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!
Japanese shipping firm Ocean Network Express has filed a lawsuit against Union Pacific because a shipment of solar panels was stolen in transit.
The Surface Transportation Board wants BNSF, CSX, Norfolk Southern and Union Pacific to submit additional information on their rail service recovery plans after finding that the initial plan submissions “were perfunctory” and lacked detail.
The Surface Transportation Board has granted Amtrak’s request to access limited confidential data from CSX and Norfolk Southern as the board mulls Amtrak’s request to establish Gulf Coast passenger rail service. The board also ordered mediation among all parties.
The Federal Railroad Administration is now requiring the Class I railroads, Amtrak and commuter railroads to submit fatigue risk management plans annually to the agency.
OceaNS Bridge Express, a partnership among NS, Union Pacific, Hapag-Lloyd and the Port of Virginia, could be a means to avoid West Coast port congestion while taking advantage of East Coast port capacity improvements.
FreightWaves chats with Harris Ligon, founder and CEO of Telegraph, a startup that seeks to streamline rail service data in order to make day-to-day operations smoother.
The Western U.S. railroad joins the seven-member industry coalition as well as provides an update at an investor conference on how operations are going.
CN will implement Wabtec’s precision dispatch system over the next year.
The Federal Railroad Administration said Thursday that 46 projects across the U.S. have received more than $368 million in grants for rail-related infrastructure improvements.
A bipartisan group of U.S. representatives is supporting a bill that would encourage companies to replace or modernize older freight railcars via a tax credit.
FreightWaves chatted with new National Railway Equipment CEO Merritt Becker about how NRE expects to help companies deploy technology to their older locomotive and inland waterway fleets.
CSX has completed its acquisition of New England short line Pan Am Railways. CSX first announced plans to acquire Pan Am in November 2020.
The Federal Railroad Administration grant will be used to upgrade the intermodal rail yards at the Seagirt Marine Terminal.
Trinity Industries’ acquisition aims to benefit rail shippers, while Canadian Pacific’s agreement with Hapag-Lloyd seeks to provide service to key inland Canadian and U.S. Midwest markets.
Nexxiot will provide tracking technology for Knorr-Bremse’s railcar component systems.
AskWaves defines what the common carrier obligation is and why the concept has garnered attention lately.
U.S. freight railroads and a rail union disagree over what’s the best way to deploy enhanced track geometry inspections.
The port is undergoing a modernization initiative and aims to double container capacity as part of a broader effort to attract market share from Northeast and Midwest customers.
A bipartisan group of U.S. senators wants the Surface Transportation Board to take action to address service delays and congestion on the freight rail network.
Georgia Central Railway will serve Hyundai Motor Group’s $5.5 billion-dollar electric vehicle and battery manufacturing facility near Savannah.
