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WRR - 10-17-2008

October 17, 2008 Weekly Rail Review No Comments

WEEKLY RAIL REVIEW
FOR THE 7 DAYS ENDING FRI, OCTOBER 17, 2008
THE WEEK’S TOP RAIL AND TRANSIT NEWS (in chronological order):

(TUE) CSX suffered an on-duty employee fatality. Gregory Johnson, Age 28, was killed when two CSX trains collided in Decatur AL. The accident derailed 5 cars and Mr. Johnson was fatally injured when he became pinned under their wreckage. (ffd: Decatur Daily)

(TUE) BNSF, CSX, Norfolk Southern and Union Pacific asked a federal judge to dismiss a lawsuit filed against them that claimed that they colluded with one another in establishing fuel surcharges. The lawsuit, filed by eight plaintiffs that include U.S. Magnesium, Ziniflex Taylor Chemicals and the Strates Shows Circus, claims that the railroads illegally colluded in 2003 when they agreed to a set of fuel surcharges based on overall transportation costs, rather than actual fuel costs. An attorney representing the railroads, Kent Gardiner, told the judge that the meeting constituted “lawful behavior” and that no restraint of trade was alleged, and that the suit should therefore be dismissed. The judge has not indicated when he will rule on the railroads’ motion. (ffd: Bloomberg News)

(TUE) The U.S. Coast Guard, which is administering the Transportation Worker Identification Credential (TWIC) at U.S. ports, published a policy statement governing railroad workers’ access to secure port areas. USCG said that all railroad employees who work in secure port areas should have a TWIC, or be watched by an escort. Rather than checking cards at gates, a railroad’s local or regional office may provide TWIC information in advance of a train’s arrival. The policy may be found online at http://homeport.uscg.mil/.

(TUE) Amtrak announced that it would notably reroute two train services some dates this month due to track work on their normal route. Amtrak said that it would have its Empire Service trains serving New York State originate and terminate out of Grand Central Terminal instead of Pennsylvania Station. This will occur the weekends of October 18-19 and October 25-26. Amtrak said that it will operate a special shuttle bus for passengers between GCT and Penn Station. In California, Amtrak said that it would operate its “Coast Starlight” train over Union Pacific’s inland route between Los Angeles and San Francisco, including through the famed Tehachapi Loop. This rerouting will occur on three dates, October 24, 26 and 29. (ffd: Amtrak)

(TUE) The University of Wisconsin announced that it would begin offering courses in railroad engineering. A university spokesman said that the courses will be for postgraduate engineering students. Two other universities, Michigan Technological University and the University of Illinois at Champaign-Urbana, both now offer undergraduate railroad engineering degrees. (ffd: Wisconsin Badger Herald, Trains)

(TUE) The Chicago Transit Authority introduced new means to keep its riders advised of service disruptions and emergencies. A CTA spokesman said that riders could now sign up on its website, www.transitchicago.com, to receive email alerts about routine service changes. They can also view a video of train emergency evacuation procedures on the website. The spokesman added that, early next year, CTA will be able to send service alerts as text messages to mobile phones or as emails to computers and BlackBerry-like devices. (ffd: Chicago Tribune)

(WED) San Francisco’s Bay Area Rapid Transit subway system suffered an on-duty employee fatality. James Strickland, Age 44, was fatally injured by a subway train that approached and struck him from behind. Mr. Strickland was part of a two-man crew inspecting structures. His partner was about 1,500 feet away on the opposite track. The accident occurred between the Concord and Pleasant Hill stations. (ffd: San Francisco Chronicle)

(WED) The Federal Railroad Administration issued a final rule related to the standards and specifications of electronically controlled pneumatic (ECP) brakes. ECP braking systems are designed to simultaneously and gradually apply and release air brakes on all cars of a train, with attendant efficiencies. Because ECP brake systems can also perform electronic self-diagnosis, the rule permits trains to travel up to 3,500 miles before an enroute brake inspection is required. (ffd: FRA, Progressive Railroading)

(THU) Railcar lessor GATX was reported to be dropping its bid to buy GE’s railcar leasing division. The move appears related to the global credit crisis. Sources close to the deal reported that GATX had been offering more than $3 billion for the GE subsidiary and was the leading bidder prior to opting out. (ffd: wire services)

(THU) The State of Delaware announced that it had purchased four Class Silverliner V commuter rail cars for use on the SEPTA R2 line, which serves Wilmington DE. The purchase is a first for Delaware and will replace older cars in service on the line. The Silverliner V’s have digital destination signs, among many new features, and also include regenerative braking capability. In a related story, SEPTA planners announced that they were anticipating a 25 percent growth in ridership on its regional rail network by the Year 2035. (ffd: Philadelphia Intelligencer, wire services)

(FRI) The Wisconsin & Southern Railroad debuted a 52-foot, double-plug-door boxcar repainted in honor the 75th anniversary of Model Railroader Magazine. Both Model Railroader’s parent company and the WS are based in Milwaukee. The car, WS No. 503175, was painted blue with a 75th anniversary commemorative insignia. The painting was done at WS’s Horicon WI shop. (ffd: Trains)

STATS - “BIG 7″ AND SELECTED MEXICAN RAIL TRAFFIC:

(EDITOR’S NOTE: Canadian traffic includes that on the U.S. operations of Canadian National and Canadian Pacific.)

(THU) For the week ending October 11, 2008, U.S. rail volume grand totaled 35.2 billion ton-miles, down 0.6 percent from the comparable week last year. U.S. carload rail traffic was up 0.7 percent in the East, down 2.9 percent in the West, and down 1.4 percent altogether to total 331,402 units. Notable traffic increases included metallic ores up 32.4 percent and coal up 6.2 percent; notable traffic decreases included lumber and wood products down 22. 5 percent and grain down 15.9 percent. Also for the week, U.S. intermodal rail traffic was down 3.3 percent to total 234,732 units, Canadian carload rail traffic was down 2.1 percent, Canadian intermodal rail traffic was up 11.6 percent, Mexico’s Ferromex carload rail traffic was up 23.0 percent and its intermodal rail traffic was up 48.0 percent, and Kansas City Southern de Mexico’s carload rail traffic was down 4.1 percent and its intermodal rail traffic was up 4.8 percent.

For the period January 1 through October 11, 2008 and ranked with the comparable period last year, U.S. rail volume grand totaled 1.39 trillion ton-miles, up 0.8 percent from the comparable period last year. Also for this period, U.S. carloads rail traffic was down 0.3 percent to total 13,344,744 units, U.S. intermodal rail traffic was down 3.0 percent to total 9,226,191 units, Canadian carload rail traffic was down 4.3 percent, Canadian intermodal rail traffic was up 4.2 percent, Ferromex’s carload rail traffic was up 1.5 percent, Ferromex’s intermodal rail traffic was down 0.1 percent, KCSM’s carload rail traffic was down 5.6 percent, and KCSM’s intermodal rail traffic was up 8.1 percent. (ffd: AAR)

MORE STATS - “BIG 7″ (EXCEPT CN) OPERATING PERFORMANCE:

Not reported this week.

STILL MORE STATS - THIRD QUARTER, 2008 EARNINGS RESULTS:

(TUE) CSX reported net income of $382 million, down from $407 million in the third quarter last year. Revenues were $2.96 billion, up from $2.501 billion in the third quarter last year. CSX’s operating ratio was 75.2 percent, improved from 77.7 percent the third quarter last year.

For the first nine months of 2008, CSX’s reported net income of $1.118 billion, up from $971 billion the first nine months of last year. Revenues were $8.581 billion, up from $7.453 billion the first nine months of last year. CSX’s operating ratio was 75.8 percent, improved from 77.8 percent the first nine months of last year. (ffd: CSX Corp.)

EXPANSIONS, CONTRACTIONS AND ALIKE:

(MON) The Pennsylvania Northeast Regional Railroad Authority filed to purchase, from Norfolk Southern, approximately 11 miles of line in Monroe County and Northampton County. The line is currently operated by Delaware-Lackawanna Railroad, which will continue this operation. (ffd: Progressive Railroading)

APPOINTMENTS, ACHIEVEMENTS AND MILESTONES:

(FRI) Kansas City Southern appointed Patrick Ottensmeyer its EVP-Sales & Marketing. Mr. Ottensmeyer was most recently KCS’s EVP & CFO. Succeeding Mr. Ottensmeyer is Michael Upchurch, who was most recently SVP-Financial Management & Purchasing. In making these appointments, which some Progressive Railroading called “a succession-planning move,” KCS Chair & CEO Mike Haverty said that they would “ensure future ladership continuing while developing and retaining internal intellectual capital.” (ffd: Progressive Railroading)

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WRR - 10-10-2008

October 10, 2008 Weekly Rail Review No Comments

WEEKLY RAIL REVIEW
FOR THE 7 DAYS ENDING FRI, OCTOBER 10, 2008

THE WEEK’S TOP RAIL AND TRANSIT NEWS (in chronological order):

(MON) Further the ongoing investigation related to the awarding of supplemental disability payments to nearly all Long Island Rail Road early retirees, a spokesman for the New York State attorney general’s office said that they were subpoenaing the records of Marie Baran, the former head of the Long Island field office of the Railroad Retirement Board. Media reports indicated that Ms. Baran was alleged to have taken a $2,000 fee per claimant for completing and expediting supplemental disability paperwork. Later in the week, New York congressional leaders called for a federal probe as to “…why the number of LIRR employees applying for [supplemental disability] benefits far exceeds what one would expect.” (ffd: Newsday, Trains)

(MON) BNSF began installing a new interlocking at Keenbrook CA, marking the start of the final phase of its project to install a third main track on its line through California’s famed Cajon Pass. The new track parallels one of the two main lines that have been in service on the pass since 1913, one at a 2.2 percent grade and the other at a 3.4 percent grade. The new main track is also 2.2 percent, and so provides for two such tracks on the lesser grade between Cajon and Summit. (ffd: BNSF Corp.)

(MON) Portland OR transit operator TriMet announced that the extension of its MAX Green Line light rail line would be partially powered by alternative energy sources. A TriMet spokesman said that the line would include 22 wind turbines mounted atop catenary structures, each of which will provide 275 watts of power. Also, solar panels mounted at the line’s Jackson South Terminus station will generate more than 50 kilowatts of power through solar energy, enough to run the LED lighting at the site and also exterior lighting on site buildings. The line extension is scheduled to open in September, 2009. (ffd: Railway Age)

(TUE) The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency awarded Pacific Harbor Lines Railroad its SmartWay Environmental Excellence Award. PHL, which serves the Port of Los Angeles and Long Beach, was recognized for having completed this year the complete renewal of its locomotive fleet, such that all units now significantly reduce air pollutants. PHL was one of 27 SmartWay awards recently presented, and was the only one presented to a railroad. (ffd: wire services)

(WED) Memphis TN officials said that repairs to the sinkhole at the city’s Central Station are nearly complete. The sinkhole, which was first detected last April, has necessitated running Amtrak’s “City of New Orleans” train onto an alternate route through Memphis. Officials said that the sinkhole was caused by the structural failure of a late-1800s-era city culvert. (ffd: RT&S)

(WED) Canadian National said that it would acquire 232 new rapid-discharge ore cars and refurbish 500 existing ore cars. A CN spokesman said that the new and refurbished cars “…are part of a long-term plan to upgrade the fleet used to move pelletized iron ore produced in the Upper Midwest.” CN hauls ore pellets from three mines in Northern Minnesota and one in Michigan primarily to Great Lakes ports. (ffd: CN Corp., Progressive Railroading)

(THU) The four largest U.S. railroads announced that they had reached agreement among themselves on interoperability standards for Positive Train Control (PTC) technology. The announcement follows a requirement for PTC on rail lines over which intercity and commuter passenger service is operated, and over which Toxic Inhalation Hazard (TIH) commodities are transported, by the end of 2015. Concurrent with the interoperability announcement, BNSF and Union Pacific announced that they planned to install PTC on lines in Southern California over which Metrolink commuter trains are run by the end of 2012. (ffd: Progressive Railroading, wire services)

(THU) The Association of American Railroads announced that it would begin including loading statistics from a second Mexican railroad, Ferromex, on their weekly rail traffic report press releases. The AAR reports already include loading statistics of the Kansas City Southern de Mexico, which is the former Transportacion Ferroviaria Mexicana Railroad. (Note: These are included below under “Big 7 Rail Traffic,” and will be from now on.)

(FRI) Union Pacific announced that it had reached a tentative settlement with Dairyland Power Cooperative related to a Surface Transportation Board complaint filed by Dairyland against UP over fuel surcharges. Dairyland filed its STB complaint last March, the first specific customer request for damages after the STB in 2007 ordered railroads to change the way they set and applied fuel surcharges. Dairyland had complained that UP took its inbound coal shipments off negotiated contracts at the end of 2005 and put them under common carrier freight rates, to which such surcharges were then applied. (ffd: Traffic World)

(FRI) Amtrak announced that its Fiscal Year 2008 ridership increased to 28,716,407 riders, setting a record for the most passengers using Amtrak trains since it started operations in 1971. Amtrak’s fiscal year ended September 30. An Amtrak spokesman said that its FY2008 ridership marked an 11.1 percent increase in ridership from the previous fiscal year and that “all Amtrak trains across the system saw increases in ridership.” The spokesman added that FY2008 ticket revenue reached $1.7 billion, a 14.2 percent increase from the previous fiscal year. (ffd: Amtrak)

STATS - “BIG 7″ (AND SELECTED MEXICAN) RAIL TRAFFIC:

(NOTE: Canadian traffic includes that on the U.S. operations of Canadian National and Canadian Pacific.)

(THU) For the week ending October 4, 2008, U.S. rail volume grand totaled 35.7 billion ton-miles, up 0.8 percent from the comparable week last year. U.S. carload rail traffic totaled 336,457 units, down 1.6 percent in the East, up 0.9 percent, in the West, and down 0.1 percent altogether. Notable traffic increases included coal up 7.7 percent; notable traffic decreases included motor vehicles and equipment down 27.8 percent and nonmetallic minerals down 13.5 percent. Also for the week, U.S. intermodal rail traffic was up 0.8 percent to total 244,828 units, Canadian carload rail traffic was down 5.7 percent, Canadian intermodal rail traffic was down 1.3 percent, Mexico’s Kansas City Southern de Mexico’s carload rail traffic was down 16.1 percent and its intermodal rail traffic was up 0.1 percent, and Mexico’s Ferromex’s carload rail traffic was down 34.4 percent and its intermodal rail traffic was down 30.9 percent.

