Investments from BNSF customers and supply chain partners totaled more than $4.1 billion in 2023—the largest made in new or expanded facilities in the past five years, the Class I railroad reported April 1. (BNSF Photograph)

Class I Briefs: BNSF, CN, NS, UP

BNSF releases 2023 economic development results. Also, CN earns a UPS service award; Norfolk Southern (NS) acquires a Chicago transload and warehouse facility and receives an $8.4 million Georgia Department of Transportation (GDOT) grant for its McDonough passing track improvement project; and Union Pacific (UP) Executive Vice President, Marketing and Sales Kenny Rocker provides a railroad status report.

Railway Age’s 2024 Short Line Railroad of the Year is Mississippi Export Railroad (MSE). (Chip Haffner Photograph, Courtesy of MSE)

MSE, W&LE, EIRR Accept Railway Age Awards

Mississippi Export Railroad (MSE) and Wheeling & Lake Erie Railway Company (W&LE) accepted Railway Age’s 2024 Short Line and Regional Railroads of the Year Awards at the American Short Line and Regional Railroad Association

Savage Tooele Railroad Company has proposed reinstituting common carrier freight rail service over an approximately six-mile segment of the former “Warner Branch” (abandoned in 1983 by UP predecessor Western Pacific Railroad Company), and to construct approximately five miles of new railroad line within the Lakeview Business Park, which has been under development since 2020 in Tooele County, Utah. (STB Photograph)

STB Approves Construction of 11-Mile Utah Rail Line (UPDATED 4/3)

The Surface Transportation Board (STB) on April 1 signed off on Savage Tooele Railroad Company’s proposal to build and operate approximately 11 miles of rail line in Tooele County, Utah, subject to certain environmental mitigation conditions.

UP Appoints Ops, Risk Management Successors

Union Pacific on March 25 announced the retirement of three executives effective April 1, and their replacements: Shane Keller, Senior Vice President Operations, Northern Region; David Giandinoto, Senior Vice President Operations, Southern Region;

Headlining the 2024 NARS Annual Meeting in Chicago are BNSF President and CEO Katie Farmer (Railway Age’s 2023 Railroader of the Year), retired Kansas City Southern CEO Patrick Ottensmeyer (Railway Age’s 2020 Railroader of the Year and 2022 Co-Railroader of the Year), and Union Pacific CEO Jim Vena.

Farmer, Ottensmeyer, Vena Among NARS Headliners

BNSF President and CEO Katie Farmer, retired Kansas City Southern CEO Patrick Ottensmeyer, and Union Pacific CEO Jim Vena will serve as keynote speakers at the North American Rail Shippers Association (NARS)

Nearly 70 new volunteers from across UP's system have recently received training about important topics like the company’s mental health and substance abuse resources.

Class I Briefs: UP, CSX

Union Pacific (UP) volunteers support mental health, substance-free workplace safety initiatives. Also, CSX’s Head of Investor Relations Matthew Korn is recognized as the “Best Investor Relations Professional” by Institutional Investor.

Next-Gen Freight Rail 2024 Conference Roundup

Railway Age’s Next-Gen Freight Rail 2024 Conference took place on March 12, 2024, at the Union League Club of Chicago. The annual event, attended by close to 200, featured Tracy Robinson, President

UP has implemented new policies and enhanced training for craft professionals across its 23-state network. (Caption and Photograph Courtesy of UP)
Commentary

UP Invests in Safety, Launches New Training

Union Pacific (UP) continues making progress toward its goal to be the best in safety, investing in people, enhancing infrastructure, transforming culture and harnessing the transformative power of technology.

How It Works: FLOW Data Inputs and Outputs—Members of the FLOW program (e.g., beneficial cargo owners, ocean carriers, ports, terminals, railroads) share individual logistics data (highlighted in bold in the graphic above) with the USDOT and in return receive an aggregated, anonymized, and holistic view of the relationship between incoming containers (demand), the available assets to move containers (supply), and throughput within a supply chain region. Incoming demand is shared up to 90 days in advance of arrival. (USDOT Graphic)

USDOT Marks Milestone on Second Anniversary of FLOW

The Freight Logistics Optimizations Works (FLOW) platform is now publishing data on inland freight hubs, including rail terminal and warehouse end destination data, that will provide an “enhanced view” of future container import volumes and traffic, the U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT) reported March 20, the second anniversary of the platform’s launch to provide an integrated view of supply chain conditions in the United States and to help users forecast how current capacity and throughput will fare against future demand.

Commentary

Big Picture Trends, Areas of Collaboration, Next-Gen Advice: 2 Female Rail Execs Weigh In

While rail has traditionally been perceived as an industry driven by men, the fact is women have played a role from the start. Dating back to the late 19th century, individuals like Mary

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