Railroads continue to play a significant role in North America’s economic infrastructure. According to the U.S. Department of Transportation Federal Railroad Administration, the U.S. rail freight network covers almost 140,000 route miles and is generally considered the largest, safest, and most cost-efficient freight system in the world. In addition, says the FRA, the almost $80 billion rail freight industry creates more than 167,000 jobs across the country.
In essence, rail freight companies charge businesses to carry cargo across their network of rails. Their rates are overseen by the Surface Transportation Board, a federal agency that regulates financial aspects of surface transportation. Major railroads in North America include Union Pacific Railroad, BNSF Railway, CSX, Norfolk Southern, Canadian Pacific Kansas City and Canadian National Railway.
Keep up with the latest news, trends and reports concerning rail freight transport here!
An autonomous railcar pilot program involving Parallel Systems’ self-propelled, battery-electric container cars will be conducted on two Genesee & Wyoming short lines in Georgia.
Republican Patrick J. Fuchs has been designated by President Trump as chairman of the Surface Transportation Board.
Decision says Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration failed by not preparing environmental report
At MARS meeting, the biggest U.S. Class 1 railroad also talks shipment security, Mexico business, and growth.
WASHINGTON — While global transportation transitions to a cleaner future fueled by alternative power sources, North American railroads have fewer good options outside of diesel fuel. “We love diesel; we like to take showers in diesel,” joked Michael Nicoletti, a partner at Innovative Rail Technologies (IRT), at “Toward Zero Emissions in Rail: Lessons Learned,” a […]
STB Chairman Robert Primus addressed the Midwest Association of Rail Shippers on Thursday.
Intermodal volumes boosted weekly U.S. rail traffic even as overall carloads slipped compared to the same week in 2024.
CN has rolled out a hybrid biofuel-ready locomotive it says could reduce fuel consumption by 50% compared with typical diesel power.
SCHAUMBURG, Ill. — The power of data, or more accurately, of well-used data, may not have explicitly been the topic of BNSF Railway CEO Katie Farmer’s presentation at the Midwest Association of Rail Shippers Winter Meeting. But it was a recurring theme of several subjects she touched on as part of her keynote address Wednesday […]
The California Air Resources Board (CARB) has scrapped its controversial rule that would have required the use of zero-emissions locomotives in the state beginning in 2030. The board informed the Environmental Protection Agency this week that it was withdrawing its requests to enforce zero-emissions rules covering trucks and locomotives. The move comes a week before […]
SCHAUMBURG, Ill. — The question of the day, on the first day of the Midwest Association of Rail Shippers Winter Meeting, is probably one being asked in one form or another at every business in the United States — or that does business with the U.S. What about tariffs? The consensus Wednesday was, not surprisingly, […]
Canadian National has gotten the go-ahead on its planned acquisition of Iowa Northern Railway.
While U.S. businesses look forward to 2025, the Association of American Railroads says policy and economic uncertainty tempers the year-ahead outlook.
The Bureau of Labor Statistics reported a slight decline in truck transportation employment in December, wrapping up a down year in the sector.
At the Transportation Research Board annual meeting, intermodalists advise and dissent over developments in the freight sector.
Weekly U.S. rail traffic showed a slight uptick over 2024 in the first report from the Association of American Railroads for 2025. Overall volume for the week ending Jan. 4 was 421,410 carloads and intermodal units, a 1% increase over the first week a year ago. That included 198,500 carloads, down 4.6%, and 222,910 containers […]
U.S. Customs and Border Protection is proposing a rule requiring railroads to provide more timely information to the agency for all export cargo to crack down on high-risk illegal shipments.
Stakeholders at the Transportation Research Board annual meeting gathered to evaluate port performance, a complicated conversation within the supply chain.
At TRB, educators and rail executives urge a strategic rethinking of how the industry attracts new talent, upskills current workers.
Firecrown acquires EnterTRAINment Junction, plans massive motion museum in Chattanooga.
