Author: David Nahass

Rail Insights 2021 Takeaways

THE FINANCIAL EDGE, RAILWAY AGE JULY 2021 ISSUE: At the 2021 Rail Insights conference (held “live” virtually in June 2021), three major trends emerged: The rebound in rail is in full swing; short lines and Class I railroads are feeling pressure to respond to growing demand in a challenging labor market; and the industry is in a “wait, see and respond” mode when contemplating who will be the ultimate long-term dance partner for KCS. Additionally, infrastructure improvements on the horizon are poised to help both passenger rail.

2021 Guide to Equipment Leasing: The Elephant in the Room Takes Leave

RAILWAY AGE, JUNE 2021 ISSUE: Welcome to the 2021 Guide to Equipment Leasing. Let’s start out by addressing the space in the room left by the exiting elephant: The U.S. economy and its residents clearly are looking forward to the end of the pandemic era and the opening of the economy.

Pathway to Normalcy Remains Uncertain

FINANCIAL EDGE, RAILWAY AGE DECEMBER 2020 ISSUE (updated): On the final day of what might be the most unusual year in the lives of most Railway Age readers, It’s clear that 2020 was the year of the unexpected. While many people may have thought that a pandemic was not out of the question (in 2019, the U.S. government conducted a pandemic simulation, the “Crimson Contagion,” which predicted more than 500,000 deaths), the U.S. was unprepared for the voracity of the COVID-19 virus and the intensity of the shutdown resulting from its impacts.

Staggers, Loadings and the Election

THE FINANCIAL EDGE, RAILWAY AGE, NOVEMBER 2020 ISSUE: The 2020 U.S. Presidential election may be the most unique in modern times. Paper ballots came into use in the early 19th century; the modern lever-pull voting machine in the late 19th century; and push cards (until the infamous “hanging chad”) were used until 2000. Cue the pandemic: In the 2020 election, mail-in ballots were expected to account for at least 80 million votes—more than half the total number of votes expected.

Reason Not The Need: 2021 Financial Desk Book

Welcome to the 2021 Railway Age Railroad Financial Desk Book. It’s been about seven months since the COVID-19 pandemic began in earnest in the U.S. Generally, people, and by extension the rail finance community, would like things/business to return to normal. Normal, however, is as much a state of mind when it comes to North American rail, since heading into the pandemic, rail was heading into a softening market hoping for a rebound.

Are Intermodal’s “Green Shoots” Signs of Recovery?

THE FINANCIAL EDGE, RAILWAY AGE SEPTEMBER 2020 ISSUE: The rail industry continues to twist as the COVID-19 pandemic rages on. To say that the length of the pandemic either has or will exceed most people’s initial expectations would be an understatement. So as the market continues to scuffle along, “Financial Edge” tried to look for some “green shoots” to provide some sense that there will be a return to normalcy sometime in the future.