Opinion

Amtrak’s skeletal network of long-distance (L-D) passenger trains is the same size now as it was in 1971, when “America’s Railroad” was founded—14 routes. Advocates around the nation are pushing…

Ben Hampson’s family connection to the railroad runs deep. On his maternal side, his great-great-grandfather, Joseph Martinz, and great-grandfather Jack Martinz worked for Northern Pacific Railway (NP) in the early…

As we predicted last month, shareholders resoundingly rejected an attempt by activist investor Ancora to take control of Norfolk Southern’s board and fire CEO Alan Shaw at Norfolk Southern’s annual…

The votes from Norfolk Southern’s May 9 42nd Annual Meeting Shareholders have been tabulated and the results are clear. Following a months-long proxy battle launched by activist investor Ancora Holdings…

One of our society’s current mantras is to “Follow the Science.” Unfortunately, this oft-repeated phrase cannot distinguish between science and myth, so one may not always be perfectly clear about…

Rail continues to be a popular mode of travel and for good reason. Rail travel is convenient, fast, efficient for the movement of goods and offers a carbon footprint that…

Report from California, courtesy of the Victorville Daily Press: “Barstow Leaders Rally Legislative Support to Save BNSF’s $1.5 Billion Railway Project,” the headline read. “Barstow city leaders traveled to Sacramento…

In his commentary posted on May 1 and published in the May issue, Editor-in-Chief William C. Vantuono said what few others have been willing to say regarding the subject of…

In our prior report, we highlighted Ancora’s fraught and incurious NS vs. CSX operational benchmarking, specifically terminal dwell and trains holding for power. We took particular issue with the extraordinarily…

Continuing a long-standing Union Pacific (UP) tradition, employees achieving 50 years of railroading will be honored May 8, in a special ceremony with UP senior leadership at 11:15 a.m. CT.

Almost 10 years ago, CRRC (China Railway Rolling Stock Company), the world’s largest rail rolling stock and railcar components company, a Chinese Communist Party SOE (State-Owned Enterprise), set forth a…

The STB has issued its decision in Ex Parte 711 (Sub No. 2). When it issued its proposed rule in October, I wrote that I thought this was an appropriate…

FINANCIAL EDGE, RAILWAY AGE MAY 2024 ISSUE: Roughly one year ago, in May 2023, a “60 Minutes” report was issued about cost overruns in the defense contracting business. The story …

FROM THE EDITOR, RAILWAY AGE MAY 2024 ISSUE: Multiple-choice question: How many crew members should occupy a locomotive cab? A) Three. B) Two. C) One. D) Zero. E) None of…

WATCHING WASHINGTON, RAILWAY AGE MAY 2024 ISSUE: Among choices faced by political appointees are whether to obey statutes defining their authority or perform as political partisans. The optics of an…

Amtrak in 2000 introduced Acela, the first high-speed rail service in the Western Hemisphere. Since then, we’ve served more than 65 million passengers. But what’s next for high-speed rail in America?…

The MTA on April 26 announced that Central Business District Tolling, which the agency calls “the country’s first congestion pricing program,” will begin in Manhattan ‘s designated Congestion Relief Zone…

On April 18, Ancora hosted a townhall in New York City for Norfolk Southern stockholders, and during that meeting [potential new NS board member] Gil Lamphere implored the audience to…

In America’s heartland, where steel rails stretch across vast plains and rolling hills, the Kessel family's legacy is interwoven with the history of BNSF Railway and our predecessors.

Union Pacific (UP) train dispatchers are the railroad’s protectors, coordinating the safe movement of trains, engineering equipment and employees across more than 32,000 track miles covering 23 states. In recognition…