Railroad News

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Today, Union Pacific Railroad announced its third-quarter diluted earnings per share reached $2.15, representing a 43 percent year-over-year increase and an all-time quarterly record.

Dallas Area Rapid Transit's (DART) board has re-elected Sue Bauman as chair for fiscal-year 2019.

Bauman was appointed to the board in 2016 and was elected chair in 2017. She previously served as DART's vice president of marketing and communications until she retired in 2011, when she became an adjunct instructor at Richland College.

New Jersey Transit last week began a new accelerated training course as part of an effort to address a shortage of locomotive engineers.

The program reduces the training time for new engineers to 12 months from 20. For the program's inaugural run, NJ Transit is teaching 14 assistant conductors to become rail engineers.

Caltrain this month entered a new manufacturing phase for its first electric trainset.

Crews have begun preparing the first two car shells for interior installation, Caltrain officials said in an web update on the railroad's electrification plans.

Operation Lifesaver Inc. (OLI) has presented its Champion Award to the Federal Railroad Administration's (FRA) Ronald Ries.

Established in 2010, the award recognizes individuals who advance OLI's community safety goals. In particular, the award honors someone who has "contributed significantly" toward any of the three "E's" of rail safety: eductaion, enforcement or engineering, OLI officials said in a press release.

Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) and Texas Pacifico Transportation Ltd. (TXPF) officials on Monday marked the start of reconstruction of the Presidio-Ojinaga international rail bridge in Presidio, Texas.

Located on the TxDOT-owned South Orient rail line, the bridge was severely damaged by fire in 2008 and 2009. The 391-mile rail line runs from the Texas-Mexico border at Presidio through San Angelo to just south of Coleman.

CN reported yesterday its third-quarter net income rose 18.4 percent to CA$1.1 million from CA$958 million in the same period a year ago.

Diluted earnings per share (EPS) in the quarter increased 21 percent to CA$1.54 over the Q3 2017 total. Adjusted net income climbed 11 percent to CA$1.1 million, while adjusted diluted EPS climbed 15 percent to CA$1.50, CN officials said in a press release.

Norfolk Southern Corp. this morning announced record third-quarter financial results, including operating net income of $1 billion — a 14 percent increase compared with the same period a year ago.

While announcing Q3 results, NS officials also shared plans to implement aspects of precision scheduled railroading (PSR) as part of a new operating plan, the details of which will be unveiled at the Class I's investor day event to be held in Atlanta in February 2019.

Steel casting firm Sivyer Steel Corp. has been acquired for $6.5 million in cash from a group of investors based predominately in the Quad Cities area. The company, which had been owned by FCF Partners LP of Milwaukee since 1999, will continue operations under the name Sivyer Steel Castings LLC. The company's primary assets include a 325,000-square-foot facility located on a 20-acre industrial campus along the Mississippi River, according to a Sivyer press release. Sivyer provides steel castings to manufacturers of industrial equipment in the passenger-rail, mining, military and oil and gas industries.

WSP USA has named Chris Ferguson central region transit and rail market lead. Based in Chicago, Ferguson will drive business development, synchronize teaming relationships, coordinate and communicate with clients and support technical projects. He has more than 10 years of transit and rail industry expertise, including with Class Is. Ferguson has also worked on projects for Metra, the Chicago Transit Authority, SunRail in Central Florida, the Utah Transit Authority and Rio Metro in New Mexico.

Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) has opened a new $13 million plaza above its station in downtown Berkeley, California.

The structure features a new main entrance with a glass floor that illuminates from below at night and allows natural light into the station, agency officials said in a press release.

Florida International Terminal LLC (FIT) has opened a new 32-acre containerized cargo terminal at Port Everglades in Broward County.

The new terminal has double the number of entry gates and adds scales, heavy equipment technology and increased stacked capacity, Broward County officials said in a press release.

Oregon Gov. Kate Brown late last week released a new transportation plan that calls for establishing high-speed rail in the state.

Brown has expressed support for establishing high-speed rail service between Vancouver, British Columbia and Portland. She has directed the Oregon Department of Transportation (ODOT) to work with Washington state, British Columbia and Microsoft officials to finalize a business case study that would refine options for public and private investment in high-speed rail in the area, according to the plan.

MTA Metro-North Railroad yesterday unveiled a new plan aimed at improving safety, service, infrastructure, communications and rider experience.

Known as "Way Ahead," the plan was developed in response to the railroad's growing ridership, changing demographics and evolving customer needs, Metro-North officials said in a news release.

A video from Norfolk Southern Corp. President and Chief Executive Officer James Squires to NS employees last week strongly indicated NS could move its headquarters from Norfolk, Virginia, to Atlanta.

Squires' video message, which was not posted publicly on the NS website, was reported by The Virginian-Pilot, Norfolk's daily newspaper.

Port Manatee handled a record 9.3 million tons of cargo in fiscal-year 2018, a 19.1 percent increase from the previous year, port officials announced last week.

The increase for FY2018, which ended Sept. 30, follows a 13.4 percent tonnage rise in FY2017 compared with FY2016 at the Florida port.

The Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) late last week unveiled a pilot project to test technology aimed at reducing peak energy consumption for the New York City subway system.

The "value stack approach" uses electricity produced by subway trains' regenerative braking systems, agency officials said in a press release. The technology also would generate revenue through participation in both the Con Edison and New York Independent System Operator demand-response programs.

San Pedro and Southwestern Railroad has been sold to Ironhorse Resources Inc.

The Arizona-based railroad will be renamed San Pedro Valley Railroad, according to RR Mergers & Acquisitions, which specializes in the sale of rail sector companies.