Trainyard Tech upgrading NS Lamberts Point
Norfolk Southern has awarded Trainyard Tech, LLC a contract to update the existing CLASSMASTER™ hump yard process control system at the Lamberts Point Coal Dumping Facility in Norfolk, Va.
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Contractors, railroads battle catastrophic flood damage
Record-setting floods have caused extensive damage to railroad infrastructure across large sections of the Midwest, prompting a surge in construction and repair work.
Cyber Resiliency: A Clear and Urgent Necessity for Modern Railroads
The World Economic Forum’s most recent Regional Risks of Doing Business report lists cyberattacks as the top concern of corporate executives in 19 countries, including advanced economies in North America, Europe, and Asia. These concerns, according to the report, “highlight the growing reliance of global commerce on digital networks that are the target of increasingly sophisticated and prolific attacks.”
A new frontier in railway innovation
As railways push ahead with digitalization, more and more are engaging and implementing solutions from a new form of supplier: the tech start-up. This is changing the railway-supplier relationship and altering the industry’s wider approach to innovation, as IRJ’s Kevin Smith discovers.
Rail freight traffic continues decline
North American carload and intermodal traffic again declined compared to 2018, according to figures for the week ending March 16, 2019 released by the Association of American Railroads (AAR) on March 20.
NS petitions FRA for brake test training waiver; unions push back
Norfolk Southern has filed a petition with the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) for a waiver of compliance from certain provisions of federal railroad safety regulations regarding refresher training for mechanical inspectors, “FRA WAIVER PETITION DOCKET No. FRA-2018-0100, Brake System Safety Standards for Freight and Other Non-passenger Trains and Equipment, End-Of-Train Devices (49 C.F.R. Part 232).” Two unions have filed comments disputing NS’s petition.
Belke joins Strategic Rail Finance
Strategic Rail Finance (SRF) has named rail industry veteran Carl Belke as Executive Consultant in the firm’s Freight Rail Business Advisory practice. Belke has 45 years of freight rail experience in management, strategy, engineering, operations, government advocacy and public policy.
Heavy weather impacting BNSF operations
BNSF is engaged in service recovery efforts in multiple areas across its network in the northern and central Plains following another major winter storm. Blizzard conditions, with wind gusts to near 70 mph in Colorado, Wyoming, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota and Minnesota have caused significant train delays since March 14. With the temperature rising, BNSF is now confronting major flooding issues in the region, particularly in eastern Nebraska and western Iowa, as multiple subdivisions are currently out of service due to track washouts.
AAR: STB rulemakings need cost-benefit analyses
The Association of American Railroads (AAR) on March 14 petitioned the Surface Transportation Board (STB) to incorporate cost-benefit analysis into rulemaking proceedings. AAR urged that, “in the spirit of good government, such analysis should include the most current and reliable data possible, and that the Board should consider the cumulative impact of regulations when proposing and adopting new rules.”
BNSF testing double-length grain trains
BNSF is experimenting with the process of combining two empty unit grain trains into one and sending the double-length train east out of Auburn, Wash., over Stampede Pass.