Union Pacific on May 8, 2020 shut down its Cold Connect service for perishables traffic from the West Coast to the East Coast. Cold Connect began in January 2017 with the acquisition from Railex of three cold storage and distribution facilities in Delano, Calif.; Wallula, Wash.; and Rotterdam, N.Y.
The Association of American Railroads (AAR) on May 6 reported U.S. rail traffic for the week ending May 2, 2020, as well as volumes for April 2020, and there was no attempt at sugarcoating. The numbers speak for themselves, and they don’t lie. The charts below tell a disturbing story in somber green bars and bright red numbers. What they don’t tell you, in the words of AAR Senior Vice President Policy and Economics John T. Gray, “No matter what, the men and women on our nation’s railroads will do their part to keep supply chains moving safely and efficiently as they link our businesses and communities to each other and to the world.” That’s not sugarcoating. That’s fact.
Railway Supply Institute President Mike O’Malley and Vice President Government and Public Affairs Nicole Brewin cover a wide range of topics with Railway Age Editor-in-Chief William C. Vantuono. Among them: The state
Railway Age has partnered with freight transportation intelligence provider FreightWaves to expand its coverage of logistics and near-time analytics. FreightWaves is sponsoring a new channel, “Freight Forecasting,” on www.old.railwayage.com.
As the industry’s centralized provider of interoperable rail data, Railinc is an essential partner to the industry in keeping trains moving efficiently and safely through rail corridors across North America. The company, a subsidiary of the Association of American Railroads, was purpose-built by the industry to tackle big challenges with the power of data. Railinc manages 11 million daily messages among more than 570 rail carriers. Given its significance, Railway Age reached out to talk to Railinc chief executive Allen West to get a sense of how the North Carolina company is handling the COVID-19 situation.
Among the final duties that former MTA New York City Transit Vice President Network and Resignaling Pete Tomlin discharged before he left the agency following Andy Byford’s resignation as President was demonstrating an innovative piece of new technology—UWB (Ultra-Wide Band), wireless technology that offers faster and less-expensive installation of modern CBTC (communications-based train control) by eliminating much of the onboard and wayside equipment traditionally required for advanced-technology signaling. Tomlin—arguably one of the finest signaling and train control people on the planet—collaborated with suppliers Thales and Piper Networks in an impressive public demonstration of UWB.
Marion, Ohio, located in the north-central area of the state, is home to the Marion Industrial Center, a versatile facility ideally suited for owner/operators and investors in Intermodal, Transloading, 3PL (third-party logistics), Automobile Storage and Distribution, and industrial real estate development. Privately owned and operated since 1975, the Center is now available for sale to “owners and operators of logistics and transportation businesses who can utilize it to gain strategic advantage and enhance their overall operations,” according to Cushman & Wakefield’s Managing Director, Whitney Kerr, Jr.
During this pandemic, many of us have been thinking about what comes next. What role will railroads, freight and passenger, play in the “new normal,” whatever that might be? There are no clear answers. Or are there? Take a look at what’s happening in India.
“Storing oil in tank cars may be theoretically possible, but logistical, economic and regulatory hurdles make it unviable. Railcar lease rates could be 25-30% below 2019. Manufacturing inquiries have continued, but prospective buyers are in no rush to pull the trigger.” Those are the key takeaways from a conference call moderated by Cowen and Company Freight Transportation Analyst Matt Elkott. Among the industry experts participating were Railroad Financial Corp. President and Railway Age Financial Editor David Nahass, National Steel Car Senior Vice President Marketing and Sales Bob Pickel, and Oliver Wyman Vice President Jason Kuehn.
FTR Transportation Intelligence has released the COVID-19 Rail Freight Recovery Index “to provide visibility on the state of the rail market as anticipation of an economic restart grows.” The Index currently shows that rail volumes in the intermodal and carload sectors “are likely near the bottom,” FTR says.
