Management Archives

January 26, 2015
Class I

UP employees set safety record

Union Pacific’s 2014 employee safety performance, a 0.98 reportable injury rate, was the best in the railroad’s history, surpassing the previous record established in 2012, and an 11% reduction from the 2013 reportable rate of 1.10, “demonstrating a solid commitment to reducing injuries and generating progress toward the company’s commitment to zero injuries,” according to Vice President Safety, Security and Environment Bob Grimaila.

January 26, 2015
Class I

Record quarter, year for Norfolk Southern

Norfolk Southern posted record financial results for the fourth quarter of 2014 and for the entire year, and dropped its operating ratio to below 70%. The railroad also announced a $2.4 billion 2015 capital investment program.

January 23, 2015
Commuter/Regional

Metra postpones on-board purchase penalty rise

Chicagoland’s Metra said Friday, Jan. 23, 2015 it will postpone a plan to increase the penalty for onboard ticket purchases until mobile ticketing capability is activated unveiled later this year.

January 16, 2015
Finance/Leasing

Cold Train owner sued for loan default

Farmington Hills, Mich.-based Federated Railways, Inc. owner Louis Ferris, in a statement released Friday, Jan. 16, 2015 said he has filed a lawsuit against Michael Lerner, the owner of Rail Logistics and Cold Train.

January 16, 2015
Class I

BNSF outlines $6 billion capex plan

BNSF on Jan. 15, 2015 announced details about the major capital projects it plans to complete in 2015 to maintain and grow its rail network.

January 15, 2015
Class I

Norfolk Southern’s Don Seale to retire

Donald W. Seale, Executive Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer of Norfolk Southern Corp., has announced his plan to retire effective March 1, 2015.

January 15, 2015
Intermodal

MARS Winter Meeting highlights growth, service improvements

Based on the generally positive atmosphere at the 2015 Midwest Association of Rail Shippers (MARS) Winter Meeting in Oak Brook, Ill., railroad/customer relationships are improving as capacity and service quality issues are being addressed.

January 13, 2015
Class I

Growth expectations lower but still robust, rail shipper survey says

Cowen and Company’s Fourth Quarter 2014 Rail Shipper Survey “suggests that the potential negative impacts on rail pricing power from the deceleration in crude shipment growth and suboptimal service have been more than offset by pent-up demand for rail service in other commodities and strained capacity across transportation modes,” according to Managing Director and Railway Age Wall Street Contributing Editor Jason Seidl.

January 12, 2015
Class I

Sarah Feinberg picked to head FRA

Sarah Feinberg, chief of staff for Secretary of Transportation Andrew Foxx, has been chosen to become Acting Federal Railroad Administrator, according to a Reuters report of an email sent by Foxx on Sunday, Jan. 11, 2015.

January 10, 2015
Class I

Rail bottleneck relief sought for Connell, Wash.

Washington State legislators and city administrators hope to obtain federal funding to reconfigure and improve a 100-year-old railroad interchange at Connell, Wash., to relieve a bottleneck in the movement of agricultural commodities.