“Blume’s asset management solution is well established as the marketplace where IMCs obtain railroad-owned intermodal equipment,” Blume Global CEO Pervinder Johar said Sept. 11. “We look forward to helping CPKC expand their business in the U.S.”

Supply Side: Blume Global, Rio Tinto IOC, Wabtec

Canadian Pacific Kansas City (CPKC) will use Blume Global’s asset management system to foster intermodal traffic growth. Also, Rio Tinto’s Iron Ore Company of Canada (Rio Tinto IOC) is donating C$4 million to a Quebec college for a new training, research and innovation pavilion for the rail, industrial maintenance and energy intelligence industries; and Penn State names Wabtec Corporation as its 2023 Corporate Partner of the Year.

(CSX Photograph)

North American Rail Volume Continues Decline Through Week 36: AAR

Through the first 36 weeks of 2023 (ending Sept. 9), total North American carload and intermodal traffic decreased 4.1% from the prior-year period, the Association of American Railroads (AAR) reported Sept. 13. Both the U.S. and Canada experienced declines, while Mexico saw a gain.

OLI ‘Choose Safety First’ PSA Targets Non-Railroad Trackside Workers

Operation Lifesaver, Inc. (OLI) has released Choose Safety First, a new public service announcement (PSA) aimed at municipal workers, utility workers and others whose jobs bring them near railroad tracks and crossings.

(Pinsly Railroad Company Photograph)

G&AR to Expand Short Line Railroad Portfolio (Updated)

Gulf & Atlantic Railways LLC (G&AR) on Aug. 29 reported entering a definitive agreement to acquire Pinsly Railroad Company’s (Pinsly) Massachusetts short line and warehousing business. The Surface Transportation Board (STB) on Sept. 7 issued a decision on the transaction.

Parallel Systems plans to start “platoon demonstrations” of second-generation autonomous battery-electric railcars later this year. According to the company, each railcar is individually powered and can “form platoons of up to 50 cars to reduce energy consumption and efficiently use rail network capacity” or split off to multiple destinations while en route. (Rendering Courtesy of Parallel Systems)

Watch: Parallel Systems Debuts 2nd-Gen Autonomous Battery-Electric Freight Car

Los Angeles, Calif.-based Parallel Systems on Sept. 12 introduced its second-generation autonomous battery-electric freight car, which it plans to pilot test on existing U.S. and international rail networks.

(G&W Photograph)

BLET Members Voting on Two New G&W Contracts

Contract ratification votes are under way for Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen (BLET) members at Missouri & Northern Arkansas Railroad (M&NA) and Portland & Western Railroad (PNWR), both of which are Genesee & Wyoming (G&W) subsidiaries.

FRA: ‘High-Impact Wheels Causing Damage to Rails, Track Structures’

The Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) on Sept. 7 issued Safety Advisory 2023-04 recommending that railroads use Wheel Impact Load Detectors (WILD) “to properly identify and replace high-impact railcar wheels that could cause significant damage to rails and supporting track structures.”

Progress Rail Suing Wabtec Over ‘Anticompetitive Conduct’

Progress Rail, a Division of Caterpillar, has filed a lawsuit against Wabtec (Westinghouse Air Brake Technologies) in U.S. federal court in Delaware accusing the latter of abusing its market power for diesel-electric

Maureen Werner, MxV Rail

MxV Rail Welcomes Engineering VP Maureen Werner

Maureen Werner is the new Vice President of Engineering at MxV Rail. She will be responsible for leading more than 100 engineers “in the pursuit of delivering high-quality research, testing and ancillary

U.S. Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg

Coalition of Organizations Call for DOT to Set Up Freight Office

In a letter to Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, the American Short Line and Regional Railroad Association (ASLRRA), along with the Association of American Railroads (AAR) and U.S. Chamber of Commerce, are calling for the establishment of the Office of Multimodal Freight Infrastructure and Policy, or Freight Office.

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