Safety First
RAILWAY AGE, JULY 2025 ISSUE: SLSI has been serving the industry for 10 years with SCAs and educational training programs, providing the roadmap for short line and regional railroads to improve their safety culture.
news
Commentary
East River Tunnel Rehabilitation, Sunnyside Yard, Rensselaer and Beyond: An Update
Amtrak’s long-term closure of one of the tunnel tubes (Amtrak calls them “lines”) under the East River between Penn Station and Queens remains controversial. New York Gov. Kathy Hochul, other elected officials in the Empire State, and rider-advocates in New York and New Jersey have called instead for the work to be done on nights and weekends, similar to the way the L-train tunnel between Manhattan and Brooklyn on the subway system’s Canarsie Line was repaired in 2020-21: in only one year and without having to resort to a 15-month complete shutdown, which area residents feared.
Class I Briefs: BNSF, UP, CN
BNSF recognizes five states for excellence in grade crossing safety. Also, Union Pacific’s (UP) Bailey Yard hosts senior leaders for a field visit; and CN partners with the Société du chemin de fer de la Gaspésie (SCFG) to ensure continued affordability and mobility of rail service in Quebec.
People News: CRC, CN
The Commuter Rail Coalition (CRC) announces its 2025 Board of Directors, led by Michelle Bouchard, Executive Director of Caltrain. Also, Étienne Bourgeois joins CN as Vice President, Treasury and Tax.
TIFIA Credit Program, Revised
The U.S. Department of Transportation’s Build America Bureau (Bureau) on July 7 reported a policy update to the Transportation Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act (TIFIA) credit program that will allow “all types
STB Affirms Continued Use of KCSR Haulage Rights
The Surface Transportation Board (STB) on July 7 announced a decision confirming the Kansas City Southern Railway Company’s (KCSR, now part of Canadian Pacific Kansas City (CPKC) with Canadian Pacific Railway (CP))
Commentary
AmeriStarRail Issues a Challenge—and Faces One—for America’s 250th Birthday
There has been much talk lately about increasing participation by the private sector when it comes to running passenger trains in the United States. Brightline’s Florida operation and the company’s efforts to
Next-Level Safety and Efficiency
RAILWAY AGE, JULY 2025 ISSUE: Automated train inspection portals are turning “finders into fixers,” reducing risk exposure, mechanical-caused safety incidents and network disruptions.
Commentary
Rail Insights 2025 Takeaways
FINANCIAL EDGE, RAILWAY AGE JULY 2025 ISSUE: At the 11th annual Rail Insights conference, participants from the Class I railroads and government and equipment sectors discussed the industry for the remainder of 2025 and beyond. Following are the key conference takeaways.
Transit Briefs: NYMTA, REM
The New York Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) offers a congestion-pricing progress report. Also, Montreal’s Réseau express métropolitain (REM) will shut down temporarily this summer.
NTSB Issues Investigations Report on BNSF’s April 26 Hazmat Derailment
The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) has issued a hazardous materials investigation report for its investigation of the April 26, 2024, derailment and hazardous materials release from a BNSF mixed-freight train near Manuelito, N.M.
Commentary
Reregulation Hidden in Shipper Tapestry
WATCHING WASHINGTON, RAILWAY AGE, JULY 2025 ISSUE: What is more delightfully amusing than a paradox—that we park on driveways and drive on parkways; that foul is fair when batted baseballs collide with a
People News: Reading & Northern, AECOM
Reading & Northern Railroad (RBMN) promotes Jeff Knadler to Assistant Vice President – Passenger. Also, AECOM names Veronica Vanterpool as Senior Vice President, Americas Transit Lead.
Skanska JV, VPRA Sign Contract to Build Long Bridge North in Washington, D.C.
Skanska, in a joint venture with FlatironDragados, announced on July 7 that it has signed a $658 million contract with the Virginia Passenger Rail Authority (VPRA) to build the Long Bridge North
BLET, TRASD Ratify Agreement
The Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen (BLET) on July 6 reported ratifying a new agreement with the Terminal Railway Alabama State Docks (TRASD).
Pattison, Iron Senergy Siding-to-Mine OTR Collaboration
Energy company Iron Senergy is able to move empty railcars from a private siding to its mining facility 10 miles away over the road using Pattison Company LLC’s Truck Trailer System. Pattison’s
STB Denies Metra’s Request for Temporary Injunction
The Surface Transportation Board (STB) on July 1 denied a petition for injunctive relief and application for an emergency service order by Metra, which is in dispute with Union Pacific over regional/commuter rail service on UP-owned lines in the Chicago area.
Commentary
Jason Seidl, TD Cowen: Class I Service, Growth and the Final Consolidation Round – RAIL GROUP ON AIR
Without volume and market share growth, the Class I’s may be at risk—or be forced to look at merging. Investors continue to await the next leg of Class I railroad earnings growth.
Transit Briefs: MDOT MTA, LA Metro, WMATA
The Maryland Department of Transportation Maryland Transit Administration (MDOT MTA) releases its updated 10-year Capital Needs Inventory (CNI) report. Also, the LA Metro Board approves a collective bargaining agreement with the International Brotherhood of Teamsters; and the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA) celebrates three years of joint development project successes.
Ore. Legislature Approves $100MM in Bonding Support for PCIP
The Oregon Legislature on June 30 approved a $100 million investment in the Pacific Coast Intermodal Port (PCIP), a public-private project that will create a state-of-the-art container terminal in the Port of Coos Bay.