For the period January 1 through October 4, 2008 and ranked with the comparable period last year, U.S. rail volume grand totaled 1.35 trillion ton-miles, up 0.9 percent; U.S. carload rail traffic was down 0.2 percent to total 13,013,645 units; U.S. intermodal rail traffic was down 3.0 percent to total 8,991,459 units; Canadian carload rail traffic was down 4.4 percent; Canadian intermodal rail traffic was up 4.0 percent; KCSM’s carload rail traffic was down 5.7 percent and its intermodal rail traffic was up 8.2 percent; and Ferromex’s carload rail traffic was up 1.0 percent and its intermodal rail traffic was down 1.3 percent. (ffd: AAR)

MORE STATS - “BIG 7″ (EXCEPT CN) OPERATING PERFORMANCE:

(NOTE: Earlier this year, Kansas City Southern combined operating performance data for its domestic (Kansas City Southern) and Mexican (Kansas City Southern de Mexico) operations. As a result, correct comparative data for KCS for last year is not available at this time.)

(WED) For the week ending October 3, 2008 versus the comparable week last year (except for KCS), average total cars on line was as follows: BNSF, 227,929 cars versus 233,290 cars; Canadian Pacific, 84,567 cars versus 83,333 cars; CSX, 228,143 cars versus 218,384 cars; Kansas City Southern, 47,198 cars; Norfolk Southern, 198,154 cars versus 200,645 cars; and Union Pacific, 300,587 cars versus 311,968 cars.

Also for the week ending October 3, 2008 versus the comparable week last year (except for KCS), average train speed was as follows: BNSF, 24.3 mph versus 23.2 mph; Canadian Pacific Railway, 23.9 mph versus 20.9 mph; CSX, 19.5 mph versus 21.5 mph; Kansas City Southern, 26.0 mph; Norfolk Southern, 21.9 mph versus 21.8 mph; and Union Pacific, 24.1 mph versus 21.6 mph.

Finally for the week ending October 3, 2008 versus the comparable week last year (except for KCS), average terminal dwell time was as follows: BNSF, 22.8 hrs versus 23.9 hrs; Canadian Pacific Railway, 20.1 hrs versus 21.9 hrs; CSX, 24.0 hrs versus 21.2 hrs; Kansas City Southern, 16.9 hrs; Norfolk Southern, 20.5 hrs versus 21.1 hrs; and Union Pacific, 23.8 hrs versus 25.0 hrs. (ffd: AAR)

EXPANSIONS, CONTRACTIONS AND ALIKE:

(MON) The Buffalo & Pittsburgh Railroad filed to abandon approximately 28 miles of line between Orchard Park NY and Ashford NY. (ffd: STB)

(TUE) R.J.Corman-Pennsylvania Lines filed to abandon approximately 7 miles of Hillman Branch, between McGees PA and Hillman PA. (ffd: STB)

APPOINTMENTS, ACHIEVEMENTS AND MILESTONES:

(MON) The Massachusetts Bay Commuter Railroad appointed Richard Davey its General Manager. Mr. Davey succeeds James O’Leary, who will continue to serve on MBCR’s board. Mr. Davey was most recent MBCR’s Deputy GM and General Counsel. (ffd: Progressive Railroading, wire services)

(TUE) Concurrent with the recent Surface Transportation Board approval of the acquisition of the Dakota, Minnesota & Eastern railroads by the Canadian Pacific Railway, Kevin Schieffer resigned as the railroad’s President & CEO. Mr. Schieffer had been the DM&E’s president since 1996. A DM&E spokesman said that its COO, Ed Terbell, and CFO, Kurt Feaster, would manage day-to-day operations pending the railroad’s absorption into CPR. (ffd: Progressive Railroading, RT&S)

(WED) Actor Michael Gross, currently on the soap opera, “The Young and the Restless,” was appointed the official spokesperson of the B&O Railroad Museum. Mr. Gross, perhaps best known as the father of Actor Michael J. Fox’s character on the “Family Ties” series of some years ago, is a lifelong rail enthusiast. He and his wife Elza are noted collectors of dining car china and silverware, and are part owners of the Santa Fe Southern Railroad. (ffd: B&O Railroad Museum)

(FRI) Indiana University Press announced the release of “Jervis Langdon and the Transportation Revolution.” The book chronicles the life and work of Mr. Langdon, famed as a “doctor of sick railroads” and president of several of them during the mid-20th Century. Mr. Langdon died in 2004 at Age 99. The book is authored by H. Roger Grant, a noted author of railroad books and currently a professor of history at Clemson University. (ffd: Baltimore Sun)

* * *

WRR - 10-03-2008

October 3, 2008 Weekly Rail Review No Comments

WEEKLY RAIL REVIEW
FOR THE 7 DAYS ENDING FRI, OCTOBER 3, 2008

THE WEEK’S TOP RAIL AND TRANSIT NEWS (in chronological order):

(SAT) The U.S. House of Representatives defeated a bill that would have imposed additional requirements for future railroad mergers. The bill, intended to some extent to try to impact Canadian National’s proposed acquisition of the Elgin, Joliet & Eastern Railway, would have required the Surface Transportation Board to consider safety, environmental and passenger rail impacts when deciding whether a large railroad’s acquisition of a smaller one served the public interest. Bill opponents argued that it could potentially discourage future industry investment and create additional litigation. (ffd: CQ Today)

(MON) Los Angeles commuter rail operator Metrolink said that it would begin adding a second engineer to some of its commuter trains. The move is in response to the crash between a Metrolink commuter train and a Union Pacific freight train on September 12 in which distractions to the Metrolink locomotive engineer may have been a contributing cause. “It’s just an interim measure until we can find something permanent,” said a Metrolink spokesman. “We’re going to use [the second engineers] as much as we can, as another set of eyes.” (ffd: Los Angeles Times)

(MON) The Federal Railroad Administration approved modifications to self-propelled passenger cars intended for use on Austin TX’s new commuter rail line. The FRA had initially declined to approve the cars as not sufficiently crashworthy, but now says that it will approve them conditional to a steel cage being installed around the cars’ fuel tanks. With the approval, officials of Austin’s Capital Metro said that the new line, which will operate 32 miles between Austin and Leander TX, may be able to start service as early as next March. (ffd: Austin American Statesman)

(TUE) The engineer of a runaway Norfolk Southern freight train that derailed in June, 2006 near Gardeau PA pleaded guilty to charges of “causing a catastrophe and improperly disposing of hazardous waste.” Toxicology tests given the engineer, Michael Seifert, following the accident indicated that he had pharmaceuticals in his system that made him fatigued and sleepy. Following his guilty plea, Mr. Seifert was sentenced to one to two years in jail plus 600 hours of community service. (ffd: Trains, wire services)

(TUE) Government officials from Mexico and New Mexico pledged to work together to seek expedited approval for a new international rail crossing. The new crossing, which would connect BNSF, Union Pacific and the Mexican railroad Ferromex, would locate just west of Santa Teresa, NM. Officials said that the project should be a public-private partnership and that they would push for federal approval and funding for the new link as soon as possible. (ffd: RT&S)

(TUE) Toronto ON’s Metrolinx transportation planning agency released a draft plan that calls for spending C$50 billion during the next 25 years to improve and expand public transportation in and around that city. Entitled “The Big Move: Transforming Transportation in the Greater Toronto and Hamilton Area,” the plan calls for more than 700 miles of new rapid transit lines. Officials said that, if and when the plan is fully implemented, 75 percent of that region’s residents would then live within a mile of transit versus today’s 42 percent. (ffd: Progressive Railroading)

(TUE) The U.S. Department of Transportation released $30 million to match local investment in 15 passenger rail improvement projects. The funding will support intercity and commuter improvements in a total of twelve states. In their announcement of the funding, USDOT noted that, largely owing to the increased cost of gasoline, Americans drove 3.6 percent less in July, 2008 than in July, 2007, representing 9.6 billion fewer miles. (ffd: USDOT)

(WED) The U.S. Senate passed the combined “Rail Safety Improvement Act” and “Passenger Rail Investment & Improvement Act.” Both bills had earlier been passed by the House and, after Senate passage, were sent to the White House, where a spokesman for President Bush said that he would sign them into law. Included in the provisions of the rail safety act is the requirement that train conductors be certified; that by December 31, 2015, Positive Train Control (PTC) be installed on all rail lines where intercity passenger and commuter trains operate, and over which Toxic Inhalation Hazard (TIH) is transported; that train crews get at least 10 consecutive hours of rest following 12 hours on duty, and that their “limbo” time be limited; and that the number of FRA inspectors and support staff be increased by 200. Included in the provisions of the passenger rail bill is the formal reauthorization of Amtrak, the providing of seed money for development of new high-speed corridors, and the discretionary fining of host railroads that delay Amtrak trains. The passenger bill also authorizes $13.1 billion in federal subsidy to Amtrak over a five-year period, leaving the actual appropriation of these funds to annual Congressional approval. (ffd: Railway Age, wire services)

(WED) The National Transportation Safety Board announced that their ongoing investigation into the September 12 train crash in Chatsworth CA had determined that the engineer of the Metrolink train had sent a text message on his cell phone 22 seconds before his train collided head-on with a Union Pacific freight train. An NTSB spokesman said that this added to evidence that the engineer was distracted and may have ignored approach and stop signals in front of him. In a related story, the Federal Railroad Administration later that day issued an emergency order prohibiting the use of personal electronic devices, including cell phones, by railroad employees while operating trains and in certain other work settings. (ffd: FRA, NTSB)

(WED) Oregon’s TriMet Authority announced that it would start commuter rail service, Oregon’s first, on February 2, 2009. The new commuter line, to be known as the Westside Express Service, will operate over a 15-mile run serving the cities of Beaverton, Tigard, Tualatin and Wilsonville. The trains, which will initially run weekday rush hours only, will operate on the tracks of the Portland & Western Railroad. (ffd: Progressive Railroading)

(WED) The Virginia Department of Rail and Public Transportation announced that it will delay the release of its “Statewide Rail Resource Allocation Plan,” due to the worsening economic outlook. The state’s forecasting staff is currently reviewing and revising the plan to reflect recommendations recently made by its Advisory Committee on Revenue Estimates. A state spokesman said that the plan will serve as the funding and scheduling blueprint for passenger rail and freight rail projects in the state in coming years. (ffd: Progressive Railroading)

(WED) Norfolk Southern released its first-ever “sustainability” report. Available off the NS website, the 56-page report, which the railroad said it plans to issue annually, includes narrative, metrics, and profiles of employees who are making a “green” difference. “Our goal is to achieve industry leadership in fuel conservation, emissions reduction, efficient energy use, recycling, use of renewable materials, and environmental partnerships,” said NS Chairman and CEO Wick Moorman. (ffd: NS Corp.)

(THU) Massachusetts announced that it had agreed to purchase the 23-mile, former Boston & Albany line between Framingham and Worcester from CSX. The state already owns the 20-mile segment of that line between Boston and Framingham. Although the deal may take up to four years to complete, five MBTA commuter trains that originate or terminate in Framingham will be extended to Worcester effective October 27. The deal also provides for the state to purchase the CSX line between New Bedford and Fall River, which is planned for future commuter service, as well as the eventual relocation of CSX’s locomotive servicing facility out of Boston’s Beacon Park Yard. CSX has said that it hopes to exit all operations on its valuable real estate in Beacon Park, which locates across the Charles River from Harvard University. (ffd: NARP, Worcester Telegram & Gazette)

(THU) Metro North said that it would add bike racks to some of its New Haven Line trains this fall as part of a pilot program. Passengers are presently restricted from bringing bikes on the line’s trains during peak hours and conductors may bar them from off-peak hour trains that are crowded. A MNRR spokesman said that a study was underway to determine how the number of bikes on trains may be increased without reducing seats. (ffd: Hartford Courant)

(FRI) Congress passed a fiscal markets stabilization bill that include extension of the tax credit for short line and regional railroads. The bill was signed into law by President Bush approximately 90 minutes after passage. The bill extends the tax credit through December 31, 2009, and qualified expenditures made during 2008 may still earn credits. The bill also fixes a longstanding need so that it may still be used by railroads that must pay an Alternate Minimum Tax (AMT). The tax credit, which has been particularly helpful to short line and regional railroads working to rebuild their infrastructure, allows a 50 percent credit of up to $3,500 per track mile. (ffd: wire services)

(FRI) The National Carriers Conference Committee, which represents railroads in national labor bargaining, announced that all 13 railroad unions have now ratified new contracts with the carriers. A NCCC spokesman said that the current round of bargaining came to a close with the ratification of a new agreement by 7,000 members of the International Association of Machinist and Aerospace Workers. The new contacts cover approximately 145,000 rail workers. (ffd: Railway Age)

(FRI) Metro North announced that it would hold its annual open house at its Croton-Harmon shops on Saturday, October 11. Among the attractions at the open house will be tours of the shops, which were originally constructed by the former New York Central Railroad and remain MNRR’s largest single maintenance facility. Also featured, in the words of a MNRR spokesman, will be the opportunity to “operate a track switch with the click of a computer mouse and watch it move into position…then get onboard a diesel train for a 50-minute fall foliage train trip through the majestic Hudson Highlands.4€ (ffd: MTA)

STATS - “BIG 7″ RAIL TRAFFIC:

(EDITOR’S NOTE: Canadian traffic includes that on the U.S. operations of Canadian National and Canadian Pacific.)

(THU) For the week ending September 27, 2008, U.S. rail volume grand totaled 34.6 billion ton-miles, down 3.6 percent from the comparable week last year. U.S. carload rail traffic was down 4.7 percent, down 4.6 percent in the East and down 4.7 percent in the West. Also for the week, U.S. intermodal rail traffic was down 2.7 percent, Canadian carload rail traffic was down 6.2 percent, and Canadian intermodal rail traffic was up 7.6 percent.

For the month of September, 2008 and compared with September, 2007, U.S. carload rail traffic was down 4.6 percent, U.S. intermodal rail traffic was down 4.7 percent, Canadian carload rail traffic was down 6.6 percent, Canadian intermodal rail traffic was up 4.6 percent, Mexico’s Kansas City Southern de Mexico’s carload rail traffic was down 18.1 percent, and KCSM’s intermodal rail traffic was up 9.5 percent.

For the 3rd Qtr., 2008 and compared with the 3rd Qtr., 2007, U.S. carload rail traffic was down 1.2 percent. Notable traffic increases included metallic ores up 16.2 percent, waste and scrap material up 5.2 percent, and coal up 4.1 percent; notable traffic decreases included coke down 32.3 percent, motor vehicles and equipment down 26.7 percent, and crushed stone and gravel down 9.1 per cent. Also for the quarter, U.S. intermodal rail traffic was down 2.8 percent, Canadian carload rail traffic was down 4.9 percent, and Canadian intermodal rail traffic was up 4.0 percent.

