North-American rail

Canadian National Railway is buying more refrigerated intermodal equipment as the prospect of tighter regulation of food supply chains poses a challenge for shippers.

Norfolk Southern has announced changes in management responsibilities in its intermodal department, with expanded roles for Jeffrey S. Heller and Cary G. Booth.

Florida East Coast Railway Tuesday unveiled a new online portal that allows the regional railroad’s customers to track freight shipments and equipment across its network.

Grain is moving by rail at a steady pace from Canada’s Prairie Provinces to export terminals in British Columbia’s Vancouver, Prince Rupert, and Thunder Bay.

Alan H. Shaw has been named executive vice president and chief marketing officer by the board of directors of Norfolk Southern Corp., Wick Moorman, chairman and CEO, said today.

U.S. shipment volumes and spending rose in April from March, but were down year-over-year, thanks to tough comparisons with a booming economy in 2014, Cass Information Systems said. The freight payment provider expects more growth ahead.

CSX Transportation unveiled a new intermodal terminal just outside of Montreal Monday, giving the Jackonsville, Fla.-based railway easy access to the Eastern Canadian market.

BNSF Railway’s net first-quarter earnings jumped 44 percent to $1 billion despite West Coast port congestion that pulled down its intermodal volume roughly 5.5 percent in the period.

Norfolk Southern Corp.’s earnings fell 16 percent in the first quarter on weak intermodal volumes and a struggling coal market, the company reported Wednesday.

The Port of Virginia’s efforts to curb congestion took a literal hit Sunday morning after a barge struck a rail bridge, forcing Norfolk Southern Railway to delay five intermodal services and end two.

Union Pacific Railroad on Thursday appeared to downplay the idea that U.S. West Coast port congestion has changed its expectations that a low- single-digit share of cargo might shift to East Coast when the Panama Canal opens next year.

U.S. intermodal volume last week hit the second-highest point ever, potentially signalling an acceleration of cargo backlogged at U.S. West Coast ports moving inland.

Amid investors’ furor over the decline in crude shipments hauled by Canadian Pacific Railway in the first quarter were signs that the railroad’s domestic intermodal push is gaining traction and CP is emboldened to make a stronger play for ocean container business.

Kansas City Southern Railway is scaling back its outlook for intermodal growth this year after service and equipment issues slowed first-quarter growth in domestic and cross-border traffic.

Canadian National Railway on Thursday announced plans to invest US$400 million into infrastructure improvements in its Western Canada feeder rail lines.

Shippers’ frustration with West Coast port congestion might end up delivering more international intermodal volume growth to CSX Transportation over the coming years, but clogged marine terminals on the opposing coast dragged its total intermodal traffic growth to a crawl in the first quarter.

CSX Transportation profit in the first quarter rose 11 percent year-over-year to $442 million, as strong pricing power helped offset weak intermodal volume growth. Revenue in first three months of year was flat at $3 billion compared to the same period a year ago.

BNSF Railway on Thursday trumpeted reports of significantly improved intermodal service and performance metrics since rail service hit new lows last year, thanks to a harsh winter and an unrelenting surge of freight.

Shippers’ diversion of imports to the U.S. East Coast to avoid West Coast port congestion has caused an imbalance in domestic intermodal equipment, spurring Norfolk Southern Railway to implement a $500 surcharge on westbound domestic intermodal shipments interchanged with Union Pacific Railroad.

U.S. shippers’ potential shifting of imports from the West Coast to the East Coast would give the major eastern railroads more business, but how much the railroads will actually benefit depends on how much of the cargo is destined for the Midwest.

Fierce late winter weather dealt a blow to U.S. railroads’ efforts to restore intermodal rail service to the level shippers enjoyed before the 2013-2014 winter dragged down performance.

Canadian National Railway on Tuesday announced plans to build a $196 million intermodal and logistics hub outside of Toronto as its existing terminal serving Canada’s largest urban center nears capacity and regional freight demand builds.

Tightening Chicago drayage capacity is causing rates to spike, as shippers have little choice but to pay for more local trucking to avoid demurrage charges that railroads impose if loads aren’t removed from terminals after two days.

Rail service during the 2014 soybean harvest in the upper Midwest has been noticeably better than last year, according to the latest survey by the Soy Transportation Coalition.

Norfolk Southern Railway company president Jim Squires will succeed Wick Moorman as CEO of the fourth largest railway in the U.S. in three months.

BNSF Railway plans to invest $103 million in its Kansas rail operations and an intermodal logistics center southwest of Kansas City.

North American intermodal volumes plummeted as U.S. West Coast port congestion came to a head last week before union and waterfront officials at last brokered a deal Friday evening.

Canadian National Railway late Monday night withdrew its threat to lockout 4,800 union members after the railroad reached a tentative labor agreement with Unifor.

With U.S. West Coast ports on the road to restoring productivity, the two Western railroads are taking steps to handle an expected increase in international intermodal traffic.

Canadian National Railway said it will lock out 4,800 union workers, some of whom are tied to its intermodal services, on Monday night if Unifor doesn’t agree to accept binding arbitration this weekend.

Kansas City Southern Railway’s executive vice president and chief marketing officer, who has helped lead the railroad’s successful push into the U.S.-Mexico cross-border market, has been promoted to president.

Canadian National Railway intermodal shippers face the prospect of a decrease in service if 4,800 union members walk off the job over a dispute on whether the railroad should pay into its community fund.

Canadian Pacific Railway and union locomotive engineers and conductors have agreed to enter into binding government arbitration, ending a strike that began Sunday and could have severely crippled U.S. and Canadian supply chains.

CSX Transportation’s chief operations officer, Oscar Munoz, has taken on role of president at the railroad from Michael Ward, who will remain CEO and chairman, after the company’s board of directors voted for the changes Wednesday.

Canadian intermodal shippers could see a reduction in Canadian Pacific Railway service if a union representing 3,300 locomotive engineers, conductors and train workers follow through with their threat to strike later this week if the railroad doesn’t meet their contract demands.

U.S. West Coast port congestion is not only costing BNSF Railway intermodal volume, it's also hampering the railroad’s carload services.

Weekly U.S. rail volume hit an all-time high in January and traffic for the entire month was the second-highest ever — even as U.S. West Coast port congestion has hampered international intermodal traffic and spurred some shippers to divert cargo through Canadian ports and the respective rail networks.

Union Pacific Railroad’s has promoted its president and chief operating officer to CEO.

The major North American freight railroads this year plan to spend 7.4 percent more on their U.S. networks and on hiring than last year, as they see growing demand and are working to restore service to mid-2013 levels.