SRF Selected for Wilmington Rail Realignment
The City of Wilmington, N.C., has selected Philadelphia-based Strategic Rail Finance to study the feasibility of its long-planned rail realignment project.
The City of Wilmington, N.C., has selected Philadelphia-based Strategic Rail Finance to study the feasibility of its long-planned rail realignment project.
The Railway Supply Institute has elected Tricia Charles, Jeff Lytle and Harrison Wadsworth to its board of directors for three-year terms beginning Jan. 1, 2021. As well, RSI Vice President Government and Public Affairs Nicole Brewin was appointed to the Federal Railroad Administration Rail Safety Advisory Committee (RSAC).
According to two third-quarter 2020 surveys conducted by Cowen and Company analysts Jason Seidl, Matt Elkott and Adam Kramer, freight car order expectations by the shipper sub-group of railcar buyers have risen, “reflecting a net incremental positive for demand”; and rail shippers expect rail price increases of 3.1%, up 80bps sequentially, as “economic expectations increased sequentially and many are now in line with the survey’s averages, if not higher.”
Canadian Pacific and OMERS, the defined benefit pension plan for municipal employees in the province of Ontario, have entered into a purchase agreement whereby CP will acquire full ownership of the Detroit River Rail Tunnel from certain affiliates of OMERS. The purchase price for the transaction, currently expected to close at the end of 4Q2020, is approximately US$312 million and remains subject to customary closing conditions, including regulatory approvals.
Kansas City Southern, the first Class I railroad out of the earnings report gate, took a revenue hit based on a carloadings drop, yet managed to post a 58.8% quarterly operating ratio. KCS also will initiate a $500 million share repurchase program on Oct. 16.
On the day marking the 40th anniversary of the Staggers Rail Act being signed into law, the Association of American Railroads (AAR) was able to report, for the first time in recent memory, that U.S. rail traffic registered a weekly gain, as intermodal growth offset a carload decline by a wide margin.
Forty years ago today (Oct. 14, 1980), President Jimmy Carter signed the Staggers Rail Act into law. The landmark legislation partially deregulated the U.S. rail industry, and created “today’s nimble, resilient rail network … built upon a rock-solid foundation,” noted Association of American Railroads President and CEO Ian Jefferies. It enabled railroads to enter into contracts with shippers and set rates without Interstate Commerce Commission approval.
This edition of our continuing series with the Commuter Rail Coalition takes a look ahead at technology, policy and performance. What’s next as Positive Train Control evolves to “PTC 2.0”? What’s possible?
Class I third-quarter earnings are coming up, and Cowen and Company analysts Jason Seidl (Managing Director and Railway Age Wall Street Contributing Editor), Matt Elkott and Adam Kramer are fine-tuning their models “to reflect carloads in the quarter, mix, fuel, and other adjustments.” 3Q20 “saw a divergence between carload and intermodal traffic, with the latter driven by pent-up demand and tightness in the trucking market.”
Based on the popularity of its virtual “Rail Insights” conference held this past June, Railway Age is presenting “Rail Insights Canada,” a virtual two-hour conference scheduled for Oct. 27, 2020. Registration is complimentary.