For the first nine months of 2008 and compared with the first nine months of 2007, U.S. rail volume grand totaled 1.32 trillion ton-miles, up 0.9 percent, U.S. carload rail traffic was down 0.2 percent, U.S. intermodal rail traffic was down 3.1 percent, Canadian carload rail traffic was down 4.3 percent, Canadian intermodal rail traffic was up 4.2 percent, KCSM’s carload rail traffic was down 5.4 percent, and KCSM’s intermodal rail traffic was up 13.8 percent. (ffd: AAR)

MORE STATS - “BIG 7″ (EXCEPT CN) OPERATING PERFORMANCE:

NOTE: Earlier this year, Kansas City Southern combined operating performance data for its domestic (Kansas City Southern) and Mexican (Kansas City Southern de Mexico) operations. As a result, correct comparative data for KCS for last year is not available at this time.)

(WED) For the week ending September 26, 2008 versus the comparable week last year (except for KCS), average total cars on line was as follows: BNSF, 229,654 cars versus 235,395 cars; Canadian Pacific, 83,630 cars versus 82,821 cars; CSX, 227,458 cars versus 220,101 cars; Kansas City Southern, 47,361 cars; Norfolk Southern, 199,697 cars versus 199,969 cars; and Union Pacific, 302,392 cars versus 309,906 cars.

Also for the week ending September 26, 2008 versus the comparable week last year (except for KCS), average train speed was as follows: BNSF, 24.4 mph versus 23.1 mph; Canadian Pacific Railway, 23.6 mph versus 22.1 mph; CSX, 20.0 mph versus 21.6 mph; Kansas City Southern, 25.8 mph; Norfolk Southern, 21.4 mph versus 22.0 mph; and Union Pacific, 23.4 mph versus 21.9 mph.

Finally for the week ending September 26, 2008 versus the comparable week last year (except for KCS), average terminal dwell time was as follows: BNSF, 22.8 hrs versus 25.3 hrs; Canadian Pacific Railway, 20.2 hrs versus 21.1 hrs; CSX, 24.3 hrs versus 22.1 hrs; Kansas City Southern, 17.3 hrs; Norfolk Southern, 21.4 hrs versus 21.3 hrs; and Union Pacific, 24.5 hrs versus 24.9 hrs. (ffd: AAR)

STILL MORE STATS - SAFETY:

(WED) The Federal Railroad Administration released safety statistics for the first seven months of 2008. During this period and comparing with the first seven months of last year, there were 1,424 reportable train accidents, down 7.9 percent; 162 grade crossing crash fatalities, down 14.3 percent; and 271 trespasser fatalities, up 6.2 percent. Notably, there were 14 on-duty employee fatalities, a 100 percent increase, and there have been four more since July 31. (ffd: FRA, wire services)

EXPANSIONS, CONTRACTIONS AND ALIKE:

(TUE) The Surface Transportation Board issued a decision endorsing Canadian Pacific Railway’s acquisition of the Dakota, Minnesota & Eastern and Iowa, Chicago & Eastern Railroads. The two railroads add approximately 2,500 route miles to the CPR’s 14,358 route miles. Addressing the possibility that CPR would continue DM&E €^TMs long-pursued goal of building a new line to access Wyoming’s Powder River Basin coal fields, the STB said in its decision that CPR and its holdings can’t transport any coal over a new PRB line until the board prepares a new Environmental Impact Statement and issues a final decision allowing operations to begin on that line. (ffd: STB, wire services)

(WED) Shortline conglomerate Genesee & Wyoming announced that it had acquired the Georgia Southwestern Railroad. The purchase price was $16.5 million of cash consideration and the assumption of $5.4 million in debt. The Georgia Southwestern operates approximately 220 miles of line in Alabama and Georgia. (ffd: Progressive Railroading, wire services)

(FRI) CSX file to abandon approximately one mile of its Arlington Industrial Track in Marion County IN. (ffd: STB)

(FRI) Pacific Sun Railroad filed to lease, and operate, approximately 22 miles of BNSF line between Oceanside Jct. CA and Escondido CA. As part of this agreement, BNSF will also grant PSRR trackage rights to provide local freight service over approximately 46 miles of BNSF line between San Diego CA and the San Diego County-Orange County border. (ffd: STB)

APPOINTMENTS, ACHIEVEMENTS AND MILESTONES:

(MON) Phil Yeager passed away at Age 80. Mr. Yeager, a former Pennsylvania Railroad employee, started Hub City Terminals in 1971 and grew the intermodal freight forwarder into a company with $1.6 billion in annual sales. Mr. Yeager never retired, and at the time of his death was chairman of the company, now known as Hub Group. (ffd: Railway Age, Trains)

(MON) Kansas City Southern appointed Gil Niesen its AVP-Sales Operations & Administration-Intermodal & Automotive Business Unit. Mr. Niesen was most recently with Schneider National. (ffd: Progressive Railroading)

(FRI) Union Pacific appointed James Houton its AVP-External Relations in Washington DC. Mr. Houton was earlier Director-Government Relations for Microsoft. (ffd: Progressive Railroading, UP Corp.)

* * *

WRR - 09-26-2008

September 26, 2008 Weekly Rail Review No Comments

WEEKLY RAIL REVIEW
FOR THE 7 DAYS ENDING FRI, SEPTEMBER 26, 2008

THE WEEK’S TOP RAIL AND TRANSIT NEWS (in chronological order):

(MON) Despite recent ridership increases brought on by rising gas prices, New York’s Metropolitan Transportation Authority announced that it will need to research possible cuts to subway, bus and commuter rail services to shore up its budget in the face of a projected deficit next year of nearly $900 million. The Authority’s transportation network includes bridges and tunnels in New York City, the city’s subway and bus systems, the Metro North Railroad and the Long Island Rail Road. An MTA spokesman said that cuts could be necessary if it does not receive enough additional money from the state and city or if the economic crisis deepens significantly, resulting in still less tax revenues. The spokesman cautioned, however, that any service cuts were purely theoretical at this point. (ffd: New York Times)

(MON) The U.S. Department of Transportation’s Office of the Inspector General released a report on the lateness of Amtrak train services on host railroads entitled “Root Causes of Amtrak Train Delays.” The report found four top causes: 1) host railroad dispatching practices, some of which result in preference violations; 2) track maintenance practices and their resulting speed restrictions; 3) insufficient track capacity; and 4) external factors beyond host railroads’ control. On-time performance for Amtrak trains operating over host railroads has declined notably in recent years. The report recommended that several improvements be adopted, including that there be legislative changes to clarify Amtrak’s priority over freight trains and increased enforcement of those rights. (ffd: NARP)

(MON) The Canadian government reminded that it had recently implemented a plan to reduce the Canadian federal excise tax on diesel fuel from 4 cents to 2 cents per base unit over four years. The U.S. abolished a comparable excise tax in January, 2007. In a related story, the Railway Association of Canada reminded that Canadian railroads move 75 percent of that nation’s freight tonnage. (ffd: Progressive Railroading)

(TUE) CSX incurred an on-duty employee fatality. Tom Oliphant, Age 46, was struck and killed by a train passing the one he had just worked on. The accident occurred in Philadelphia, PA. Mr. Oliphant had reportedly just returned to duty from a 14-month, disability-related absence. (ffd: Philadelphia Inquirer)

(TUE) Federal agents raided the Railroad Retirement Board field office in Westbury, Long Island, New York. The raid, which seized nine file boxes and five personal computers, was conducted two days after The New York Times reported that nearly all career employees of the Long Island Rail Road - from 93 percent to 97 percent of retirees every year since 2000 - retire as early as Age 50 and soon after begin receiving supplemental disability payments from the RRB. Many of the allegedly disabled retirees were found to have used the same doctors and submitted nearly identical applications. Also on Tuesday, New York State Attorney General Andrew Cuomo announced plans to subpoena all records from the LIRR and its parent, the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, relating to the approval of disability payments. (ffd: New York Times, New York Daily News)

(TUE) Local police departments in 13 states, together with security agents from Amtrak and the U.S. Transportation Security Administration, carried out a “show of force” at more than 150 railroad stations in various East Coast states. Related activities included random searches of passengers and their belongings, as well as other security measures. In a joint statement, Amtrak and TSA said that the drill, the largest of its kind to date, was intended to be a “demonstration of ongoing collaborative capability to expand counter-terrorism and incident response along the Northeast Corridor.” (ffd: Amtrak, New York Times)

(TUE) CSX launched a new web page to highlight the company’s ethics-driven corporate responsibility beliefs and practices. A CSX spokesman said that the new page, found under the “Responsibility” tab on the company’s web site, www.csx.com, “should make it easier for customers, communities and their representatives, and shareholders to locate information on and understand CSX’s core values, business ethics, and community involvement.” The web page further organizes critical information about the company into four categories: marketplace, workplace, environment, and community. (ffd: CSX Corp., Railway Age)

(TUE) Google announced the launch of Google Transit for New York. A part of Google Maps online mapping at www.google.com, this new feature allows for point-to-point public transit trip planning that includes transit services throughout the New York MTA’s service territory, including New York City Transit, Long Island Rail Road, Metro North Railroad, MTA Bus, Long Island Bus, and Staten Island Railway, as well as other selected other regional connecting services, including New Jersey Transit, the JFK Airport AirTrain, and the Staten Island Ferry. A Google Transit spokesman said that the application even includes walking directions to the beginning or end of a trip. (ffd: CIO Today, Railway Age)

(WED) The U.S. House of Representatives passed a compromise Rail Safety bill. The bill passed was combined with an Amtrak bill that reauthorizes Amtrak and doubles its annual funding. Among the safety-related provisions in the bill is the implementation by 2015 of Positive Train Control (PTC) technology on railroad lines over which commuter and intercity passenger trains are run. Other provisions of the bill address hours of service, guaranteeing a minimum 10-hour disruption-free rest period following 12 hours on duty, and also limits the “limbo time” between when an employee ends his tour of duty and starts his rest period. The bill now goes to the Senate and, if passed there, then goes to President Bush to be signed into law or vetoed. (ffd: Progressive Railroading, wire services)

(WED) The Washington Metropolitan Area Transportation Authority said that it will need $11.3 billion in capital funding between 2010 to 2020 to bring its network of subway, bus and paratransit services to a state of good repair. The funding request does include money for some hoped-for expansion projects, such as light rail lines on former railroad rights-of-way in the city’s Anacostia section and in suburban Maryland, which a WMATA spokesman said “are just about off the table [for active consideration] right now.” The spokesman added that, by 2020, system subway ridership was expected to grow 22 percent to about one million trips a day, and system bus ridership was expected to grow about 9 percent to about 600,000 trips a day. (ffd: Railway Age)

(THU) In the wake of the Metrolink commuter train crash earlier in September, the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority approved a series of safety improvement recommendations aimed, it said, at “preventing further train accidents.” Among the recommendations is that Metrolink staff locomotive cabs with two engineers, implement automatic train stop technology on trains already equipped to handle those systems, and install video cameras and digital video recorders or equivalent technology to monitor engineers and other staff inside locomotive cabs. The Authority also called for Metrolink to establish a “Commuter Rail Safety Peer Review Panel” to evaluate the agency’s existing safety plans and operating procedures, as well as review such plans for freight lines. (ffd: Los Angeles Times, Progressive Railroading)

(THU) Canada’s Canadian Transportation Agency ruled that Canadian National failed to meet service obligations to four grain shippers, although it dismissed two other complaints against CN, including one from the Canadian Wheat Board. The Agency found that CN did not meet requirements mandated by the Canada Transportation Act to provide adequate and reasonable service during the 2007-08 crop year that ended July 31. The CTA ordered CN to “confirm a minimum of 80 percent of shippers’ requested freight cars; deliver 90 percent of these confirmed cars on time; and meet these performance standards on a 12-week rolling average through the crop year.” (ffd: Railway Age)

(THU) The U.S. Federal Railroad Administration announced that it had readied for release its “Essential Elements of a Railroad Bridge Management Program.” The program includes nine “essential elements” that apply to all railroads, which include a detailed bridge inventory, implementing procedures for bridge design and safety ratings, ensuring bridge inspectors are properly qualified, establishing procedures for performing bridge inspections, and developing a plan to protect train operators after a critical bridge problem is discovered. In announced the program, the FRA also commended the American Short Line and Regional Railroad Association and its Bridge Committee for working to create a model bridge management program for shortline and regional railroads. (ffd: Progressive Railroading)

(THU) The New York City Transit Authority said that it was continuing to designate general managers for each of its subway lines, which it said would allow for greater decentralization and more responsive management of the subway system. Once the appointments were complete in early 2009, 18 GMs will be in charge of NYCTA’s 26 subway lines, with some managers assigned to more than one line where ridership is lower or lines share the same track. A NYCTA spokesman said that this series of changes was the first major managerial reorganization of the subway system since its unification from the former IRT, BMT and IND lines more than 60 years ago. (ffd: NYCTA, Progressive Railroading)

(FRI) The State of New York announced that it would replace, and not rebuild, the Tappan Zee Bridge, which carries the New York State Thruway across the Hudson River near Tarrytown, NY. The state said that it had looked at rebuilding the 52 year-old bridge, whose approaches to the main span have notably degraded, but that it would be more cost-efficient to build a new bridge. Including in the new bridge’s design will be room for dedicated bus lanes and for railroad tracks that would be part of a new Metro North commuter rail line connecting MNRR’s Suffern Line with its Hudson Line. The state said that it currently has no funding plan for the new bridge and its extras, which are expected to total approximately $16 billion. (ffd: New York Times)

(FRI) The U.S. Surface Transportation Board determined the cost of capital and revenue adequacy for the railroad industry for the Year 2007. The STB said that the cost of capital for the year was 11.33 percent, a 1.39 percent increase from the previous year, and that Norfolk Southern and the Canadian Pacific subsidiary Soo Line Railroad were the only Class 1 railroads revenue adequate for the year. The STB considers a railroad revenue adequate if it achieves a rate of return on net investment (ROI) equal to at least the current cost of capital, representing the cost of borrowing, for that railroad. (ffd: STB)

(FRI) Amtrak and the City of Washington reminded of festivities on October 4 and 5 celebrating the 100th anniversary of Washington Union Station. The station was beautifully restored and expanded for commercial development in the early 1980s, and is now one of the major focal points of the city. Included in the festivities will be an exhibit of historic locomotives and passenger cars. Notable among the locomotives will be former Pennsylvania Railroad Class GG1 Locomotive No. 4935, which is being towed to the event from the Railroad Museum of Pennsylvania in Strasburg PA, where it has been a stationary exhibit for many years. (ffd: Amtrak, wire services)

STATS - CLASS 1 RAIL TRAFFIC:

(EDITOR’S NOTE: Canadian traffic includes that on the U.S. operations of Canadian National and Canadian Pacific.)

