Opinion

WATCHING WASHINGTON, NOVEMBER 2025 ISSUE: Perhaps the gutsiest-ever regulatory agency decision was the Surface Transportation Board’s (STB) 2001 imposition of a railroad merger moratorium. Its architect was then-STB Chairperson Linda…

This summer, I set out on a journey that took me from the historic rail hubs of upstate New York to cutting-edge manufacturing facilities in Maryland and Louisiana. What started…

The 2025 Commuter Rail Summit is especially well-timed and placed this year.  The Commuter Rail Coalition (CRC) annual convention, which gathers agency leaders and policymakers from across the country, is taking place…

The American Chemistry Council (ACC) on Oct. 16 sent a letter to POTUS 47 signed by 40 chief executives of member companies, all of which are railroad customers, expressing “strong…

In this transcription of a Rail Group On Air Podcast, Norfolk Southern Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer John Orr discussed passenger rail. Like all Class I railroads, Norfolk…

As Norfolk Southern Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer, John Orr holds ultimate responsibility for every train on the Class I’s vast network, freight and passenger. Relationships between passenger…

For months, Union Pacific’s (UP) CEO Jim Vena has been on the offensive, touting possible benefits of the proposed merger between UP and Norfolk Southern (NS). He has spoken with…

Union Pacific CEO Jim Vena claims to have identified a number of rail industry shortcomings that according to him can only be solved by his proposed transcontinental merger between the…

Usually when passenger service on a rail line is discontinued, it never comes back, but there have been some exceptions. One is the MBTA’s South Coast Rail “line,” in the…

Given that the new North Star of growth I gave our rail industry is being used to justify an alteration to the course of its future, I must break my…

The potential merger between Union Pacific and Norfolk Southern has stirred up lots of talk and speculation around its possible impact, from safety issues to job opportunities and other likely…

On Oct. 14, 2025, the 45th anniversary of the Staggers Rail Act of 1980 signing, the Association of American Railroads launched a new website, “Harley Explains,” hosted by a folksy,…

The M Ocean View Line turned 100 years old on Oct. 6! To celebrate this centennial, we are kicking off a two-part blog series on the M. Explore this 100-year history…

We are on the cusp of what has the potential to be one of the most transformational times in the history of U.S. railroading. On July 24 of this year,…

Norfolk Southern is once again making history more accessible. Thanks to a $500,000 contribution from NS, the Atlanta History Center and the Georgia Historical Society have completed a landmark archival…

At Norfolk Southern’s Juniata Locomotive Shop in Altoona, PA., history and innovation came together to mark a major achievement: our 1,000th DC-to-AC locomotive conversion.

RAILWAY AGE OCTOBER 2025 ISSUE: A Conversation with American Short Line and Regional Railroad Association President Chuck Baker. Patriot Rail Chief Policy Officer and Railway Age Contributing Editor Don Itzkoff…

2026 RAILROAD FINANCIAL DESK BOOK, RAILWAY AGE OCTOBER 2025 ISSUE: Welcome to the 2026 Railroad Financial Desk Book. If you have made it through a tumultuous summer, you have finally…

On Oct. 1 and 2, Railway Age and Railway Track & Structures held the annual Light Rail Conference. This year’s event took place in Pittsburgh, and it focused on responding…

There's a reason the phrase “to be railroaded” means to be coerced or forced into something against your will. The term emerged in the 1870s from how railroads were built—running…