Rendering of Konecranes hybrid RTG, Courtesy of Konecranes

NS Adds Hybrid Cranes to Chicago, Atlanta Terminals

Norfolk Southern (NS) has completed installation of five diesel-electric hybrid overhead gantry cranes at intermodal terminals in Chicago (Landers Yard; two) and Atlanta (Inman Yard; three).

R.J. Corman to Launch KXCG

With the purchase of two branch lines from Norfolk Southern (NS), R.J. Corman Railroad Company is launching the Knoxville and Cumberland Gap Railroad, LLC (KXCG), its 18th short line.

Based in The Woodlands, Tex., Smart Sand provides frac sand (proppant) and related logistics services to the oil and gas industry. In addition to its newest transload in Waynesburg, Pa., it offers transload sites in Van Hook, N.D., Gardendale, Tex., and El Reno, Okla.

New Frac Sand Transload Opens in Pennsylvania

Smart Sand, Inc. has started operating and delivering sand to its new Norfolk Southern-served transload in Waynesburg, Pa.

“Our team continues to deliver long-term value to our shareholders and customers, and we are in an excellent position to build on these results moving forward,” NS Chairman and CEO James A. Squires said during a fourth-quarter and full-year 2021 earnings announcement on Jan. 26.

NS Reports 4Q, Full-Year ’21 Financials, Board Changes

Norfolk Southern (NS) on Jan. 26 reported fourth-quarter 2021 results, including net income of $760 million, up 13% from the same period in 2020; diluted earnings per share of $3.12, up 18% from 2020; and an operating ratio of 60.4%, a fourth-quarter record, down 140 basis points from the 2020 period. The Class I also named Amy E. Miles Non-Executive Board Chair, effective May 1.

More than 300 people rode Amtrak’s Gulf Coast Inspection Train (pictured) from New Orleans to Jacksonville, Fla., in February 2016, as part of an ongoing effort to restore passenger rail service along the Gulf Coast, which was disrupted by Hurricane Katrina in 2005 and never resumed. (Marc Glucksman, Amtrak)

DOT to STB: ‘Set a Precedent’ in Amtrak Gulf Coast Case

The U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) and the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) have been allowed to file additional comments with the Surface Transportation Board (STB) regarding Amtrak’s application to operate Gulf Coast service.

Railway Age’s 2022 ‘Fast Trackers’ 25 Under 40 Honorees

Railway Age is pleased to announce the 25 “Fast Trackers” selected for this year’s 25 Under 40 awards program.

The Western Rail Initiative in Virginia calls for an additional round-trip train to Roanoke in 2022, and an extension of service from Roanoke to Christiansburg in the New River Valley following infrastructure improvements.

Virginia Advances Plans to Return Rail to New River Valley

The Commonwealth of Virginia and Norfolk Southern (NS) have finalized a definitive agreement that will increase existing Amtrak service to Roanoke and expand service to the New River Valley, they reported on Jan. 13.

Commentary

First Thing We Do Is Automate All the Trains

FINANCIAL EDGE, JANUARY 2022 ISSUE: It might be the meme of all memes, at least for the COVID-19 pandemic: Al Pacino’s iconic “Just when I thought I was out, they pull me back in!” right before collapsing from a diabetic stroke, sums up what Omicron feels like (collapse included).

U.S. Steel is building a new mill in Osceola, Ark., close to its Big River Steel plant (pictured), where non-grain oriented electrical steel and galvalume/galvanizing lines are currently under construction.

New U.S. Steel Facility Coming To Arkansas

United States Steel Corp. reported on Jan. 11 that it will build a $3 billion steel mill in Osceola, Ark., to be served by BNSF.

NS, STB Talk ‘Reciprocal Switching’

Norfolk Southern (NS) and Surface Transportation Board (STB) officials met last month to address reciprocal switching regulations, which STB first proposed in 2016 and has been encouraged to review by an Executive Order on competition issued in 2021.

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