(THU) For the week ending September 20, 2008, U.S. rail volume grand totaled 32.8 billion ton-miles, down 6.8 percent from the comparable week last year. A spokesman for the Association of American Railroads, which compiles these statistics, suggested that “much of the decline may be attributed to disruptions caused by Hurricane Ike.” U.S. carload rail traffic totaled 312,662 units, representing a decline of 4.3 percent in the East, a decline of 10.4 percent in the West, and a decline of 7.8 percent altogether. Notable traffic increases included metallic ores up 16.6 percent and coal up 2.2 percent; notable traffic decreases included lumber and woods products down 25.0 percent, grain down 22.6 percent, and chemical down 21.7 percent. U.S. intermodal rail traffic totaled 234,286 units, down 6.2 percent. Also, Canadian carload rail traffic was down 13.9 percent, Canadian intermodal rail traffic was up 2.1 percent, Mexico’s Kansas City Southern de Mexico’s carload rail traffic was down 28.2 percent, and KCSM’s intermodal rail traffic was up 8.0 percent.

For the period January 1 through September 20, 2008, U.S. rail volume grand totaled 1.28 trillion ton-miles, up 1.0 percent from the comparable period last year. Also for this period, U.S. carload rail traffic was down 0.1 percent, U.S. intermodal rail traffic was down 3.1 percent, Canadian carload rail traffic was down 4.3 percent, Canadian intermodal rail traffic was up 4.1 percent, KCSM’s carload rail traffic was down 5.0 percent, and KCSM’s intermodal rail traffic was up 8.5 percent.

MORE STATS - “BIG 7″ (EXCEPT CN) OPERATING PERFORMANCE:

NOTE: Earlier this year, Kansas City Southern combined operating performance data for its domestic (Kansas City Southern) and Mexican (Kansas City Southern de Mexico) operations. As a result, correct comparative data for KCS for last year is not available at this time.)

(WED) For the week ending September 19, 2008 versus the comparable week last year (except for KCS), average total cars on line was as follows: BNSF, 228,914 cars versus 235,317 cars; Canadian Pacific, 83,775 cars versus 81,622 cars; CSX, 226,766 cars versus 219,327 cars; Kansas City Southern, 46,548 cars; Norfolk Southern, 199,493 cars versus 201,604 cars; and Union Pacific, 305,009 cars versus 310,740 cars.

Also for the week ending September 19, 2008 versus the comparable week last year (except for KCS), average train speed was as follows: BNSF, 23.3 mph versus 22.9 mph; Canadian Pacific Railway, 23.8 mph versus 23.5 mph; CSX, 19.3 mph versus 21.4 mph; Kansas City Southern, 26.1 mph; Norfolk Southern, 21.1 mph versus 21.4 mph; and Union Pacific, 23.1 mph versus 22.2 mph.

Finally for the week ending September 19, 2008 versus the comparable week last year (except for KCS), average terminal dwell time was as follows: BNSF, 23.8 hrs versus 24.9 hrs; Canadian Pacific Railway, 20.4 hrs versus 21.1 hrs; CSX, 25.1 hrs versus 22.3 hrs; Kansas City Southern, 19.8 hrs; Norfolk Southern, 21.6 hrs versus 21.1 hrs; and Union Pacific, 27.1 hrs versus 25.3 hrs. (ffd: AAR)

EXPANSIONS, CONTRACTIONS AND ALIKE:

(MON) Utah Central Railway announced that The Andersons has opened a new railcar repair shop on its line in Ogden UT. The shop will repair railcars owned and managed by The Andersons, as well as railcars of other car owners. (ffd: wire services)

(THU) Iowa Northwestern Railroad filed to abandon approximately 37 miles of line between Mackenzie Jct IA and Braaksma IA. (ffd: STB)

(THU) Chartwell International Corporation was reported by the Mid-Hudson News to be searching for a buyer for the Middletown & New Jersey Railway. Chartwell acquired the railway in 2006. The newspaper also reported that interest in selling the railroad has evolved since a deal to develop a construction and demolition debris transfer station on the line fell through. (ffd: Mid-Hudson News, Trains)

(FRI) BNSF filed to abandon approximately six miles of line between Kennydale WA and Wilburton WA. (ffd: STB)

(FRI) BNSF filed to abandon approximately eight miles of line between Woodinville WA and Redmond WA. (ffd: STB)

(FRI) Georgia Southwestern Railroad filed to acquire, from CSX, and operate approximately two miles of line in and near Lynn GA. (ffd: STB)

APPOINTMENTS, ACHIEVEMENTS AND MILESTONES:

None of note this week.

WRR - 09-19-2008

September 19, 2008 Weekly Rail Review No Comments

WEEKLY RAIL REVIEW
FOR THE 7 DAYS ENDING FRI, SEPTEMBER 19, 2008
THE WEEK’S TOP RAIL AND TRANSIT NEWS (in chronological order):

(SAT) Hurricane Ike made landfall on the Texas Gulf Coast as a Category Two hurricane. The storm caused considerable damage to many Texas communities, especially Galveston and Port Arthur TX, and impacted rail operations through much of Southeastern Texas and Southern Louisiana. Large, medium and small railroads in the storm’s path curtailed operations, secured equipment, and if possible moved cars and locomotives to higher ground. Union Pacific temporarily closed its regional dispatching facility in Houston, so that persons working there could evacuate with their families. Most railroads in the storm’s wake suffered downed trees on tracks, track washouts, and damage to some signal and grade crossing systems, but most were able to resume operations within the next few days. As the storm moved up through the Midwest, it dissipated but nevertheless brought with it rainfall that swelled rivers and streams, which in turn threatened nearby rail lines. CSX and Norfolk Southern temporarily curtailed operations near Gary IN, and Amtrak canceled its “Capitol Limited,” “Lake Shore Limited,” and “Southwest Chief” trains on Sunday and canceled several Midwest Corridor trains at various other times through midweek. BNSF had to temporarily close its busy Chicago IL-Kansas City MO main line, but was able to reopen it about a day after closure. (ffd: NARP, Trains, Railway Age)

(MON) In an apparent final chapter to the CSX-TCI Group hedge fund proxy fight, CSX agreed to seat TCI Group’s two additional nominees to the CSX board, CSX having earlier seated two other TCI Group nominees. CSX’s action follows a U.S. Court of Appeals ruling upholding the decision of a lower federal court judge that he lacked legal authority to stop TCI Group from voting shares at CSX’s annual meeting, even though TCI may have evaded disclosure obligations through the accumulation of equity swaps. The results of the annual meeting vote, which took place on June 25, showed that four TCI Group nominees had won seats on the 12-member CSX board. TCI Group has been advocating a series of controversial measures opposed by CSX management, including raising rates, cutting capital spending, and taking on more debt to finance stock buybacks, all with the goal of raising the price of CSX equity. (ffd: Bloomberg News, Progressive Railroading)

(MON) Further New York Governor David Paterson’s call for action related to the much-delayed redevelopment of the Farley Post Office Building into Moynihan Rail Station, Mr. Paterson suggested that the New York-New Jersey Port Authority should take over the Moynihan project. He said that this project was so closely linked by nature to the effort to build two new passenger rail tunnels under the Hudson River between New York and New Jersey that it did not make sense to have two different entities separately managing them. Mr. Paterson added that the Moynihan project should add tracks and platforms to increase the number of trains that can use the station. (ffd: New York Times)

(MON) The Bayonne NJ Historical Society observed the 50th anniversary of the accident in which a Central of New Jersey passenger train plunged off a drawbridge and into Newark Bay. The accident, which occurred the morning of September 15, 1958, killed 48 persons, many of who drowned. Investigators noted that the train’s engineer ran through three warning signals, didn’t look out to see that the bridge had been raised for a passing boat, and didn’t apply the brakes until the train was less than eight feet from the open draw. (ffd: Newark Star-Ledger)

(TUE) Federal, state and local authorities continued their investigation into the head-on collision between a Metrolink commuter train and a Union Pacific freight train in Chatsworth CA the previous Friday. The death toll in the accident increased to 26, with more than 130 injured. Media reports indicated that the engineer of the train, who perished in the accident, may have run past two warning signals and then through a switch just prior to the collision. They also reported that he may have been distracted by attending to a number of text messages sent from and received by his cell phone. On Tuesday, U.S. Senator Diane Feinstein (D-CA) introduced the “Rail Collision Prevention Act,” which would require the implementation of positive train control (PTC) on passenger and selected other rail lines by 2014, a technology that Ms. Feinstein said might have prevented the accident had it been in use on the line through Chatsworth. The “Federal Rail Safety Improvement Act of 2007,” which the House of Representatives passed last year, requires PTC implementation by the end of 2018. On Thursday, the California Public Utilities Commission issued a statewide order prohibiting the use of cell phones by train crews. (ffd: NARP, wire services)

(TUE) As reported in WRR last week, ABC’s “Good Morning America” television program continued to broadcast from its special train consisting of Amtrak locomotives, Amtrak Superliner passenger cars, and two private cars. The train continued across various Northeastern and Middle Atlantic states through the week. On Tuesday, the program featured a 12 year-old train enthusiast, who founded the “Make A Difference Day Express” to raise funds for needy children to experience train travel on the Arcade & Attica Railroad. Made aware that the railroad’s train was not accessible by all disabled persons, “GMA” arranged for the cast of another ABC show, “Extreme Makeover,” to at a future date rebuild Arcade & Attica’s passenger cars to make them fully accessible by disabled passengers. (ffd: NARP)

(THU) Union Pacific Railroad declined a public/private partnership proposed by the State of California. The project called for state funding to support the UP increasing its track capacity through the Donner Pass in the Sierra Nevada Mountains, in return for which UP which permit more passenger trains over the line. In a letter to California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, UP Chairman Jim Young stated that “Union Pacific has consistently maintained [that] the Donner Project must be exclusively a ‘freight project’…therefore…it will develop and construct the project over time with its own resources.” (ffd: Los Angeles Times)

(THU) Following its ceasing operations earlier this month, GrandLuxe Rail Journeys has now put up for sale its fleet of 20 fully operational and 11 other luxury rail cars. The train most recently operated as the GrandLuxe Express and earlier as the American Orient Express. Later this month, the train will be available for viewing in Napa Valley, CA. (ffd: Progressive Railroading)

(FRI) The “Minnesota Zephyr” dinner train announced that it would shut down on December 31. The train had operated out of Stillwater MN for the past 23 years. Owner David Paradeau told local media that the train would become a stationary restaurant next to the Stillwater Depot, which currently houses the Paradeau Stillwater Grill Restaurant. (ffd: Trains)

STATS - CLASS 1 RAIL TRAFFIC

(EDITOR’S NOTE: Canadian traffic includes that on the U.S. operations of Canadian National and Canadian Pacific.)

(THU) For the week ending September 13, 2008, U.S. rail volume grand totaled 34.6 billion ton-miles, down 1.7 percent from the comparable week last year. U.S. carload rail traffic totaled 329,836 units, down 2.4 percent, representing a decline of 5.0 percent in the East and a decline of 0.6 percent in the West. Notable traffic increases included metallic ores up 20.1 percent and coal up 7.0 percent; notable traffic decreases included motor vehicles and equipment down 25.1 percent and lumber and wood products down 18.4 percent. U.S. intermodal rail traffic totaled 236,877 units, a decline of 6.1 percent. Also for the week, Canadian carload rail traffic was down 3.0 percent, Canadian intermodal rail traffic was up 4.6 percent, Mexico’s Kansas City Southern de Mexico’s carload rail traffic was down 12.3 percent, and KCSM’s intermodal rail traffic was up 11.7 percent.

For the period January 1 through September 13, 2008, U.S. rail volume grand totaled 1.25 trillion ton-miles, up 1.2 percent from the comparable period last year. U.S. carload rail traffic totaled 12,035,176 units, an increase of 0.1 percent, and U.S. intermodal rail traffic totaled 8,266,065 units, a decline of 2.0 percent. Also for this period, Canadian carload rail traffic was down 4.0 percent, Canadian intermodal rail traffic was up 4.2 percent, KCSM’s carload rail traffic was down 4.4 percent, and KCSM’s intermodal rail traffic was up 8.5 percent. (ffd: AAR)

MORE STATS - CLASS 1 (EXCEPT CN) OPERATING PERFORMANCE:

Not reported this week.

