Railroad News

Norfolk Southern Corp. wouldn't work with the Great Lakes Basin Transportation Inc.'s (GLBT) proposed freight-rail line that would bypass the congested Chicago area, according to a letter the Class I filed last month with the Surface Transportation Board (STB).

The STB has been accepting comments and holding hearings about the GLBT's proposal to construct a 278-mile freight-rail route around the Chicago area, which the company has stated would help to speed up freight transportation and provide additional capacity for growing rail traffic.

BNSF Railway Co. eliminated 62 management jobs last week and realigned its operations organization from three regions to two as of June 1.

Two major factors drove the changes: a reduction in coal traffic as well as "significant capital investments" made to increase efficiency and safety, according to a company statement.

Union Pacific Railroad plans to spend a total of $91.7 million this year to improve its infrastructure in Missouri and Arizona, the Class I announced this week.

In Missouri, UP has budgeted $54 million, with $37.7 million going toward track maintenance and $15.5 million toward bridge maintenance, according to a UP press release.

Union Pacific Railroad has received Toyota Logistics Services' 2015 Logistics Excellence Award in Customer Service, the Class I announced yesterday.

Toyota measures outstanding performance of all logistics suppliers, including railroads. Its Logistics Excellence Award considers communication, equipment supply, transit performance, responsiveness, collaboration, business controls and overall ease of doing business, according to a UP press release.

A Wisconsin judge has determined that state Department of Natural Resources (DNR) officials followed state law when they issued permits to BNSF Railway Co. to build a second track through a marsh in LaCrosse, according to a report in The LaCrosse Tribune.

In a petition filed last year, the Midwest Environmental Advocates filed a petition arguing that the DNR did not conduct a full environmental impact statement under Wisconsin law when it reviewed BNSF's application, the newspaper reported.

CSX Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Michael Ward late last week announced several senior leadership changes, including the July 1 retirement of Lisa Mancini, the Class I's executive vice president and chief administrative officer.

The company is realigning its senior team to advance its vision for the workforce, service, productivity and technology of the future, CSX officials said in a press release.

The Orange County Transit Authority (OCTA) and local government officials recently marked the completion or near completion of two rail bridge projects as part of a broader effort by Orange, County, Calif., to separate car and pedestrian traffic from a freight-rail line, the authority announced earlier this week.

A ceremony was held Tuesday on top of the new Orangethorpe Avenue overpass near Miller Street at the border of Placentia and Anaheim, Calif. Construction has been underway for the past three years on the Orangethorpe overpass and the Tustin Avenue/Rose Road overpass.

Union Pacific Railroad, the Federal Railroad Administration and Port of Tucson officials last week marked the completion of a $5 million expansion of the port's rail infrastructure and container export facility.

Funded with a $5 million grant funded in 2013 through the federal Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery (TIGER) program, the project covered several infrastructure upgrades including the installation of siding extensions, high-speed power switches and a new main line switch to increase flexible operations at the site, according to a post on UP's Inside Track blog.

Union Pacific Railroad will spend $70.9 million this year to improve rail track and bridges in Colorado, the Class I announced yesterday.

The announcement is one of a series of state-by-state plans that UP has been rolling out as part of its list of $3.7 billion worth of infrastructure projects it has planned for its rail network this year.

CSX Corp. Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer Frank Lonegro updated investors and analysts yesterday on the company's second-quarter and full year expectations, as well as plans to continue managing a transition in its business mix.

For the second quarter, CSX expects high-single digit volume declines, which will negatively affect earnings for the quarter. In addition, market forces are expected to offset gains in safety, service, pricing and efficiency, resulting in CSX's first full-year earnings decline since the recession, according to a CSX press release.

The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) yesterday determined the May 2015 Amtrak train derailment in Philadelphia was caused by the train engineer's loss of "situational awareness" after his attention was distracted by radio communications of an emergency involving another train.

The board determined that the Amtrak engineer was not impaired by any substance and was not using his cell phone. Investigators found no evidence that the engineer was fatigued or suffering from a pre-existing medical condition while operating the train. The board described the engineer as "very cooperative" when he was interviewed by NTSB investigators.

BNSF Railway Co. announced late last week that Greg Fox, executive vice president of operations, will retire in August after more than 30 years with the railroad.

Fox, who has served in his current post since November 2010, will be succeeded by Dave Freeman effective June 1. Freeman will oversee the entire operations organization, including engineering, environmental, mechanical, operations support, transportation, safety and training, service design and resource protection.

The Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT) last week awarded a contract to Garco Construction Inc. to build a new Amtrak station in Tacoma, Wash.

Construction is slated to begin June 6 and to be completed in fall 2017, WSDOT officials said in a press release.

The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) is meeting this morning to report on its findings and the probable cause of the May 2015 fatal Amtrak derailment in Philadelphia.

On May 12, 2015, northbound Amtrak train No. 188 derailed on the Northeast Corridor route after entering a curve at 106 mph where the speed limit is 50 mph. The locomotive and all seven passenger cars derailed. Eight passengers were killed and more than 200 others were injured.

Union Pacific Railroad and international logistics service provider Katoen Natie announced today a new service that transports plastic pellets from the Gulf region to Dallas.

The Dallas-to-Dock Service will transport the pellets in hopper cars to Dallas, where they will be packaged and transferred to intermodal containers. From there, the containers will travel to ocean ports via the railroad's intermodal service, according to a UP press release.

Union Pacific Railroad announced this week that it would spend more than $228 million this year to improve railroad infrastructure in Kansas, Nebraska and Illinois.

The projects are part of UP's plans to spend a total $3.7 billion across its network this year, the Class I said in a press release.

Evergreen Shipping Agency (America) Corp. has selected CN as its 2015 "Railroad Company of the Year" in recognition of the Class I's consistent level of high performance to customers.

Evergreen selected CN because of its "excellent professional service to our shared customers … and consistent level of performance as a transportation provider," said Evergreen Shipping Agency President Roy Amalfitano in a press release.

Kansas City Southern yesterday announced Patrick Ottensmeyer will succeed David Starling as chief executive officer effective July 1. Starling will serve as senior adviser to Ottensmeyer until Starling retires on Dec. 31.

Ottensmeyer will retain the position of president, a title he's held since March 1, 2015. Starling will remain a member of KCS' board until May 2017. Ottensmeyer will join the board when he becomes CEO.

CN and city of Montreal officials yesterday announced a plan to strengthen railroad safety efforts.

Montreal Mayor Denis Coderre and CN Executive Vice­ President, Corporate Services and Chief Legal Officer Sean Finn met at the Class I's Montreal headquarters to discuss strengthening their "partnership" on safety matters, according to a CN press release.

At nearly 37 mph, BNSF's intermodal train velocity of late is about 17 percent higher than the U.S. Class I average.

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