Rail Industry News
BNSF Railway highballing on energy boom, executive says
(Source: Tulsa World, December 5, 2013) OKLAHOMA CITY, Okla. — The shale-based boom in oil and natural gas drilling means the nation's railroads are handling more unit trains of crude oil and shipments of sand used in hydraulic fracturing, a BNSF Railway Co. executive...
Safety, regulatory concerns slow expansion of crude by rail
(Source: Wall Street Journal, December 4, 2013) NEW YORK — Heightened safety concerns, slow permit approval hinder the efforts of some firms to move crude oil by rail. Full story: Wall Street Journal
Shipping crude oil by rail: A new front in tar sands wars
(Source: Environment 360, December 5, 2013) NEW YORK — As debate over the Keystone XL and other pipeline projects continues, crude oil from the Alberta tar sands and western U.S. oil fields is increasingly being hauled by railroad. Critics warn that this development...
Pipeline on wheels: Trains are winning big off U.S. oil
(Source: National Public Radio, December 4, 2013) NEW YORK — The oil boom in the United States is creating another boom — for the railroad industry. So far this year, in North Dakota alone, 140 million barrels of oil have left on trains. Shipments of crude oil by rail...
Montreal, Maine & Atlantic Railway nears sales auction
(Source: Bloomberg News, December 4, 2013) NEW YORK — Montreal Maine & Atlantic Railway Ltd., the bankrupt railroad whose runaway train killed 47 after derailing and burning in Lac-Mégantic, is in the final throes of negotiating a contract with a so-called stalking...
California high-speed rail project handed another setback
(Source: Los Angeles Times, December 5, 2013) LOS ANGELES — Federal regulators refuse to exempt a segment of proposed track from review, likely delaying the project and driving up costs. Full story: Los Angeles Times
Major U.S. railroads to offer health benefits to gay workers’ spouses
(Source: Reuters, December 4, 2013) NEW YORK — The largest U.S. freight carriers will begin providing medical benefits to the spouses of gay union workers, a rail company coalition said on Wednesday, a day after two same-sex couples sued BNSF Railway for denying equal...
Metro-North train crash revives urgency for Positive Train Control
(Source: NBC, December 4, 2013) WASHINGTON, D.C. — The deadly crash of a New York commuter train that hurtled into a steep curve at 82 mph could make it more difficult for railroads to fight a federal deadline to install technology designed in part to avert high-speed...
Editorial: It’s past time to install Positive Train Control
(Source: New York Times, December 4, 2013) NEW YORK — Wherever the Metro-North investigation leads, the ultimate blame for this tragedy seems to be a deficit of money and political will, and years of wasted time. While positive train control is a complex and costly...
Walker’s book rewrites Wisconsin’s high-speed rail history
(Source: Milwaukee Express, December 4, 2013) MILWAUKEE, Wisc. — Among the many fibs, distortions, smears and lies of omission in 'Unintimidated,' Gov. Scott Walker’s new autobiography, is his version of the events surrounding the cancellation of $810 million in...
Operation Lifesaver debuts new volunteer management system
(Source: Operation Lifesaver press release, December 3, 2013) ALEXANDRIA, Va. — Following months of technological investment, Operation Lifesaver, Inc. (OLI) has unveiled a new system to recruit and manage its volunteers, who provide rail safety and anti-trespassing...
Last tracks reopen after CSX chemical spill in Ohio
(Source: Toledo Blade, December 3, 2013) WILLARD, Ohio — The last of three main tracks closed at the CSX Transportation railroad yard after a chemical spill last week in Willard reopened late Monday night, the railroad reported Tuesday. Full story: Toledo Blade
Two same-sex couples sue BNSF over health benefits
(Source: Associated Press, December 3, 2013) SEATTLE — Two workers sued one of the nation's largest rail companies Tuesday, saying their same-sex spouses have repeatedly been denied health benefits even though voters in Washington state legalized gay marriage last...
Transport Canada puts risks of hazardous rail shipments under new scrutiny
(Source: Globe and Mail, December 3, 2013) OTTAWA and VANCOUVER — Transport Canada is launching a study to analyze the risks linked with transporting hazardous goods across North America amid growing concern about the safety of moving potentially explosive crude oil...
Why trains can continue to endanger places like Lac-Megantic
(Source: Globe and Mail, December 4, 2013) TORONTO — The tracks bisect the town. The hospital lies on one side, the fire station on the other. Over the past five years, as the oil boom escalated and more and more bitumen from Fort McMurray was shipped by rail, the oil...
CN CEO says tank cars must be redesigned to prevent another tragedy like Lac-Megantic
(Source: Canadian Press, December 3, 2013) MONTREAL — The head of Canada’s largest railway says crude oil tank cars must be redesigned to avoid another tragedy like last summer’s deadly explosion in Lac-Megantic, Que. Full story: Medicine Hat News
Illinois Central Railroad faces fines of $110,500 after OSHA inspection finds worker exposure to lead
(Source: U.S. Department of Labor press release, December 3, 2013) HOMEWOOD, Ill. — Illinois Central Railroad Co. has been cited by the U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration for one willful and six serious safety violations that...
NTSB relieves ACRE of party status in Metro-North train derailment investigation
(Source: National Transportation Safety Board press release, December 3, 2013) WASHINGTON, D.C. — The National Transportation Safety Board today removed the Association of Commuter Rail Employees, or ACRE, as a participant in its investigation into the December 1...
Deadly Metro-North crash may boost urgency to install Positive Train Control
(Source: Chicago Tribune, December 3, 2013) CHICAGO — The deadly commuter train crash in New York reinforces the urgency for Metra and other commuter railroads across the country to install a federally mandated safety system designed to prevent such wrecks. Full...
Buy union, buy Made in America (or Canada) this holiday season
(Source: Teamster Nation, December 2, 2013) WASHINGTON, D.C. — We know we don't have to remind you to shop at Costco, buy union-made beer and ship your holiday packages by UPS. And if you're looking for a specific union-made product, Labor 411 is the place to go. The...
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