EXPANSIONS, CONTRACTIONS AND ALIKE:

(MON) Canadian National-Illinois Central filed to abandon approximately 1 mile of line between Throop Street and Cermack Street in Chicago, IL. (ffd: STB)

(MON) CSX filed to abandon approximately 1 mile of its Southern Region, Huntington Division East, Logan Subdivision line, known as the Snap Creek Industrial Track, in and near Don, WV. (ffd: STB)

(MON) Union Pacific filed to abandon approximately 3 miles of its Litchfield Industrial Lead Track between Litchfield Jct. AZ and Litchfield Park AZ. (ffd: STB)

(MON) Wabtec announced that it would acquire Standard Car Truck for $300 million in cash. Based in Park Ridge IL, Standard Car Truck manufactures engineered components for locomotives and freight cars, with about 550 employees and nine manufacturing facilities. (ffd: Railway Age, wire services)

(WED) A. Stucki Company announced that it had acquired Alco Spring Industries. Based in Chicago Heights IL, Alco Spring is a manufacturer and supplier of freight car, locomotive, transit, and industrial and commercial springs. (ffd: Railway Age)

(WED) Inversys Rail Group announced that it had acquired Quantum Engineering. Quantum specializes in the manufacture of onboard equipment, and various signaling and train-control products, including recorders, alerters, indicators, speed controllers and end-of-train telemetry. (ffd: Progressive Railroading, RT&S)

APPOINTMENTS, ACHIEVEMENTS AND MILESTONES:

(MON) The recent passing of two esteemed rail enthusiasts was noted. Dave Sweetland passed away at Age 71 and Bob Malinoski passed away at Age 84. Additional to being a well-regarded rail photographer, Mr. Sweetland was a master mechanic for the Pennsylvania Railroad, Penn Central and Conrail. Mr. Malinoski was also a well-regarded rail photographer and book author, whose book titles included “A Golden Decade of Trains: the 1950s” and “Trackside Around New York City: 1953-1968.” (ffd: Train)

WRR - 09-12-2008

September 12, 2008 Weekly Rail Review No Comments

WEEKLY RAIL REVIEW
FOR THE 7 DAYS ENDING FRI, SEPTEMBER 12, 2008
THE WEEK’S TOP RAIL AND TRANSIT NEWS (in chronological order):

(MON) The Surface Transportation Board denied a request by Canadian National to expedite action on CN’s proposed acquisition of the Elgin, Joliet & Eastern Railway.  In its denial, the STB said that any accelerated decision-making would violate the environmental review process.  The next day, Tuesday, CN CEO Hunter Harrison commented that proposed legislation moving through the U.S. House of Representatives might cause the CN-EJ&E deal to “go dead.”  The proposed legislation, which would retroactively apply to the CN-EJ&E deal, would require the Surface Transportation Board to reject a railroad acquisition or merger if any adverse impacts on safety and on affected communities are found to outweigh transportation benefits.  The following day, Wednesday, CN said that it would file in the U.S. Court of Appeals to overturn the STB’s decision and compel their quick action on the CN-EJ&E deal. (ffd: Railway Age, wire services)

(MON) CIT Group announced that it would hold onto its CIT Rail subsidiary, which had previously been contemplated for sale.  A CIT Group spokesman said that various aspects of CIT’s financial situation had improved such that the subsidiary, valued at approximately $4.5 billion, could be retained.  CIT Rail owns, leases and/or manages a fleet of 550 locomotives and approximately 115,000 rail cars. (ffd: Progressive Railroading)

(TUE) Berkshire Hathaway announced that Union Pacific had been the top stock performer of its holdings during the previous three years.  UP stock was up 21.85 percent in 2005, up 15.9 percent in 2006, up 38.3 percent in 2007, and up 21.3 percent in 2008, year-to-date.  Berkshire Hathaway has recently doubled its stake in UP, from 4.45 million shares to 8.9 million shares. (ffd: Railway Age)

(TUE) The Federal Railroad Administration proposed that railroads provide new and more detail information related to train accidents, grade crossing incidents, and injuries and illnesses that occur on railroad property.  Among that required by the proposed new rules are that railroads notify the National Response Center of any crossing fatalities within 24 hours of an incident; provide greater detail about crossing incidents, such as whether a locomotive-mounted video recorder may have captured the event; and for the first time, report suicides and attempted suicides.  The proposed new rules would further require passenger railroads to report incidents during which a passenger is killed or injured when boarding or leaving a train due to the gap between the cars and the station platform.  The FRA said that it would take public comment on the new rules through November 10. (ffd: Progressive Railroading, Railway Age)

(WED) The Indiana Railroad suffered an on-duty employee fatality.  Philip Myers, Age 42, was fatally injured while switching a facility in Terre Haute, IN.  Initial media reports indicated that Mr. Myers was on the leading end of a cut of cars being shoved into a siding when the car on which he was riding derailed, pinning him between it and a load of crossties. (ffd: Terre Haute Tribune-Star, wire services)

(WED) A report produced for the National Retail Federation indicated that inbound container volume at major ports is forecast to decline 6.6 percent this year.  The report, from Port Tracker, said that volume is projected to total 15.5 million twenty-foot equivalent units for the year, compared with 16.5 million in 2007.  The report said that volume each month this year has been below the same month last year and is expected to continue to be below last year’s levels in each remaining month. (ffd: Railway Age) 

(WED) Canadian Pacific announced the schedule of its CP Spirit Train.  The train is being operated by CPR in cooperation with various partners in promotion of the 2010 Winter Olympic Games, which will be held in Vancouver BC that year.  Entertainment and related events will be held in towns and cities that the train stops in, the first of which will be Port Moody BC on September 21. (ffd: www.spirittrain.com.)

(WED) Urban archeologists announced that they had uncovered the ruins of the former Southern Pacific’s River Station in downtown Los Angeles CA, the city’s first railroad station.  The station, which was built in 1880 and continued in service for some years after, was uncovered as part of development work for the Los Angeles State Historical Park.  The archeologists said that some of the ruins will be left uncovered as part of the park’s new design. (ffd: KABC TV)

(THU) A coalition of passenger rail advocates notably criticized the latest plan for construction of two new passenger rail tunnels under the Hudson River between New York and New Jersey.  The coalition said that, for reasons including cost and flexibility, the latest plan, which has the tunnels serving a new station to be built under 34th Street in Manhattan, should instead revert to the earlier design, which had the tunnels running into Pennsylvania Station.  NJ Transit officials overseeing the tunnels’ construction have said that environmental and infrastructure constraints prevent having the tunnels go to Penn.  Also, NJT has debuted a five-minute video of the tunnel plan that can be seen on NJT’s website and at www.arctunnel.com.  In a related story, New York Governor David Paterson said that any state dollars devoted to the long-delayed conversion of Manhattan’s Farley Post Office Building into Moynihan Station must be done in coordination with other projects, including the new tunnels.  “Moynihan [Station] must be more than a beautiful station; it must move more people more efficiently,” said Mr. Paterson. (ffd: Asbury Park Press, Railway Age)

 (THU) Pacific Harbor Lines, which serves the Ports of Los Angeles & Long Beach, announced that it has completed its renewal of it locomotive fleet with 22 new low-emission locomotives manufactured by National Railway Equipment Company and Wabtec’s MotivePower subsidiary.  PHL said that there were now “the first all low-emission railroad in the nation.”  Costs for the $30 million project, which began in May, 2007, were shared among the railroad, the Ports, and a California state funding program administered by the state’s South Coast Air Quality Management District. (ffd: PHL Corp.)

(THU) The Railroad Retirement Board announced a reorganization of its field service.  Effective October 1, the agency’s 53 field offices will no longer be organized under three regional offices, but instead be under a nationwide management structure based at its Chicago IL headquarters.  With the elimination of the three regional offices, the RRB’s field service will be reorganized into twelve groups.  RRB stated that this restructuring of field service is preparatory to the RRB’s implementation of a nationwide toll-free telephone service early next year. (ffd: RRB)

(FRI) A Metrolink commuter train collided with a Union Pacific freight train in Chatsworth CA.  The crash, which forced the Metrolink locomotive well back into the first passenger car, killed 25 persons and injured at least 130 others.  Initial indications are that the engineer of the Metrolink train, who was killed in the crash, may have run a stop signal.  Metrolink trains are staffed by Veolia Transportation employees.  The crash is the nation’s deadliest passenger train disaster since 1993, when Amtrak’s “Sunset Limited” train derailed following a barge striking a bridge just before the train crossed it, an accident that killed 47 persons. (ffd: wire services)

(FRI) Both BNSF and Union Pacific announced record coal loadings for trains moving out of Wyoming’s Powder River Basin coal fields.  BNSF said that they moved out a record 24 million tons of coal in August, breaking the previous monthly records of 23.9 million tons set in March.  Union Pacific said that they loaded out a record 1,190 trains in August, surpassing their previous high of 1,174 trains in July.  Together, the two railroads dispatched a total of 2,197 trains out of the PRB in August, also a new record. (ffd: BNSF Corp., UP Corp.)

(FRI) ABC’s “Good Morning America” morning show began using a special train for a weeklong series of broadcasts starting Monday, September 15.  The train will travel from Albany NY through six northeastern states and then conclude in Washington DC on Thursday, September 18.  The train will consist of two Amtrak Class P42 diesel locomotives; one Amtrak ex-F40PH “cabbage” car, equipped with satellite linkup components; six Superliner cars, some of which have been temporarily modified for television production; and two Bennett Levin-owned private cars on the rear, the “Warrior Ridge” and “Pennsylvania 120.” (ffd: ABC Network, Trains)

STATS - CLASS 1 RAIL TRAFFIC

(EDITOR’S NOTE: Canadian traffic includes that on the U.S. operations of Canadian National and Canadian Pacific.)

(THU) For the week ending September 6, 2008, U.S. rail volume grand totaled 32.0 billion ton-miles, down 3.3 percent from the comparable week last year.  A spokesman for the Association of American Railroads, which compiles these statistics, suggested that the decline was in part due to temporary shutdowns of some railroads and industries in the path of Hurricane Gustav.  U.S. carload rail traffic was down 3.5 percent, representing a decline of 6.1 percent in the East and a decline of 1.7 percent in the West.  Also for the week, U.S. intermodal rail traffic was down 3.4 percent, Canadian carload rail traffic was down 2.9 percent, Canadian intermodal rail traffic was up 4.4 percent, Mexico’s Kansas City Southern de Mexico’s carload rail traffic down 12.9 percent, and KCSM’s intermodal rail traffic was up 12.1 percent.

For the period January 1 through September 6, 2008, U.S. rail volume grand totaled 1.2 trillion ton-miles, up 1.3 percent from the comparable period last year.  Also for this period, U.S. carload rail traffic was up 0.2 percent, U.S. intermodal rail traffic was down 2.9 percent, Canadian carload rail traffic was down 4.0 percent, Canadian intermodal rail traffic was up 4.1 percent, KCSM’s carload rail traffic was down 4.1 percent, and KCSM’s intermodal rail traffic was up 8.4 percent. (ffd: AAR)
MORE STATS - CLASS 1 (EXCEPT CN) OPERATING PERFORMANCE:

(NOTE: Earlier this year, Kansas City Southern combined operating performance data for its domestic (Kansas City Southern) and Mexican (Kansas City Southern de Mexico) operations. As a result, correct comparative data for KCS for last year is not available at this time.)

(WED) For the week ending  September 5, 2008 versus the comparable week last year (except for KCS), average total cars on line was as follows: BNSF, 228,991 cars versus 235,055 cars; Canadian Pacific, 85,224 cars versus 81,112 cars; CSX, 227,939 cars versus 217,809 cars; Kansas City Southern, 46,620 cars; Norfolk Southern, 199,218 cars versus 200,502 cars; and Union Pacific, 300,374 cars versus 313,194 cars.

Also for the week ending September 5, 2008 versus the comparable week last year (except for KCS), average train speed was as follows: BNSF, 24.3 mph versus 23.3 mph; Canadian Pacific Railway, 24.5 mph versus 24.0 mph; CSX, 20.2 mph versus 22.0 mph; Kansas City Southern, 25.9 mph; Norfolk Southern, 22.3 mph versus 22.5 mph; and Union Pacific, 24.6 mph versus 22.1 mph.

Finally for the week ending September 5, 2008 versus the comparable week last year (except for KCS), average terminal dwell time was as follows: BNSF, 23.7 hrs versus 24.6 hrs; Canadian Pacific Railway, 20.7 hrs versus 21.2 hrs; CSX, 24.1 hrs versus 22.7 hrs; Kansas City Southern, 18.1 hrs; Norfolk Southern, 22.3 hrs versus 21.3 hrs; and Union Pacific, 25.9 hrs versus 26.3 hrs. (ffd: AAR)

STILL MORE STATS - PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION:

(TUE) The American Public Transportation Association released U.S. ridership statistics for the Second Quarter, 2008.  Overall, ridership during the quarter totaled 2.8 billion trips, up 5.2 percent when compared with the Second Quarter, 2007.  Light rail ridership was up 12.3 percent, commuter rail ridership was up 4.9 percent, and heavy rail (subway) ridership was up 4.3 percent.  In announcing the statistics, the APTA noted that the ridership surge had put pressure on numerous transit agencies to increase capacity in the face of budgets strained by the  rising fuel prices and, in some cases, reduced cash flow from fuel taxes dedicated to transit funding.  “The irony is that just at a time when Americans need [transportation] choice…35 percent of transit systems are saying they may need to cut service,” said APTA President William Millar. (ffd: APTA, Railway Age, wire services)

EXPANSIONS, CONTRACTIONS AND ALIKE:

MON) The Canadian Government announced that it would provide up to $622 million to extend a line of Toronto ON’s subway system.  The extension, totaling 5.3 miles, will expand subway service to York University and the Vaughn Corporate Center.  The government has already committed $75 million to the project through Canada’s Public Transit Capital Trust. (ffd: Progressive Railroading)

(MON) Shortline conglomerate Iowa Pacific Holdings announced that it had reached agreement to take over several rail enterprises in the United Kingdom.  These include RMS Locotec, which provides switching and track maintenance services; the Dartmoor Railway which operates a 17-mile passenger and freight rail line in England; and the Weardale Railway, which operates an 18-mile line in England’s County Durham, between Bishop Auckland and Eastgate.  The enterprises will be controlled by a new company established by Iowa Pacific in the UK, British American Railway Services. (ffd: Iowa Pacific Corp., Progressive Railroading)

(MON) The Surface Transportation Board approved construction of a new nine-mile rail line from a connection with BNSF and Canadian National in Taconite MN to Nashwauk MN.  The line, to be owned by the Itasca County Regional Rail Authority and run by a short line operator, is planned to serve a proposed new steel mill to be constructed by Minnesota Steel Industries at Nashwauk MN.  The line is projected to handle a 30,000 carloads of taconite pellets and steel slabs annually. (ffd: Railway Age, STB)

(TUE) Shortline conglomerate Patriot Rail was reported to have applied to purchase Sierra & Central Pacific Railroad.  The S&CP is reportedly slated to operate the Virginia & Truckee Railway in Northern California, a tourist railroad that is being restored to service. (ffd: The Nevada Appeal, Trains)

(WED) The Board of Supervisors of Tulane County CA announced that the County would not now purchase approximately 40 miles of line of the San Joaquin Valley Railroad.  The STB had earlier set the price to acquire the 40 miles of line at $3.308 million.  With the County declining action, an earlier order conditionally authorizing the abandonment of the 40 miles now goes into effect. (ffd: Railway Age)

(FRI) Arkansas Midland Railroad filed to operate approximately 3 miles of line in and near Jacksonville AR.  The line, which extends from a connection with the Union Pacific to the south side of the Little Rock Air Force Base, is owned by the City of Jacksonville AR. (ffd: STB)

(FRI) Mount Hood Railroad resumed tourist train and freight rail service to Parkdale OR.  The line had been out of service for nearly two years following a landslide.  To reopen the line, workers rebuilt 45 feet of hillside and replaced 175 feet of track. (ffd: The Hillsboro Argus, Trains)

APPOINTMENTS, ACHIEVEMENTS AND MILESTONES:

(FRI) CSX appointed Michele Mastrean its VP-Compensation & Benefits.  Ms. Mastrean was most recently a VP-Human Resources for Halliburton. (ffd: CSX Corp.)

WRR - 09-05-2008

September 5, 2008 Weekly Rail Review No Comments

WEEKLY RAIL REVIEW
FOR THE 7 DAYS ENDING FRI, SEPTEMBER 5, 2008

THE WEEK’S TOP RAIL AND TRANSIT NEWS (in chronological order):

(NOTE: This was the week included the Labor Day Holiday.)

