Opinion

Commentary

Biden Promise Fueled FRA NPRM

It is said of nudists that “most shouldn’t”—a conspicuous example being the naked politics of the Biden Administration in advancing a mandate—based on a political promise rather than credible safety data and understanding of how technology affects the nature of work—that train crews consist of one conductor and one engineer positioned in the locomotive cab.

Commentary
  • News

GO Expansion Development Phase Under Way

The CEOs from five of the world’s largest transportation and construction companies are putting their heads together to accomplish an unprecedented transit expansion in Toronto and the surrounding region.

Commentary

‘Ill-Conceived, Ill-Timed, Unnecessary’

The American Short Line and Regional Railroad Association is disappointed with the Federal Railroad Administration’s Train Crew Size Safety Requirements Notice of Proposed Rulemaking.   With no safety data to support its proposal, the

Commentary

‘DDKN’ the ‘Textbook Definition of NIMBY’

A perhaps little-known bit of railroad trivia is that, according to a reliable industry source, Illinois Senator and Majority Whip Dick Durbin held the late E. Hunter Harrison in extreme contempt (that’s a polite way of saying “hated”), and the feeling was mutual.

Commentary

Grasping at Straws to Avoid a Shutdown

With the clock ticking toward a national rail shutdown, Frank Wilner has provided a thorough analysis of the elaborate processes and deadlines mandated by Congress in the Railway Labor Act, 45 USC §151

Commentary

Yes, a Rail Shutdown Can Occur

Razors cut two ways, as is evident among Wall Street analysts who encourage share-price haircuts for railroads not lowering operating ratios, but themselves fear from railroads a different sort of trimming—loss of access to senior officers and financial data should these analysts have the audacity to suggest the likelihood of a nationwide rail shutdown.

(Photograph Courtesy of BNSF)
Commentary

BNSF Summer Intern Program: A ‘Career Starter’

An internship at BNSF isn’t about taking coffee orders. Our paid Summer Internship Program is designed to give college students real-life, impactful assignments that put their skills and education into practice—and we are proud to watch them develop as professionals.

Commentary

Counting on Rail Congestion as a Rail Equipment Demand Driver is Not a Sustainable Long-Term Strategy

Our July 12 rail equipment expert call takeaways are consistent with J.B. Hunt Transport’s (JBHT) recent comments on about sub-optimal 2Q22 rail service (below). This solidifies our expectation of an eighth consecutive lease rate improvement for GATX, which reports on July 21. We continue to favor the shares into the print as detailed in our July 7 machinery and transportation OEM preview, “Revisions Into the Print.”

Commentary

Part 9: Can Texas Central Go Forward?

One month prior to this writing, it appeared that the proposed Texas Central high-speed rail line between downtown Dallas and a corner of Houston was about to suffer a fatal blow from the Texas Supreme Court. Texas politics favored such a result and, if that weren’t enough, its leader, Carlos F. Aguilar had quit.

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