Rail Industry News

(Source: Railway Age, September 12, 2017) NEW YORK — Union Pacific and its rail partners plan to up the frequency of its Cold Connect refrigerated produce service with an eye on expanded market opportunities for Idaho potatoes in New York state. Full story: Railway...

(Source: CTV News, September 12, 2017) MONTREAL — The fire department and CN ran a drill Tuesday to practice how they would handle a train crash involving dangerous material. This kind of training has ramped up since the deadly train accident in Lac-Megantic four...

(Source: Globe and Mail opinion column by Kevin Quigley, September 11, 2017) TORONTO — In popular culture, different types of crises and disasters generate different types of narratives about accountability. Natural disasters such as Hurricane Harvey and the B.C....

(Source: Crain’s New York Business, September 12, 2017) NEW YORK — The head of Amtrak defended the $30 billion price tag of a plan to build a rail tunnel under the Hudson River, expand Penn Station and add a bridge in New Jersey. He said he expected construction to...

(Source: AM New York, September 12, 2017) NEW YORK — Amtrak chairman Tony Coscia on Tuesday described last week’s joint meeting with the Trump administration on the Gateway Program as “very productive,” but warned that costs to build new rail tunnels under the Hudson...

(Source: Courthouse News Service, September 13, 2017) WASHINGTON, D.C. — In a win for two railroad giants accused of collusion by billionaire William Koch’s coal company, a federal judge ordered Koch to produce records, rejecting the argument that doing so would be...

(Source: Progressive Railroading, September 12, 2017) U.S. House Transportation and Infrastructure (T&I) Committee Chairman Bill Shuster (R-Pa.) announced last week that Denny Wirtz has been appointed staff director of the Subcommittee on Railroads, Pipelines and...

(Source: Los Angeles Daily News, September 12, 2017) LOS ANGELES — September 12, 2017, marked the ninth anniversary of the 2008 Chatsworth train crash, considered the largest commuter rail disaster in state history. The crash occurred when a Metrolink train collided...

(Source: Associated Press, September 12, 2017) WICHITA, Kan. — Hard red winter wheat exports are flowing again from the Plains states to the battered Gulf Coast for shipment overseas. Full story: www.wtop.com

(Source: Norfolk Southern service alert, September 12, 2017) NORFOLK, Va. — Effective immediately the ingate is open for shipments originating at the Jacksonville Intermodal facility. To enhance velocity through the facility, drivers ingating shipments will be...

(Source: Reuters, September 12, 2017) SEATTLE — CSX Corp said on Tuesday it expects to re-open rail traffic into Jacksonville, Florida, later this evening, although customers should expect delays as crews work despite power outages and fallen trees in the region. Full...

(Source: Associated Press, September 12, 2017) PHILADELPHIA — An unusual, 11th-hour attempt to put an Amtrak engineer behind bars for a deadly 2015 derailment in Philadelphia unraveled Tuesday as a judge dismissed the case without trial because he found the evidence...

(Source: Chicago Daily Herald, September 11, 2017) CHICAGO — Metra's incoming chief starts with a daunting challenge -- a 2 percent cut in state funding for transit. Full story: Chicago Daily Herald

(Source: Fresno Bee, September 11, 2017) FRESNO, Calif. — Drivers on Tulare Street in downtown Fresno will have to deal with closures and detours for high-speed rail construction starting later this month near Chinatown. And nearby merchants are already fearful about...

(Source: Baker Donelson, September 12, 2017) WASHINGTON, D.C. — Earlier this month, in EEOC v. Union Pacific Railroad, No. 15-3452, F.3d (7th Cir. Aug. 15, 2017), the Seventh Circuit issued a decision regarding the scope of the EEOC's right to investigate. It...

(Source: Think Progress, September 11, 2017) WASHINGTON, D.C. — President Donald Trump intends to nominate a long-time executive with the freight rail industry to serve as administrator of the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA), a...

(Source: CBC News, September 11, 2017) MONTREAL — Dozens of prospective jurors were exempt on Monday as jury selection got underway in the trial of the three men charged in the Lac-Mégantic train derailment. Full story: CBC News

(Source: International Brotherhood of Teamsters press release, September 8, 2017) LOS ANGELES and SAN FRANCISCO, Calif. — Seven trailer trucks loaded with critically-needed supplies left California this morning on a mission of mercy for the victims of hurricane Harvey...

(Source: Associated Press, September 11, 2017) PHILADELPHIA — The engineer in a deadly Amtrak derailment is due in court for a preliminary hearing to determine if he’ll face trial on criminal charges that were filed only after a victim’s family intervened and a judge...

(Source: www.nj.com, September 12, 2017) WASHINGTON, D.C. — The Transportation Security Administration has yet to strengthen security procedures at railroads a decade after legislation required such actions in response to the 9/11 terrorist attacks, according to two...