(MON) Hurricane Gustav made landfall on the Louisiana gulf coast as a Category Two hurricane.  In the days prior, railroads in the path of the hurricane, large and small alike, made extensive preparations for the storm’s arrival, which included curtailing train operations, securing equipment, and moving it and personnel out of harm’s way.  Amtrak curtailed normal service on its three long-distance routes serving New Orleans and used the trains’ consists to evacuate approximately 6,000 residents out of the city to temporary shelter in Memphis, TN.  The storm itself caused comparatively minor damage, at least when compared with 2005’s Hurricane Katrina, which consisted mainly of downed trees on tracks, washouts due to heavy rain and flooding, and temporarily inoperative signal and grade crossing warning systems.  CSX did report track damage across approximately 21 miles of its line between New Orleans, LA and Pascagoula, MS, which it estimated would take at least two weeks to repair. (ffd: Trains, wire services)

(MON) Railroads assisted in the production of the Republican National Convention held in St. Paul MN, which was held in the Xcel Energy Center near St. Paul’s Amtrak station.  Union Pacific brought in 28 business cars, which had last been at the Democratic National Convention in Denver CO, and BNSF brought in 11 business cars.  Due to security restrictions, Amtrak rerouted its daily “Empire Builder” passenger train from its normal route through St. Paul and onto BNSF’s Midway Subdivision, which passes just east of downtown St. Paul.  Amtrak also kept a special train of two locomotives and six Amfleet cars at Union Pacific’s Western Avenue Yard, in case it was needed to assist in the emergency evacuation of the convention site. (ffd: Trains)

(TUE) Planners for Los Angeles’s Metropolitan Transportation Authority announced that they now favored two new lines to expand the city’s subway system.  An MTA spokesman said that one line would run east to west under Wilshire Boulevard and another would run east to west under a portion of Santa Monica Boulevard before turning south to junction with the Wilshire line.  The Wilshire line would receive funding and construction priority.  In 1998 and related to notable construction problems and cost overruns with the subway line built under a portion of Hollywood Boulevard, LA voters banned MTA from using sales tax money for new subway tunneling.  However due to increasing traffic congestion and want for more mass transit, the ban is expected to eventually be rescinded, or a new source to fund construction of these new lines established. (ffd: Los Angeles Times, wire services)

(WED) The joint powers board overseeing the Caltrain commuter rail system serving San Francisco and its southern suburbs was updated by consultants concerning plans to electrify service on the line by 2015.  The project is expected to cost approximately $1.5 billion altogether, which includes $785 million for the electrification infrastructure and $422 million for 98 new multiple-unit commuter cars.  A Caltrain spokesman said replacing current diesel-powered service with electrics will speed service, allowing trains to make all of Caltrain’s 21 stops in 70 minutes, and increase frequency, allowing 12 trains to operate on the line in peak hours instead of five. (ffd: San Jose Mercury News)

(THU) Union Pacific said that its planned expansion of its intermodal facility serving the Port of Los Angeles-Long Beach would include a pilot program using electric tractors to move containers around the terminal.  UP is looking to double the capacity of its Intermodal Container Transfer Facility (ICTF) in Long Beach, from 725,000 to 1.5 million containers annually.  The expansion would include construction of additional tracks, a new gate facility, improvement of existing gate facilities, and additional parking.  To address environmental conceptualists wanting impact on the expansion plans, UP said that it would also complete a study on the feasibility of using maglev technology to move containers between the ICTF and the port itself, which is about five miles away. (ffd: wire services)

STATS - “BIG 7″ TRAFFIC

(EDITOR’S NOTE: Canadian traffic includes that on the U.S. operations of Canadian National and Canadian Pacific.)

(THU) For the week ending August 30, 2008, U.S. rail volume grand totaled 35.9 billion ton-miles, up 0.6 percent from the comparable week last year.  U.S. carload rail traffic was down 0.3 percent, down 3.2 percent in the East, but up 2.9 percent in the West.  Also for the week, U.S. intermodal rail traffic was down 1.6 percent, Canadian carload rail traffic was down 1.5 percent, and Canadian intermodal rail traffic was up 4.5 percent. 

For the month of August, 2008 versus August, 2007, U.S. carload rail traffic totaled 1,340,387 carloads, down 0.5 percent.  U.S. intermodal rail traffic totaled 941,500 units, down 1.7 percent.  Also for the month, Canadian carload rail traffic was down 4.0 percent, Canadian intermodal rail traffic was up 3.1 percent, Mexico’s Kansas City Southern de Mexico’s carload rail traffic was down 8.6 percent, and KCSM’s intermodal rail traffic was up 5.7 percent.

For the period January 1 through August 30, 2008 versus the first eight months of last year, U.S. rail volume grand totaled 1.18 trillion ton-miles, up 1.4 percent.  U.S. carload rail traffic totaled 11,399,000 carloads, up 0.3 percent.  Notable traffic increases included grain up 13.1 percent, coal up 3.5 percent, and chemicals up 3.3 percent; notable traffic decreases included coke down 31.9 percent, motor vehicles and equipment down 17.6 percent, and crushed stone, sand and gravel down 6.5 percent.   U.S. intermodal rail traffic totaled 7,828,312 units, down 2.9 percent, and Canadian carload rail traffic was down 4.1 percent, Canadian intermodal rail traffic was up 4.1 percent, KCSM’s carload rail traffic was down 3.9 percent, and KCSM’s intermodal rail traffic was up 8.3 percent. (ffd: AAR)

MORE STATS - “BIG 7″ (EXCEPT CN) OPERATING PERFORMANCE:

(NOTE: Earlier this year, Kansas City Southern combined operating performance data for its domestic (Kansas City Southern) and Mexican (Kansas City Southern de Mexico) operations. As a result, relevant comparative data for KCS for last year is not available at this time.)

(WED) For the week ending  August 29, 2008 versus the comparable week last year (except for KCS), average total cars on line was as follows: BNSF, 229,524 cars versus 235,217 cars; Canadian Pacific, 86,338 cars versus 81,854 cars; CSX, 227,507 cars versus 219,744 cars; Kansas City Southern, 46,801 cars; Norfolk Southern, 199,340 cars versus 200,599 cars; and Union Pacific, 299,999 cars versus 314,591 cars.

Also for the week ending August 29, 2008 versus the comparable week last year (except for KCS), average train speed was as follows: BNSF, 24.1 mph versus 23.1 mph; Canadian Pacific Railway, 24.6 mph versus 22.6 mph; CSX, 20.1 mph versus 20.6 mph; Kansas City Southern, 25.8 mph; Norfolk Southern, 21.5 mph versus 21.3 mph; and Union Pacific, 23.9 mph versus 21.1 mph.

Finally for the week ending August 29, 2008 versus the comparable week last year (except for KCS), average terminal dwell time was as follows: BNSF, 23.5 hrs versus 24.8 hrs; Canadian Pacific Railway, 21.0 hrs versus 20.5 hrs; CSX, 23.4 hrs versus 22.4 hrs; Kansas City Southern, 17.1 hrs; Norfolk Southern, 21.5 hrs versus 20.9 hrs; and Union Pacific, 23.8 hrs versus 25.8 hrs. (ffd: AAR)

STILL MORE STATS - SAFETY:

(TUE) The Federal Railroad Administration reported railroad accident statistics for the first six months of this year.  Most notably, on-duty employee fatalities more than doubled, from 5 last year to 13 this year.  Trespasser fatalities rose 15.9 percent, to 241.  However, rail-highway crossing fatalities declined 20.5 percent, to 128.

Train accidents declined 6.4 percent, to 1,205.  Of these and also compared to last year, those due to track declined 7.5 percent, to 422; those due to equipment were relatively unchanged, at 164; those due to signaling-related causes increased 23.5 percent, to 21; and those due to human factors declined 14.8 percent, to 408. (ffd: FRA)

EXPANSIONS, CONTRACTIONS AND ALIKE:

(TUE) Transit America filed to abandon approximately 2 miles of its Missouri Branch Line, in and near St. Joseph, MO. (ffd: STB)

(WED) Union Pacific announced plans to spend about $300 million over the next decade to build a new yard, fueling facility and intermodal terminal near Las Cruces, NM.  UP announced in 2006 that it would relocate some of its El Paso, TX facilities into New Mexico. (ffd: Las Cruces Sun-News)

(THU) Minnesota Northern filed to abandon approximately 20 miles of its “P” Line between Perley, MN and Shelly, MN. (ffd: STB)

(FRI) Canadian Pacific filed to abandon 61 miles of Soo Line railroad, between Kramer, ND and Bisbee, ND. (ffd: STB)

APPOINTMENTS, ACHIEVEMENTS AND MILESTONES:

(MON) Surface Transportation Board Commissioner Douglas Buttrey announced his intention to leave the STB at the completion of his term.  However, Mr. Buttrey’s office issued a statement that he “not only plans to complete his term to December 31, but does not intend to leave the Board until the completion of [its] work on several pending matters.”  In a related story, the Bush Administration’s nomination of a replacement board member, Husein Cumber,continues to be stalled in Congress. (ffd: Traffic World)

(THU) Canadian Pacific announced that CPR EVP & Chief Financial Officer Mike Lambert had “left the company to pursue other interests.”  Succeding Mr. Lambert will be Kathryn McQuade, who had been CPR’s EVP & Chief Operating Officer.  Succeeding Ms. McQuade will be Brock Winter, who was earlier head of CPR operations and is now completing a special assignment to determine how best to improve the CPR’s efficiency and productivity. (ffd: Canadian Financial Post, CP Corp.)

WRR - 08-22-2008

August 29, 2008 Weekly Rail Review No Comments

WEEKLY RAIL REVIEW
FOR THE 7 DAYS ENDING FRI, AUGUST 22, 2008
THE WEEK’S TOP RAIL AND TRANSIT NEWS (in chronological order):

(SAT) Two CSX freight trains collided at slow speed near East Arcadia, NC.  The accident derailed 1 locomotive and 11 cars, and resulted in a spill of several thousand gallons of denatured alcohol, which was contained.  Minor injuries were reported to the crew members of the two trains. (ffd: http://www.wect.com/)

(TUE) The Rand Corporation released an extensive study of U.S. freight transportation.  The study said, as have other transportation researchers, that the volume of freight transportation in the U.S. is expected to double over the next 30 years, and that greater use of freight rail could allow the domestic supply chain to minimize highway congestion and reduce fuel consumption.  The study went on to say that there is a public role for easing expected rail capacity constraints, because private decisions about transportation and shipping have public consequences for safety and environment.  The study is available at http://www.rand.org/. (ffd: RT&S)

(TUE) The New York City Transit Authority said that its may modify some cars of its Lexington Avenue subway line so that car seats may be flipped up and locked into place to make room for more standing riders.  A NYCTA spokesman said that the special seats will make room for up to 18 percent more passengers per car.  The Lexington Avenue Line is by far the most crowded of the city’s subway lines, with a weekday passenger count that alone exceeds that of the entire subway systems of several other U.S. cities.  The spokesman added that, to assure adequate seating for those who want or need to sit down, it would use no more than four cars with flip-up seats in any of the line’s 10-car trains. (ffd: New York Times)

(WED) Amtrak suffered an on-duty employee fatality.  Steven Rychwalski, Age 22, with three years’ service, was struck and killed by an Acela Express train while working on Northeast Corridor Line tracks near New Carrollton, MD during early morning hours.  Mr. Rychwalski worked for the railroad’s Communications & Signals Department. (ffd: Baltimore Sun, wire services)

(WED) Maryland’s MARC commuter rail system has agreed to purchase 13 cars from Virginia Railway Express, the commuter rail system serving Washington, DC and Northern Virginia.  The cars are identical to MARC’s Class MARC III Kawasaki bi-levels already in service; the cars being purchased are in fact an add-on to the MARC order.  VRE has deemed the cars surplus, as they have acquired a fleet of new gallery-style cars for their service, and which also permits VRE to standardize its fleet.  MARC said that it expects the new cars to be in service by November. (ffd: NARP)

(WED) The Pennsylvania Department of Transportation announced the launch of a new website promoting Amtrak’s Keystone Line.  The website, http://www.catchthekeystone.com/, includes schedules, ticket information, station hours and train amenities for the 12-stop rail route, whose trains run between New York, NY and Harrisburg, PA by way of Philadelphia, PA.  A PennDOT spokesman said that the Keystone Line’s ridership this past July was up 26 percent over July of last year. (ffd: Philadelphia Business Journal)

(THU) The individual responsible for the derailment of a Metrolink commuter train in Los Angeles, CA in January, 2005 was sentenced to eleven consecutive life sentences, one for each of the passengers killed in the derailment.  Juan Manuel Alvarez, Age 29, had parked his SUV across the tracks as the train approached and soaked it with gasoline.  Prosecutors successfully argued that Mr. Alvarez was intent on causing severe damage to the train in an act to get the attention of his estranged wife. (ffd: wire services)

(THU) RailAmerica said that it was willing to sell all of its Central Oregon & Pacific’s Coos Bay line in Oregon if a new operator can be found for the line.  The company made its offer at a special hearing of the U.S. Surface Transportation Board that was convened in Eugene, OR to discuss the line’s future.  94 miles of the line, between Cordes and Vaughn OR, have been out of service since September, 2007 due to deteriorated tunnel conditions.  Also at the hearing, Oregon Governor Ted Kulongoski urged the STB to reject RailAmerica’s application to abandon the line and for RailAmerica to accept the Port of Coos Bay $9.8 million offer to buy the line. (ffd: Progressive Railroading, Railway Age)

(THU) Acknowledging “a high level of token fraud,” the Utah Transit Authority said that it would cease accepting tokens September 1 for payment of fares on its TRAX light rail and FrontRunner commuter rail lines.  A UTA spokesman said that, effective that date, passengers beginning their trips on TRAX or FrontRunner should either purchase an appropriate ticket or pass from a ticket vending machine or present an old token to a UTA bus operator to exchange for a transfer ticket for trains. (ffd: Railway Age)

STATS - “BIG 7″ TRAFFIC

(EDITOR’S NOTE: Canadian traffic includes that on the U.S. operations of Canadian National and Canadian Pacific.)

