Eighteen North American trade associations representing railroads, truckers and their customers that ship between the United States and Mexico have joined forces to tell the Trump Administration and Congress that restricting cross-border trade by either complete shutdown or slowdown, as President Trump has threatened, will have serious, highly damaging economic and social consequences.
Transportation service company OmniTRAX held its annual National Leadership Meeting (NLM) in Denver on Feb. 19-21 to review last year’s performance and plan for 2019 growth. The conference, which had a “Catch The Wave” theme, featured the presentation of several awards to individual and team members and to OmniTRAX-operated rail lines.
OmniTRAX, Inc. has elected Cameron Scott and David Garin to its Board of Directors. Scott’s addition coincides with his retirement as Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer at Union Pacific Feb. 28, 2019; Garin’s service follows an extensive career that culminated in his most recent role as Group Vice President, Industrial Products at BNSF.
Short line operator OmniTRAX is partnering with forest products giant Georgia-Pacific on a transportation solution for the latter’s new plant in Albany, Ga.
Short line operator OmniTRAX announced a multimodal joint venture that will expand last-mile logistics services to the oil and gas industry.
OmniTRAX has sold northern Canada’s Hudson Bay Railway to a group that will repair the flood-damaged railroad.
Short lines Chicago Rail Link and Illinois Railway recently received federal grants to aid in the deployment of Positive Train Control technology.
Repairs are slated for the Hudson Bay Railway for the first time since flooding cut off the line serving the remote Canadian city in May 2017.
The American Short Line and Regional Railroad Association (ASLRRA) Short Line Safety Institute (SLSI) has named Sam Cotton as Senior Manager, Safety and Operations, replacing Mike Long, who recently accepted a position with the Federal Railroad Administration. Cotton will be responsible for management of SLSI’s Safety Culture Assessment program, a “voluntary, non-punitive and confidential five-to-ten-day onsite process with a rigorous methodology that includes an online survey of staff, discussions with management, and observations of a railroad’s daily practices.”
The Illinois Department of Transportation (IDOT) has awarded an Illinois Competitive Freight Program (ICFP) grant to the City of Peru, Ill. and OmniTRAX, Inc.-managed Peru Industrial Railroad (PIR) to help fund the Peru Intermodal, Safety, Congestion and Energy Security Project (PISCES). The funds will be used to improve the PIR, which operates a small but vital three miles of track, providing switching services for the Peru Industrial Park, part of the City of Peru Enterprise Zone. PIR interchanges with OmniTRAX-managed Illinois Railway and BNSF.
