STB Issues Emergency Service Order to UP

The Surface Transportation Board (STB) on June 17 directed Union Pacific (UP) to deliver on its commitment to move unit trains of corn from origins in the Midwest to California on behalf of Foster Poultry Farms, following the chicken and feed producer’s exparte petition for an emergency service order.

Kenny Rocker, EVP of Marketing and Sales for Union Pacific (right), is featured on the June 15 edition of the Port of Long Beach’s monthly video series with Executive Director Dr. Noel Hacegaba.

Watch: POLB, UP Talk Supply Chain Challenges

Port of Long Beach (POLB) Deputy Executive Director Dr. Noel Hacegaba and Union Pacific Executive Vice President of Marketing and Sales Kenny Rocker cover how the port and Class I are addressing supply chain congestion and partnering to help relieve it as well as information sharing and offering customers “optionality” in the June 15 installment of POLB’s “Supply Chain Insight” video series.

A group of SWTJC students huddle around the $380,000 contribution check from UP. Behind the check are, from left, Ken Kuwamura (in light blue), Manager-Talent Acquisition, UP; Raquel Espinoza, Senior Director-Public Affairs, UP; Esmerelda Arreola, SWTJC Diesel Technology Program Lab Assistant; Texas State Rep. Eddie Morales and his wife, Helen Morales; and Tom Blevins, Superintendent-Train Operations, UP. (Caption and Photograph Courtesy of UP)

UP Supports Texas Diesel-Tech Training Program

When Southwest Texas Junior College’s (SWTJC) Diesel Technology Program in Eagle Pass had to turn away some students due to a lack of space and resources, Union Pacific (UP) stepped in.

Serving the San Luis Valley in southern Colorado, SLRG was originally constructed in 1878. It traverses the La Veta Pass over the Sangre de Cristo Mountain range and connects the eastern plains of Colorado to the San Luis Valley. (Map Courtesy of William A. Brandt Jr., SLRG’s Chapter 11 Trustee)

SLRG Chapter 11 Trustee Eyes Auction

The 155-mile San Luis & Rio Grande Railroad Inc. (SLRG) will be sold at auction, if the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of Colorado approves.

Hapag-Lloyd now serves the Port of Virginia, the only U.S. East Coast stop for the ocean carrier. Cargo is unloaded at Norfolk International Terminal—the largest of six Port of Virginia terminals—and hauled to Chicago by NS and on to California by UP. (Map Courtesy of Port of Virginia)

For Shippers, New Transcontinental Service

Norfolk Southern (NS), Union Pacific (UP), the Port of Virginia and Hapag-Lloyd are offering shippers a new option to reach West Coast markets, NS reported on June 8.

“The use of technology to increase shipment visibility is critical for ensuring we meet the needs and expectations of our customers who rely upon us for safe and reliable service,” said Kenny Rocker, Executive Vice President-Marketing and Sales for UP, which has joined the RailPulse coalition.

UP Joins RailPulse Coalition

RailPulse has a seventh member: Union Pacific, which on June 7 joined the coalition established in late 2020 to “develop, broaden and accelerate the use of GPS and other telematics technologies in North America’s freight rail industry.”

‘Big 4’ Submit Service Recovery Plans to STB

BNSF, CSX, Norfolk Southern (NS) and Union Pacific (UP) have answered the Surface Transportation Board’s (STB) call to submit service recovery plans—identifying the steps they will take to clear congestion and improve service plus the metrics they will use to evaluate progress over the next six months.

Commentary

Clear Evidence: Near-Zero PSR Service Improvements

Let’s admit it, and fix the expectation: U.S. Class I railroads have not experienced robust service recovery. Yet railroad optimism and expectations of satisfied customers persists. Why?

AAR to STB: No ‘Quick Fix’ to Service Problems

“The Class I railroads recognize that their recent service performance has not met many customers’ expectations,” the Association of American Railroads (AAR) wrote in a May 18 filing to the Surface Transportation Board (STB). But while the STB’s May 5 decision to release updated, more-comprehensive rules for reporting performance and employment metrics “reflects an understandable desire for quick action,” it was “not issued in a vacuum,” AAR pointed out.

“Earlier this month, @UnionPacific began filling several of their locomotives with REG’s UltraClean BlenD™. See how running on 100% biofuels can help them reach their sustainability goals. …” REG tweeted on May 9, 2022. (Screenshot of an REG Video, Courtesy of REG.)

UP, Wabtec, REG Launch Renewable Fuels Testing

Union Pacific (UP), in partnership with Wabtec and Renewable Energy Group (REG), earlier this month started a “trial of 100% renewable fuels as part of our comprehensive ESG initiative called Building a Sustainable Future 2030.”

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