(THU) For the week ending August 16, 2008, U.S. rail volume grand totaled 35.2 billion ton-miles, up 0.6 percent from the comparable week last year.  U.S. carload rail traffic totaled 335,245 units, down 0.8 percent altogether, down 3.7 percent in the East and up 1.3 percent in the West.  Notable traffic increases included metals and metal products up 12.4 percent, grain up 9.5 percent, and coal up 5.1 percent; notable traffic decreases included motor vehicles and equipment down 30.6 percent, metallic ores down 23.2 percent, and wood and wood products down 17.5 percent.  U.S. intermodal rail traffic totaled 237,034 units, down 0.5 percent.  Also for the week, Canadian carload rail traffic was down 4.1 percent, Canadian intermodal rail traffic was up 2.6 percent, Mexico’s Kansas City Southern de Mexico’s carload rail traffic was down 5.4 percent, and KCSM’s intermodal rail traffic was down 0.6 percent.

For the period January 1 through August 16, 2008, U.S. rail volume grand totaled 1.11 trillion ton-miles, up 1.5 percent from the comparable period last year.  U.S. carload rail traffic totaled 10,722,139 units, up 0.3 percent, and U.S. intermodal rail traffic totaled 7,357,794 units, down 2.9 percent.  Also for this period, Canadian carload rail traffic was down 4.2 percent, Canadian intermodal rail traffic was up 4.1 percent, KCSM’s carload rail traffic was down 3.4 percent, and KCSM’s intermodal rail traffic was up 8.5 percent. (ffd: AAR)

MORE STATS - “BIG 7″ (EXCEPT CN) OPERATING PERFORMANCE:

Not reported this week.

EXPANSIONS, CONTRACTIONS AND ALIKE:

(TUE) BNSF re-opened a transloading facility at Eola, IL.  The facility, which includes more than 12.5 acres of covered and open storage, will handle lumber, steel, and other building products, and also has ability to handle dimensional loads. (ffd: BNSF Corp.)

(TUE) Hatch Mott MacDonald announced their acquisition of Higgins Associates of Gilroy, CA.  Higgins, which will continue to operate out of Gilroy but become a part of Hatch Mott’s Transportation Planning Department.  Higgins specializes in traffic demand forecasting, capacity and operational analyzes, speed study surveys, and accident and safety analyses. (ffd: Railway Age)

(WED) East Penn Railroad filed to abandon approximately 9 miles of line between Pottstown and Boyertown, PA. (ffd: STB)

(WED) Union Pacific granted Iowa Northern Railroad temporary trackage rights on approximately 5 miles of its Cedar Rapids Industrial Lead in and near Cedar Rapids, IA.  The rights allow the Iowa Northern to interchange with the Cedar Rapids & Iowa City Railway via UP track until CIC’s bridge across the Cedar River can be rebuilt.  The bridge was washed away as a result of last June’s Midwest flooding. (ffd: STB)

(WED) Union Pacific filed to abandon approximately 3 miles of its Memphis Subdivision in and near Memphis,TN. (ffd: STB)

(WED) The U.S. Army announced plans to construct a $190 million rail line between Fort Bliss, TX and White Sands, NM.  The line, which is targeted for construction by 2015, will also connect with military facilities in Orogrande and McGregor, NM, additional to White Sands.  Officials of Fort Bliss said that the line’s exact route is still in the planning stages.  They added that moving tanks by rail would significantly cut down on wear and tear to tanks that must now cross the desert to get between Fort Bliss and the missile ranges. (ffd: Trains)

(FRI) URS announced their acquisition of LopezGarcia Group of Dallas, TX.  LopezGarcia is a provider of engineering design, environmental planning, surveying and construction management services. (ffd: RT&S) 

APPOINTMENTS, ACHIEVEMENTS AND MILESTONES:

(FRI) Kansas City Southern appointed Edward Scott its VP-Capital Investment Accounting.  Mr. Scott has been with KCSR since 2006 and prior to that was involved with general and capital investment accounting for BNSF. (ffd: KCS Corp.)

(FRI) The League of Railway Industry Women, one of the professional organizations for railway business women, appointed Judy Petry its “Outstanding Woman Of The Year” for 2008.  Ms. Petry, who is controller for Oklahoma’s Farmrail, will receive the award at the railway’s annual luncheon in Chicago, IL on September 23. (ffd: Progressive Railroading)

WRR - 08-29-2008

August 29, 2008 Weekly Rail Review No Comments

WEEKLY RAIL REVIEW
FOR THE 7 DAYS ENDING FRI, AUGUST 29, 2008

THE WEEK’S TOP RAIL AND TRANSIT NEWS (in chronological order):

(MON) CSX argued in a U.S. appeals court against seating two board members nominated by The Children’s Investment Fund and 3G Partners hedge funds, collectively known as the TCI Group.  CSX argued that TCI Group violated federal securities laws and should therefore be penalized by “sterilizing” its 6.4 percent interest in CSX.  This would mean that these shares owned by TCI Group would not be counted as voting shares for purposes of CSX’s recent board election, which saw four TCI Group nominees elected to CSX board seats.  CSX is not contesting the election of TCI Group’s two other board nominees and has seated them.  CSX had strongly opposed the board nominees proposed by TCI Group, which has promoted a platform of freight rate increases together with much reduced capital spending to help increase the price of CSX stock. (ffd: New York Times)
 
(MON) The U.S. Department of Transportation said that it would delay until November 1 implementation of controversial new rules for drug and alcohol testing.  The new rules require partial disrobing and direct observation of urine production of individuals re-tested after having earlier failed a D&A test.  USDOT had earlier said that the new rules were required due to an increase in prosthetic and related devices now available to help deceive such tests.  The delay follows complaint filings in federal court by BNSF and eight labor unions in opposition to the new rules, although hearings on these complaints are still pending. (ffd: wire services)

(MON) Amtrak workers and passengers warmly greeted U.S. Senator Joe Biden (D-DE) at the Wilmington, DE train station.  The senator was nominated as the Democratic vice-presidential candidate the previous week at the Party’s Denver, CO convention.  Mr. Biden has long been a daily commuter on Amtrak trains between Wilmington and Washington, DC, as well as a strong supporter of Amtrak.  Mr. Biden’s son Hunter is on Amtrak’s Board of Directors. (ffd: wire services)

(MON) Grain shippers complained in various media forums of a shortage of rail cars and barges to get a bumper crop of grain to market.  Grain elevator operators said that the shortage was forcing them to store grain outside of elevators, where it was subject to deterioration and infestation.  In a related story, the U.S. Department of Agriculture said that the country was on track toward producing its second largest-ever corn crop and fourth largest-ever soybean crop this year. (ffd: Temple Daily Telegram, wire services)

(MON) The Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority said that it was continuing to work to develop an improved “straphanger” device to better handholds on cars of the city’s subway system.  A WMATA spokesman said that it has been testing three different styles of handholds, two made of nylon fabric and a third made of stainless steel.  The spokesman added that it expects to install a preferred design on approximately 300 of its newer subway cars by year’s end. (ffd: Progressive Railroading)

(TUE) California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger signed legislation to refine and update the high-speed rail bond initiative, which will go on a future ballot.  The initiative, now known as Proposition 1A, adds oversight provisions for the California High Speed Rail Authority and compels them to complete an updated business plan by October 1.  It also defines the San Francisco-Los Angeles-Anaheim corridor as the priority segment for the high-speed passenger rail network to be funded by state construction bonds, should the initiative be passed by voters. (ffd: NARP)

(TUE) Luxury passenger train operator GrandLuxe ceased operations.  The company, which additional to operating its own trains had planned to attached luxury cars to selected Amtrak trains, issued a statement which said that “all future trips will not operate.”  It added that it could not issue questions about passenger refunds at this time.  Much of the company’s fleet of wood-paneled sleepers, diners, and lounges was inherited from the former American European Express, which declared bankruptcy in 1991. (ffd: Trains)

(WED) Amtrak President Alex Kummant said that its Acela Express trains were now so popular that they were very nearly “out of capacity.”  He said that Amtrak would like to add additional coaches to Acela’s standard five-car trainsets, but that it does not have money at present to pay for the cost of such cars.  Amtrak presently has 32 weekday Acela departures protected by 20 trainsets, two of which are kept on standby. (ffd: Railway Age)

(WED) Chicago commuter rail operator Metra announced two measures to increase passenger seating on its ever-more-crowded commuter trains.  Metra said that it would discontinue bar cars on its trains effective Friday, August 29.  Metra had been running bar cars on ten trains of its Rock Island District and Milwaukee District West and North lines.  Metra also said it would reduce the number of bathrooms available on its trains from being in two-thirds of a train’s cars to being in one-half of train’s cars.  A Metra spokesman said that it would effect the bathroom change over the next four to five years. (ffd: Chicago Sun-Times, Chicago Tribune)

(THU) BNSF and CSX were among railroads recognizing truck drivers at its intermodal terminals this date.  The occasion was observance of National Truck Driver Appreciation Week.  Both railroads handed out refreshments and souvenir gifts to truckers driving in and out of its terminals. (ffd: BNSF Corp., CSX Corp.)

(FRI) Two Union Pacific crewmembers were killed when their train collided with a tanker truck at a crossing near Medford, OK.  The impact resulted in a notable explosion, as the tanker was filled with liquid propane.  The driver of the truck was critically injured with third-degree burns over at least 50 percent of his body.  Initial reports indicate that the truck may have become stalled on the tracks, as the train was in emergency when it collided with the truck. (ffd: wire services)

(FRI) Norfolk Southern took the notable step of challenging a U.S. National Transportation Safety Board report on the derailment of an NS freight train in New Brighton, PA on October 20, 2006.  The NTSB report laid blame for the derailment on “an inadequate rail inspection and maintenance program.”  However, NS said that it had provided “irrefutable proof that the derailment was caused by a defect that could not have been detected by the advanced technologies used during an inspection of the track” several weeks prior to the derailment.  The accident derailed 23 cars, including several containing ethanol that caught fire.  NS asked the NTSB to reconsider its report, filing a formal Petition for Reconsideration and Modification. (ffd: NS Corp.)

(FRI) Noted railway engineer John Zuspan reminded of the fall schedule for his acclaimed “Trackwork 101″ overview course and “Trackwork 105: Build & Manage Track Projects” course.  The course will be held in Chicago IL October 1 and 2, in Minneapolis MN October 7 and 8, in Seattle WA October 16 and 17, in San Francisco CA October 27 and 28, in Albuquerque NM November 5 and 6, and in Dallas TX November 12 and 13.  For further details, link to Mr. Zuspan’s website at http://www.trackguy.com/.

STATS - “BIG 7″ TRAFFIC

(EDITOR’S NOTE: Canadian traffic includes that on the U.S. operations of Canadian National and Canadian Pacific.)

(THU) For the week ending August 23, 2008, U.S. rail volume grand totaled 35.1 billion ton-miles, up 0.3 percent from the comparable week last year.  U.S. carload rail traffic totaled 334,821 units, down 0.6 percent altogether, down 3.3 percent, but up 1.3 percent in the West.  Notable traffic increases included metallic ores up 47.9 percent and waste and scrap materials up 12.1 percent; notable traffic decreases included coke down 34.2 percent and motor vehicles and equipment down 31.4 percent.  U.S. intermodal rail traffic totaled 230,437 units, down 3.1 percent.  Also for the week, Canadian carload rail traffic was down 5.9 percent, Canadian intermodal rail traffic was up 4.7 percent, Mexico’s Kansas City Southern de Mexico’s carload rail traffic was down 8.9 percent, and KCSM’s intermodal rail traffic was up 5.6 percent.

For the period January 1 through August 16, 2008, U.S. rail volume grand totaled 1.146 trillion ton-miles, up 1.5 percent from the comparable period last year.  U.S. carload rail traffic totaled 11,056,960 units, up 0.3 percent, and U.S. intermodal rail traffic totaled 7,588,231 units, down 2.9 percent.  Also for this period, Canadian carload rail traffic was down 4.2 percent, Canadian intermodal rail traffic was up 4.1 percent, KCSM’s carload rail traffic was down 3.6 percent, and KCSM’s intermodal rail traffic was up 8.4 percent. (ffd: AAR)

MORE STATS - “BIG 7″ (EXCEPT CN) OPERATING PERFORMANCE:

Not reported this week.

EXPANSIONS, CONTRACTIONS AND ALIKE:

(MON) TKDA, an engineering, architecture and planning firm, acquired ECMC Services of Tampa, FL.  ECMC Services is a designer of transportation fueling systems. (ffd: RT&S)

(WED) Bentley Systems acquired Struc-Soft, based in Montreal, QB.  The acquisition includes the Struc-Soft structural group, which focuses on software for buildings and plants, and its plant group, which provides products and services for oil and gas, pulp and paper, mining and metals, and other industries. (ffd: RT&S)

(THU) Racine Federated (RFI) acquired Premier Control Technologies (PCT).  PCT has been RFI’s European distributor for the last ten years. (ffd: RT&S)

(FRI) BNSF filed to abandon approximately 13 miles of line between Wilburton and Woodinville, WA. (ffd: STB)

(FRI) Following up earlier newspaper reports, New York, Susquehanna & Western Railway formally filed a notice to discontinue service over approximately 41 miles of line between  Chenango Forks and Sherburne, NY.  This line segment has been out of service since 2006 due to flooding. (ffd: STB)

APPOINTMENTS, ACHIEVEMENTS AND MILESTONES:

None of note this week.

