The North Carolina Department of Transportation (NCDOT) has programmed approximately $3.7 million to fund 15 projects across the state through the Freight Rail and Rail Crossing Safety Improvement program for Fiscal Year 2015.
BNSF continues to detail plans for its $6-billion capital program with $141 million estimated to be spent in California and $103 million in Kansas.
BNSF‘s 2015 capital program for its operations in Oklahoma will be an estimated $118 million for rail maintenance and capacity improvement projects.
BNSF detailed more of its plans for its record-setting $6-billion capital program with $124 million estimated to be spend in Montana and $141 million in Colorado.
Genesee & Wyoming Inc. has agreed to acquire approximately 95 percent of the shares of Freightliner Group Limited (Freightliner) from Arcapita and other shareholders for cash consideration of approximately $755 million and to assume approximately $13 million in net debt and capitalized leases.
Peru Industrial Railroad, LLC, a managed affiliate of OmniTRAX, Inc., is purchasing the Peru Rail Line from the city of Peru, Ill. Peru Industrial Railroad will run freight service on three miles of track starting immediately. Terms were not disclosed.
In its investigation report, the Transportation Safety Board of Canada (TSB) determined that numerous rail fractures led to the October 2013 derailment and fire involving a Canadian National (CN) train in Gainford, Alberta.
On October 19, 2013, a CN freight train, travelling from Edmonton, Alberta, to Vancouver, British Columbia, derailed 13 cars, including four DOT 111 tank cars containing petroleum crude oil and nine DOT 112 tank cars containing liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) in the siding at Gainford, Alberta. Two LPG tank cars were breached during the derailment and caught fire and a third LPG car released product from its safety valve which ignited. About 600 feet of track was destroyed and a house located directly north of the derailment site was damaged by the fire.
The investigation determined that the train derailed when one or more rail breaks occurred in the high rail as the train travelled through the curve in the Gainford siding. TSB said numerous defects were found along the length of the high rail in the curve. A rail-flaw detection test through the area two months earlier had not identified these defects. In March 2013, the low rail had been replaced with a new rail that reduced the curve’s superelevation. TSB noted that in this situation, more stress was placed on the high rail, increasing the risk of rail defect development and failure.
One of the DOT 112 tank cars carrying LPG was punctured in the underside by the coupler from another car. This caused it to release its load and explode. None of the DOT 111 tank cars, which were built to the CPC-1232 standard, released petroleum crude oil, as the cars derailed in a line on their sides and did not suffer secondary impacts.
Following the occurrence, CN conducted walking inspections and rail-flaw detection re-testing on all 25 mph sidings. Speed was reduced to 15 mph in these sidings until they were retested. Rail grinding within these sidings was also programmed to remove rail surface defects.
Canadian National and Unifor have negotiated a tentative labor agreement with the Unifor union. As a result, CN has withdrawn its lockout notice to Unifor, which would have come effective at 11p.m. local time tonight in the absence of a settlement.
The N.C. Department of Transportation (NCDOT) will hold a public meeting to review results of the recent study of reactivating the Murphy Branch rail line between Andrews and Murphy (A2M- Rail Reactivation Study).
Kansas City Southern, as part of its succession planning process, appointed Patrick Ottensmeyer president, effective March 1, 2015.
BNSF ‘s 2015 capital program for its operations in Wisconsin will be an estimated $120 million for rail maintenance and capacity improvement projects.
Fortune named Union Pacific the most admired among trucking, transportation and logistics companies for the fifth consecutive year, marking the twelfth time in 16 years the company has been named No. 1.
BNSF‘s 2015 capital program for its operations in Missouri will be an estimated $153 million for rail capacity improvement projects and maintenance.
Canadian National‘s locomotive engineers and conductors working on the Northern Quebec Internal Short Line, who are represented by the Teamsters Canada Rail Conference (TCRC) union, have ratified a new collective agreement. The four-year agreement provides wage increases and benefit improvements to 93 employees.
U.S. Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx joined Rep. Buddy Carter (R-GA-01) and local officials Feb. 17 at the proposed Brampton Road Connector in Georgia and pointed to Savannah’s efforts to move freight faster and more efficiently as an example of communities’ needs nationwide.
Patriot Rail Company LLC promoted Jennifer Whiteman to chief financial officer and added Justin Broyles as vice president sales.
Canadian National has negotiated a tentative labor agreement with the Teamsters Canada Rail Conference (TCRC) union that represents approximately 1,800 of the company’s locomotive engineers in Canada.
BNSF‘s 2015 capital program for its operations in Texas will be an estimated $223 million for rail capacity improvement projects and maintenance.
The CSX Board of Directors have unanimously elected Oscar Munoz as president, overseeing operations, sales and marketing, human resources, service design and information technology. Munoz assumes this new role effective immediately and also remains chief operating officer.
BNSF ‘s 2015 capital program for its operations in North Dakota will be an estimated $326 million for rail capacity improvement projects and maintenance.