United Transportation Union Sheet Metal, Air, Rail & Transportation workers (UTU-SMART) and Kyle Railroad reached an agreement on a proposed contract for all crafts under UTU-SMART’s jurisdiction, which include: engineers, conductors, brakemen, maintenance of way employees, signal employees, mechanics, helpers and apprentices, carmen and welders.
New Mexico Gov. Susana Martinez has signed the Locomotive Fuel Gross Receipts Tax (GRT) exemption bill, designed to encourage further growth of the railroad industry, as well as continued growth of exports and manufacturing in New Mexico.
The North Carolina Department of Transportation (NCDOT) named Paul Worley director of the Rail Division.
Construction has begun on the Green Port Gateway, a major port-to-rail infrastructure expansion project in California that will help reduce congestion near the Port of Long Beach by shifting more cargo from trucks to trains.
Coalspur Mines Limited has reached a definitive agreement with Canadian National (CN) for the transportation of thermal coal from its Vista Coal Project to Ridley Terminals Inc., as well as final agreement with CN regarding the construction of the railway line to serve the mine.
The rail line construction agreement will govern the construction of a 6.5-kilometer (four-mile) long line providing CN access to Coalspur’s loading site. The rail line will enable Coalspur to load the entire train in one continuous load. Subject to regulatory approval, construction activity is expected to begin in Q3 2013 and be completed in early 2015. CN will ensure the rail line meets its design and construction specifications.
“We are very pleased to have finalized these contracts with CN,” said Gill Winckler, Coalspur president and CEO. “The agreements provide further clarity and stability over our operating costs in the initial years of mining at Vista. Rail and port logistics costs account for approximately 50 percent of Coalspur’s Freight on Board cash costs, which are now under contracted rates.
The definitive rail transportation agreement with CN is for a seven-year period, effective from Jan. 1, 2013 and extending through to Dec. 31, 2019. CN will supply the equipment to carry Coalspur’s coal to tidewater. The agreement includes transportation of up to 12 million tons per annum of coal and defined rates with agreed escalation and fuel surcharge calculations.
As reported by Railway Age, Dennis Glenn Boll, retired Assistant Vice President-Signals, BNSF Railway, died Wednesday, March 20, 2013 at Rice Memorial Hospital in Willmar, Minn., after a long battle with cancer. He was 65.
U.S. Senators Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) and David Vitter (R-LA) introduced the Railroad Antitrust Enforcement Act on Thursday, March 21.
Union Pacific (UP) plans to strengthen Missouri’s transportation infrastructure by investing $21 million to construct a more-than-nine-mile second mainline track in the Bell City area, in southeast Missouri.
Canadian National (CN) has relocated its forest products transload operation to North America Stevedoring Company, LLC’s operation at the Port of Chicago to improve supply chain efficiencies for lumber customers.
U.S. House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure Chairman Bill Shuster (R-PA) appointed Jim Billimoria to lead the committee’s communications and public relations efforts in the 113th Congress.
The Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen (BLET) will enter its 150th year on May 8, 2013. BLET notes that it is the oldest transportation labor organization in North America.
The American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) released its “2013 Report Card for America’s Infrastructure” on Tuesday, March 19. The report is an assessment of 16 infrastructure categories in the United States that takes place every four years.
Kansas City Southern (KCS) has released its monthly State of Safety report, noting a 50 percent reduction in grade crossing collisions through February 2013, as compared to the same timeframe last year.
Dakota Plains Holdings, Inc., and joint-venture partner, Petroleum Transport Solutions, LLC, started construction for the Pioneer Project in North Dakota, an expansion of the New Town transloading facility located in the heart of the Williston Basin.
Representatives from the nation’s freight railroads, labor groups, rail suppliers and state and local officials joined together on March 14, 2013, for the annual Railroad Day on Capitol Hill.
Kansas City Southern (KCS) and the Poteau Police Department hosted an Officer on a Train event on March 14 to promote public safety at railroad crossings in Poteau, Okla.
Canadian National (CN) has named three vice presidents as part of the company’s executive changes.
The Metropolitan Phoenix chapter of Women in Transportation named Union Pacific’s (UP) Zoe Richmond Woman of the Year. Richmond currently serves as director of public affairs in Arizona and New Mexico.
The Association of American Railroads (AAR) recently announced that 2012 was the safest year in the rail industry’s history, according to new statistics from the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA).