replace millions of defective wooden railroad ties under its tracks because they're degrading faster than expected. In a federal lawsuit, Norfolk Southern Railway...

(Source: Opinion column by Bruce Campbell at www.rabble.ca, October 30, 2017) TORONTO — The trial of the three frontline workers charged with criminal negligence causing death in the Lac-Mégantic oil train disaster has now begun in a Sherbrooke, Québec, courtroom. If...

(Source: DeSmog Blog, October 28, 2017) NEW YORK — On July 29, 2013 Thomas J. Herrmann of the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) wrote a letter to Jack Gerard, president and CEO of the American Petroleum Institute (API). The letter was in response to the oil train...

(Source: Railway Age, October 27, 2017) NEW YORK — Amtrak has instituted a Voluntary Separation Incentive Program (VSIP) to reduce the number of non-agreement (non-union) employees. The railroad is offering what it’s calling a “generous incentive program” to those who...

(Source: CBS New York, October 29, 2017) NEW YORK — Senate Minority Leader Charles Schumer called on the Metropolitan Transportation Authority to “move heaven and earth” to install Positive Train Control on the Long Island Rail Road and the Metro-North Railroad, with...

(Source: Mass Live, October 30, 2017) BOSTON — Amtrak service between Boston and New Haven, Connecticut is suspended Monday morning after a storm with hurricane-force winds swept through the region. Full story: www.masslive.com

(Source: Bergen Record, October 27, 2017) BERGEN COUNTY, N.J. — NJ Transit's ridership declined 3 percent last year, reflecting the impact of a major crash, a string of derailments and an agency struggling to maintain a consistently functional level of service. Full...