Short Lines

LIRC veteran logo

Louisville & Indiana honors, seeks out veterans

Members of the U.S. military are honored in a new logo applied to the flanks of two Louisville & Indiana Railroad (LIRC) diesel locomotives, underscoring LIRC’s long-standing commitment to recognizing and hiring veterans.

Acting FRA chief Hall resigns

Heath Hall, the acting administrator of the Federal Railroad Administration, the nation’s rail safety watchdog, resigned Feb. 11 amid allegations that he was working a second job as a public relations consultant.

Genessee & Wyoming

Genesee & Wyoming sees improvement in 2018

Short line operator Genesee & Wyoming said North America operating revenues in the fourth quarter decreased 0.6% to $320.2 million from $322.2 million for the year-ago period, as freight-related revenues declined $11.5 million, partially offset by an increase of $9.3 million in freight revenues.

45G tax credit

Trump signs budget bill with small-railroad tax credit

The regional and short line railroad investment tax credit (known as 45G for its provision in the Internal Revenue Code) was signed into law by President Trump following its unexpected insertion into the massive two-year Bipartisan Budget Act of 2018 passed in the predawn hours Friday, Feb. 9, by the House and Senate.

  • News

MMA, employees fined in Lac-Mégantic case

Six former employees, including the chief executive of the defunct Montreal, Maine & Atlantic Railway, pleaded guilty to federal charges Monday in connection with the deadly derailment that killed 47 and destroyed the center of Lac-Mégantic, Quebec, in 2013.

OmniTRAX Savannah hub certified GRAD

OmniTRAX Inc.’s Savannah Gateway Industrial Hub has been certified a GRAD (Georgia Ready for Accelerated Development) site by the Georgia Department of Economic Development (GDEcD), the state’s marketing and sales arm. OmniTRAX is developing the 2,700-acre tract in Effingham County, Ga., in partnership with the Effingham County Industrial Development Authority (ECIDA).

Worker painting railcar

Railcar demand “relatively stable”: Toja

Despite a significant slowing in commodity traffic during the second half of last year, demand for railcars was relatively stable in the fourth quarter, according to the most recent report from Economic Planning Associates. After 8,671 cars were ordered in the third quarter, orders for 8,501 cars were placed in the fourth quarter.

Probers focus on truck driver in fatal Amtrak GOP crash

National Transportation Safety Board investigators are looking into whether a garbage truck drove around crossing gates before it was struck by an Amtrak charter carrying dozens of Republicans to a retreat Wednesday, killing a passenger in the truck and and injuring others.