WRR - 08-15-2008

August 15, 2008 Weekly Rail Review No Comments

 WEEKLY RAIL REVIEW
FOR THE 7 DAYS ENDING FRI, AUGUST 15, 2008
THE WEEK’S TOP RAIL AND TRANSIT NEWS (in chronological order):

(MON) A federal judge in Massachusetts issued a restraining order against three Massachusetts Institute of Technology students to prevent them from making a presentation at a computer conference that would show how to hack into Boston MA’s bus and subway fare collection system to obtain free rides.  The order was in response to a complaint filed by the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority, which said that the students would be presenting before the agency had a chance to fix the flaws in the system.  An MBTA spokesman said that, after the presentation showed how to hack into the system, it then noted that it was illegal to do so and that the material presented was “for educational use only.” (ffd: wire services)

(MON) The Maryland Transit Administration (MTA) announced that it was, for the time being, dropping plans to add weekend service to its Penn Line or midday runs to its Camden Line.  MTA Chief Administrator Paul Wiedefeld said that the agency had so far been unable to reach agreement for more Penn Line trains with Amtrak and for more Camden Lines trains with CSX, due mainly to capacity issues.  The wanted service increases are part of a sweeping, 28-year plan MTA unveiled last September to triple capacity on MARC.  Among other improvements, the plan envisions replacement of Amtrak’s B&P Tunnel in Baltimore by 2020 and of CSX’s Howard Street Tunnel in Baltimore by 2035. (ffd: Baltimore Sun)

(MON) Simmons-Boardman Books released the fifth edition of the book, “The Railroad: What It Is, What It Does.”  The book, first authored by the late John Armstrong in the 1970s, is considered by many the best textbook overview of the railroad industry.  The publisher said that the new edition contains nearly a hundred pages of new information including new chapters on business development and marketing, and on labor relations, including the Railway Labor Act. (ffd: Railway Age)

(MON) Dallas Area Rapid Transit (DART) marked its 25th anniversary.  DART operates Dallas area bus and light rail transit services, the latter now a 45-mile network.  Currently, DART is building a 28-mile light rail line between Dallas and Carrollton TX, and is planning to fully double its light rail network by 2018. (ffd: Progressive Railroading)

(MON) The National Mediation Board, which arbitrates cases covered under the Railway Labor Act, announced a new “Arbitrators’ Caseload Report” section of its web site, nmb.gov.  A NMB spokesman said that the report shows grievance cases by arbitrator and whether or not a case is late, meaning a decision that has not been rendered within six months of when an arbitrator heard the case.  The spokesman added that the report also provides a direct link to an NMB database reflecting current updates. (ffd: NMB, Progressive Railroading)

(TUE) Utah Transit Authority (UTA) broke ground for its FrontRunner South commuter rail line.  The project will extend the FrontRunner’s initial Ogden-to-Salt Lake City line 44 mines south to Provo.  Scheduled for completion in 2012, the eight-station line will run along existing Union Pacific right-of-way. (ffd: Progressive Railroading, UTA)

(TUE) The Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) announced the launch of a new Risk Reduction Program (RRP).  An FRA spokesman said that the initiative, which will supplement current federal regulations, calls for developing “innovative” methods, processes and technologies to address train accident and employee injury risk factors.  The spokesman added that the program encourages voluntary participation by railroads and their workers by targeting specific risk categories, such as confidential close-call reporting systems, peer-to-peer accident prevention strategies and fatigue risk management programs. (ffd: FRA)

(TUE) The Canadian government announced that a planned formal review of Canadian National and Canadian Pacific Railway could take up to 18 months to complete.  The review, a government spokesman said, will be a two-phase process.  The first phase will investigate problems and analyze data, and the second phase will see a three-person panel consult participants and make recommendations.  The review was announced last year and begun last April. (ffd: wire services)

(WED) Eight unions were joined by BNSF in filing a motion in a U.S. appeals court challenging a new U.S. Department of Transportation rule covering re-testing of transportation workers who had earlier failed a drug test.  The rule, which was originally scheduled to take effect August 25, requires individuals being re-tested to be partially undressed and directly observed while producing a urine sample for federal mandated drug tests.  In issuing notice of the rule, USDOT said that the new procedures were designed to overcome deceptive prosthetic devices that had been used by some individuals being re-tested. (ffd: USDOT, Progressive Railroading)

(WED) New Jersey Transit approved the purchase of 50 additional bi-level commuter rail cars.  The new purchase order will increase NJT’s planned bi-level fleet to 329 cars, 170 of which have already been delivered, and 143 of which are already in service.  The cars are being assembled by Bombardier Transportation.  The bi-levels, which are in service on NJT’s Northern New Jersey trains, have been praised by riders, especially for their 2-2 seating configuration that avoids the much-disliked 3-2 seating on many NJT single-level cars. (ffd: Times Herald Record)

(WED) Amtrak announced that it had begun using a new video system to help communicate key security information to passengers getting ready to board its trains.  The new system, known as PASS for Passenger Advisory at Security Screening, features a 1-minute, 40-second video that explains security measures, including random baggage screening and K-9 patrol units.  An Amtrak spokesman said that the system is now in use at Washington DC Union Station. (ffd: redorbit.com)

(THU) A city historian in New York State announced that he has unearthed what is believed to be the country’s first rudimentary railroad tunnel.  Don Rittner, city historian of Schenectady NY, said that the tunnel had been unearthed 15 feet beneath the city’s historic Stockade district and dated from 1832.  Mr. Rittner said he believed the tunnel not only the first ever constructed in the U.S. for use by a locomotive, but that its entrance was also the nation’s first junction of two railroad companies’ tracks. (ffd: Schenectady Daily Gazette)

(THU) Amtrak announced that its July, 2008 patronage of 2,750,278 was the most for any single month in its 37-year existence, and up 14 percent compared with its July, 2007 ridership.  Ticket revenue for July was up $168 million, up 18.6 percent from the year-ago month.  An Amtrak spokesman noted that all its services except one, the Chicago-Grand Rapids MI run, had experienced ridership increases.  Amtrak President Alex Kummant commented that the notable increases were due to factors including “increased fuel prices, highway congestion, airline issues and environmental awareness.” (ffd: Amtrak, Wall Street Journal)

(THU) Philadelphia PA rail and transit operator SEPTA announced what it said was its largest one-time service expansion in its history.  A SEPTA spokesman said that it will apply $10 million to increase regional rail and bus frequencies, including adding late-night rail service.  SEPTA GM Joe Casey said that the service expansion was in part made possible by Pennsylvania’s recent signing into law Pennsylvania Act 44, which provides a steadier stream of SEPTA funding.  Mr. Casey further noted that SEPTA expects to add 120 Silverliner V electric-multiple-unit cars in 2009, its first new commuter rail car purchase in 40 years, and that it has recently acquired eight used cars from New Jersey Transit. (ffd: SEPTA, Railway Age)

(THU) New Jersey Transit announced a new joint ticketing agreement with SEPTA.  Whereas riders starting their trips on NJT were previously only able to purchase SEPTA tickets to three Philadelphia stations, they can now purchase them through to up to 125 SEPTA destinations.  A NJT spokesman said that joint NJT-SEPTA ticketing will be available at NJT and SEPTA station ticket windows and from NJT rail ticket vending machines. (ffd: NJ Transit)

(FRI) In paperwork filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, Warren Buffet’s Berkshire Hathaway Funds noted that they had continued to increase their railroad holdings.  This latest filing notes Berkshire Hathaway having recently doubled their holdings in Union Pacific, from 4.45 million to 8.9 million shares.  Berkshire Hathaway also owns a large percentage of BNSF equity, at last report totaling 18 percent of all BNSF common shares. (ffd: Railway Age)

(FRI) Amtrak’s planned 100th anniversary celebration for its Washington DC Union Station has been rescheduled to October 4 and 5.  Festivities were previously planned for September 27 and 28. (ffd: Amtrak)

(FRI) The State of South Carolina announced that it was in the process of developing a statewide rail plan.  The plan, which will be assembled by Wilbur Smith Associates, will be managed by the State’s Public Railway Division & Commerce Department.  A state spokesman said that the plan will review passenger rail and freight rail impact on economic development, and assess rail’s role in the stateâI^TMs multi-modal transportation infrastructure.  The plan is to be completed in January, 2009. (ffd: RT&S)

(FRI) The Association of American Railroads released its thirtieth edition of “Analysis of Class 1 Railroads.”  The AAR publication, much of which is sourced from the Class 1 railroads’ R1 filings, presents comprehensive 2007 data for each of these railroads.  Copies are available to the general public at $250 for printed and $225 for electronic, and to AAR members at $100 printed and electronic at no cost, and may be ordered off the AAR web site. (ffd: AAR)

(FRI) Iowa Interstate Railroad announced that it would again operate the two modern Chinese steam locomotives recently acquired and brought to the U.S. by its parent, RDC Corporation.  In a prepared statement, the IAIS said that special trains powered by the locomotive would be operated October 18 and 19 between Iowa City IA and Rock Island IL, and include “an attempt to set a record for steam-hauled revenue tonnage” this decade.  IAIS said that the proceeds from the train trips and other special rail-related events going on in Rock Island IL these days would benefit The Salvation Army, in appreciation of their relief efforts on behalf of communities impacted by Midwest flooding last June. (ffd: IAIS RR)

STATS - “BIG 7″ TRAFFIC

(EDITOR’S NOTE: Canadian traffic includes that on the U.S. operations of Canadian National and Canadian Pacific.)

(THU) For the week ending August 9, 2008, U.S. rail volume grand totaled 34.2 billion ton-miles, unchanged from the comparable week last year.  U.S. carload rail traffic totaled 328,281 units, down 0.1 percent, and was down 2.0 in the East, but up 1.2 percent in the West.  Notable traffic increases included metallic ores up 49.5 percent, metals up 5.3 percent, and coal up 5.1 percent; notable traffic decreases included motor vehicles and equipment down 29.6 percent, lumber and wood products down 16.9 percent, and non-grain farm products down 16.5 percent.  Also for the week, U.S. intermodal rail traffic totaled 233,948 units, down 1.4 percent, Canadian carload rail traffic was down 4.7 percent, Canadian intermodal rail traffic was up 0.7 percent, Mexico’s Kansas City Southern de Mexico’s carload rail traffic was down 6.6 percent, and KCSM’s intermodal rail traffic was up 11.0 percent.

For the period January 1 through August 9, 2008, U.S. rail volume grand totaled 1.08 trillion ton-miles, up 1.5 percent.  Also for this period, U.S. carload rail traffic totaled 10,386,894 units, up 0.3 percent, U.S. intermodal rail traffic totaled 7,120,894 units, up 0.3 percent, Canadian carload rail traffic was down 4.2 percent, Canadian intermodal rail traffic was up 4.2 percent, KCSM’s carload rail traffic was down 3.4 percent, and KCSM’s intermodal rail traffic was up 8.8 percent. (ffd: AAR)

MORE STATS - “BIG 7″ (EXCEPT CN) OPERATING PERFORMANCE:

Not reported this week.

STILL MORE STATS - CLASS 1 RETURN ON INVESTMENT:

(MON) The U.S. Surface Transportation Board reported that U.S. Class 1 railroads collectively earned a 10.53 percent return on investment (ROI) in the 12 months ending June 30 of this year, compared with 8.56 percent ROI in the 12 months ending June 30 last year.  ROI of these railroads in descending order was as follows: Norfolk Southern, 13.57 percent; BNSF, 9.82 percent; Union Pacific, 9.16 percent; Kansas City Southern, 8.32 percent; and CSX, 7.89 percent.  Combined net income for Class 1’s totaled $7.1 billion versus 6.0 billion earlier. (ffd: Railway Age)

EXPANSIONS, CONTRACTIONS AND ALIKE:

(MON) Boundary Trail Railway was reported by local media in Southern Manitoba to have reached tentative agreement with Canadian Pacific to acquire line segments in MB’s Pembina Valley and establish a farmer-owned short line railroad.  The report said that, if final agreement is reached as expected, the company will acquire from CPR the line from Biney Corner to Morden MB, and all of the right-of-way of its La Riviere and Napinka Subdivisions. (ffd: Railway Age) 

(MON) GATX was reported to have offered more than $3 billion to acquire GE’s railcar leasing business.  GE’s is one of two railcar leasing units reportedly on the market at this time, the other being that of CIT.  GE’s equipment fleet includes 165,000 rail cars and 120,000 intermodal trailers, containers and chassis. (ffd: wire services)

(MON) Progress Rail Services, a subsidiary of Caterpillar, announced that they had acquired Twin City Signal, based in Hudson WI.  The company designs railway traffic control systems, interlocking and grade crossing warning systems. (ffd: Railway Age)

(MON) New York, Susquehanna & Western Railway was reported to have filed to discontinue service over 41 miles of line between Shenango Forks and Sherburne NY.  The line was notably damaged in 2006 by severe local flooding. (ffd: Binghamton Sun-Bulletin)

(THU) CSX filed to abandon approximately 2 miles of its Southern Region/Atlanta Division/Atlanta Terminal Subdivision line, in and around College Park GA. (ffd: STB)

(FRI) Canadian National petitioned the U.S. Surface Transportation Board to issue a final decision before year’s end concerning its proposed acquisition of the Elgin, Joliet & Eastern Railway.  In its petition, the railroad requested that the STB decide by September 15 whether to modify its procedural schedule to allow for a final decision by October 15.  If the STB does not act by September 15, CN said that it would likely file with the U.S. Court of Appeals to “compel the STB to issue a final decision that would permit CN to close the transaction by December 31.”  In a prepared statement, CN said that there was “substantial risk” that EJ&E’s parent, U.S. Steel, could terminate the transaction if the deal was not closed by year’s end.  CN reached tentative agreement with USS in September, 2007 to acquire EJ&E for approximately $300 million, but the proposed acquisition has garnered notable opposition in the region EJ&E serves. (ffd: Progressive Railroading)

APPOINTMENTS, ACHIEVEMENTS AND MILESTONES:

(MON) Livonia, Avon & Lakeville Railroad announced the following appointments: Brackett Clark as Chairman; Gene Blabey as President & CEO; Larry DeYoung as EVP, COO & Treasurer; and Paul Whitbeck as Corporate Secretary.

(MON) Massachusetts Central Railroad announced the appointment of W. Robert Bentley as its VP & GM.  Also, the railroad announced that it had signed a joint marketing agreement with New Hampshire’s Claremont Central Railroad, whereby Claremont Concord VP-Marketing Stephen Fontaine will oversee marketing activities for both railroads. (ffd: Progressive Railroading)

(MON) Union Pacific announced the following appointments: Tom Jacobi as VP-Operating Systems & Practices; Ken Hunt as Regional VP-Operations-Western Region; Rick Turner as
Dennis Jacobson as VP-Premium Operations; and Ken Sito as Chief Engineer-Southern Region. (ffd: UP Corp.)

(MON) Western New York & Pennsylvania announced the appointment of Carl Belke as its president.  Mr. Belke was most recently WNY&PA’s chief engineer. (ffd: WYN&PA RR)

(WED) TTX appointed Don Shaffer its Controller.  Mr. Shaffer was most recently a partner at Tatum Partners. (ffd: TTX Corp.)

(WED) Shortline conglomerate Watco Companies appointed Pat Cedeno its VP-Growth Initiatives.  Mr. Cedeno was most recently Chief Operating Officer-Central Region.  Succeeding Mr. Cedeno will be Dave Eyermann.  Mr. Eyermann was most recently Watco’s Assistant Chief Operating Officer-Central Region. (ffd: Watco Corp.)

(FRI) Alaska Railroad appointed Ernie Piper its VP-Operations & Chief Operating Officer.  Mr. Piper, was most recently a consultant, having previously served ARR in a number of capacities, and succeeds Matt Glynn, who recently resigned. (ffd: ARR)

(FRI) Kansas City Southern Railway appointed Brett Jensen its AVP-Intermodal Sales & Marketing.  Mr. Jensen was most recently a KCS General Director. (ffd: KCS Corp.)