Heartland Co-op Building Grain Shuttle Facility on UP Network

The “strength of Union Pacific’s (UP) franchise and its focus on operational excellence” has led to a new Heartland Co-op grain shuttle facility being built on the Class I’s network in Millerton, Iowa, which will provide farmers “greater access to key markets.”

(Logo Courtesy of the STB)

AAR to STB: Where’s the Template?

The six Class I railroads’ ability to meet their first reporting deadline under the Surface Transportation Board’s (STB) final rule on Reciprocal Switching for Inadequate Service “is in jeopardy,” the Association of American

TCU, CSX Reach Local Agreement; BMWED-ID Ratifies New NICTD Agreement

The Transportation Communications Union (TCU) reaches a local agreement with CSX Transportation. Also, the Burlington System Division of the Brotherhood of Maintenance of Way Employes Division-International Brotherhood of Teamsters (BMWED-ID) ratifies a new agreement with the Northern Indiana Commuter Transportation District (NICTD).

Court Sides With Rails Against STB Rate Ruling

An attempt by the Surface Transportation Board (STB) to decide complex maximum freight-rate challenges by choosing one of two suggested remedies—one by the shipper; the other by the railroad—was derailed Aug. 20 in a unanimous decision of the 8th Circuit Court of Appeals. The court found the STB’s 2022 Final Offer Rate Review (FORR) rulemaking exceeded the agency’s statutory authority.

(Photographs Courtesy of CN, left, and CPKC, right)

Canadian Rail Shutdown on the Way? (UPDATED 8/20: Labor Minister Calls Meetings; UP‘s Jim Vena, CFIB Weigh In)

CN and Canadian Pacific Kansas City (CPKC) report that lockdowns could begin as soon as Aug. 22 unless there is progress at the negotiating table or binding arbitration with Teamsters Canada Rail

Caterpillar Inc.’s Lafayette, Ind., large-engine facility (pictured) will be expanded to boost production capacity for new engines and aftermarket parts, including those for rail applications. (Screen Grab from Caterpillar Video)

Supply Side: Caterpillar, WSP, AtkinsRéalis

Caterpillar Inc., the parent company of Progress Rail, is expanding its large-engine facility in Lafayette, Ind. Also, WSP and 10 other public and private agencies sign the Equity in Infrastructure Project pledge as a commitment to improving diversity in public contracting; and Montreal, Quebec-based AtkinsRéalis Group Inc. lands a Network Rail contract to upgrade signaling and telecommunications infrastructure in the U.K.

Voestalpine RFC’s Jeffersonville, Ind., facility (pictured) launched in 2001 at the Ports of Indiana, and will soon undergo a $77 million-plus expansion. The company supplies custom roll formed metal components for the aerospace, construction, material handling, off-highway, office furniture, solar, and transportation industries, including railroads. (voestalpine RFC Photograph)

Expansion Set for Steel Processing Plant at Port of Indiana-Jeffersonville

The Ports of Indiana on Aug. 19 reported that voestalpine Roll Forming Corporation (RFC) will invest more than $77 million on an expansion project at its rail-served Jeffersonville, Ind., location on the Ohio/Mississippi river

ITS Logistics: Threatened Trump Tariff Actions ‘Very Likely Inflationary’

In July, former President Trump confirmed in a Bloomberg interview that if elected for a second term, he plans to propose a new 10% tariff on all imported goods, with a 60% tax on Chinese goods. “These

Reports: Audit Finds MARTA Owes Expansion Program $70MM; MARTA Disputes Findings

The findings of a new audit conducted by Mauldin & Jenkins have revealed that the Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority (MARTA) owes Atlanta, Ga., taxpayers as much as $70 million after overcharging the city’s expansion program, which was approved by voters in 2016 to fund projects such as new rail stations, according to multiple news reports.

People News: NS, APTA

Norfolk Southern’s (NS) Assistant Vice President Workforce Experience Jason Pettway has been named to the Atlanta Business League’s 2024 Men of Influence list. Also, the American Public Transportation Association’s (APTA) Nominating Committee selects its 2024-2025 Board Executives.

LOAD MORE