Free Republic

MOSCOW (Sputnik) - Demand for transporting goods from Asia to Europe by rail via Russia has increased by an average of 30% since the start of the Red Sea crisis, the Financial Times newspaper reported, citing logistics companies and rail operators. German shipping company DHL said that requests to transport goods on Russian railways have increased by 40% since container ships began traveling along alternative routes following the Houthi attacks in the Red Sea, the report said on Sunday. At the same time, Netherlands-based Rail Bridge Cargo said that rail freight traffic via Russia was 31% higher this year compared...

CHICAGO () - When temperatures drop to bone-chilling levels like we’re experiencing now, railroads use open flames to keep the trains moving.. According to Metra spokesman Michael Gillis, they’re using natural gas to heat switches. “It looks like the tracks are on fire, but what it is, there are gas burners next to the switches, and we light them to keep the switches warm, so the switches can move,” said Gillis. “If they freeze up, then our trains can’t change tracks and that leads to congestion…It’s really essential to keep the switches operational so that we can keep our trains...

A Cleveland man has been arrested by police for allegedly trying to cause trains in the city to derail by jamming metal into tracks and rail lines. Joseph Findley, 43, has been arrested by the FBI on federal terrorist charges following a string of alleged attacks against railroad carriers on October 6. He is accused of placing railroad spikes onto the path of oncoming trains and wedging pieces of metal into a rail switch. During a test run for a CSX employee appreciation day, one train hit an obstruction on the track and temporarily derailed before the wheels dropped back...

Here in south-central Indiana we are watching the rail tracks removed throughout our region of the state. There is, . . . no, was a rail line 500 feet from the Indiana house I bought in 1997. At that time we enjoyed watching and hearing two fairly long freight trains pass us each day. We went to the Philippines for a missionary tour, and when we returned (2004), there was no more rail traffic. But after several months, one day, to our surprise, we heard the rail-crossing bells, then a train horn, then we saw a lengthy automobile carrier train...

A train car carrying roughly 30,000 gallons of propane was among six that derailed in Florida Tuesday in a scene first responders compared to a “minefield.” The six train cars fell off the tracks as a Seminole Gulf Railway train rode through Sarasota County, News Channel 8 WFLA reported. SNIP “It looks like a minefield, honestly,” Southern Manatee Fire Rescue Chief Robert Bounds told the local NBC affiliate station. “The cars are on their side. [The train] was in motion when it happened, so it wasn’t just a tip-over, they really dug in and the tracks are pulled up and...

If you ask someone to close their eyes and picture a train, they'll typically imagine one of two things: The sleek, fast European passenger trains that can zip through the countryside, or The industrial, coal-burning freight trains that powered the American westward expansion. So, how did these two vastly dissimilar pictures come to be? In this article, we'll take a closer look at the key differences between American and European rail systems. HOW DO EUROPEAN AND NORTH AMERICAN TRAINS DIFFER? When it comes to American trains vs. European trains, there are six main factors that help make each one stand...

The International Brotherhood of Boilermakers (IBB) announced Monday its members voted against ratifying a tentative agreement with the major freight railroads, making IBB the third labor group to turn down the deal brokered by the Biden administration and upping the chances of a nationwide strike. The IBB said in a statement that it has now entered a "cooling off" period and plans to continue to negotiate further with the National Carriers' Conference Committee (NCCC), which represents the nation's largest railroads, including BNSF, CSX, Norfolk Southern and Union Pacific. IBB joins the Brotherhood of Railroad Signalmen (BRS) and the Brotherhood of...

Union Station had as many as 100 stores more than two decades ago. It’s down to about 40 retailers and eateries while more than half its commercial space sits vacant. Calls for fire and emergency services show the range of problems at the station, including drug and alcohol intoxication, overdoses and assaults. Meanwhile, foot traffic remains well below pre-pandemic levels, with Metro and commuter rail traffic roughly halved, even as Amtrak reaches more solid footing.

OMAHA, Neb. — The U.S.’s third largest railroad union rejected a deal with employers Monday, renewing the possibility of a strike that could cripple the economy. Both sides will return to the bargaining table before that happens. Over half of track maintenance workers represented by the Brotherhood of Maintenance of Way Employes Division who voted opposed the five-year contract despite 24% raises and $5,000 in bonuses. Union President Tony Cardwell said the railroads didn’t do enough to address the lack of paid time off — particularly sick time — and working conditions after the major railroads eliminated nearly one-third of...

According to the German security services, last weekend's sabotage of train cables in northern Germany was a "politically motivated act". This is reported by German media. They did not disclose why the security services think this. On Saturday morning, rail traffic in northern Germany was halted for hours after the railway's essential radio communications cables were cut. The fiber optic cables were also damaged, causing the backup system to fail. Offenders with inside knowledge The security services assume perpetrators with insider knowledge. Germany has in the past experienced politically motivated acts of sabotage, recalls Der Spiegel...

Norfolk Southern, Union Pacific and other railroads reached a tentative union deal brokered by the Biden administrationThe threat of a U.S. freight railroad strike still looms. Union members still need to ratify a tentative agreement reached by their leaders. Some local members have already rejected the terms.The largest U.S. freight railroads and union leaders struck a tentative deal Wednesday after 20 hours of negotiations, temporarily averting a strike that would have shut down rail lines across the country and disrupted the economy. But the issue is far from over. Members of the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers District...

One day after leading Democratic politicians and the media announced that tentative agreements had been reached between the two largest railroad workers unions, both unions acknowledged that no final tentative agreements actually exist yet and that workers should not expect to view any details of the agreements for weeks.“Anyone who states that they have seen a final copy of the TA, have a copy of the final TA or knows the final contents of the agreement is not being truthful.” The documents, it continues, “have not been fully reviewed by both parties’ legal counsel” and have not been presented “to...

Little do people know that this administration has tried to avert total disaster amid a rail strike set to effect Friday at midnight. Thirty percent of the nation’s freight would be shuttered, and the cost per day to the US economy will be around $2 billion. Most passenger and commuter rail services will also cease operating. Ten of the twelve major railway unions have agreed to the new agreements, though the two largest, which represent engineers and conductors, has not signed off. They still have lingering questions about sick leave and penalties for missing work. Thus far, these two are...

Negotiators from railroad carriers and unions met in Labor Secretary Marty Walsh’s office Wednesday as the sides tried to negotiate a deal ahead of Friday’s strike deadline. The meeting started just after 9 a.m. ET. The railroads, for their part, “have no plans to lock out workers Friday should negotiations not be successfully completed,” the Association of American Railroads told CNBC. Dennis Pierce, the unions’ top negotiator, said members have warned 10% of the workforce could leave if the issues aren’t resolved before the deadline. Sick time policies and quality of life concerns were the biggest sticking points remaining. “Our...

ransomnote: see post #1 for potential impacts on crude oil shipmentsA paralyzing railroad strike that has been brewing since January 2020 may unfold this week. Even if it does not come to pass, railroads had already begun preparations Monday by curtailing some shipments.More than 90,000 rail workers from 13 unions around the United States might strike Friday if the unions that represent them can’t reach a contract agreement with the National Railway Labor Conference, which represents the rail companies. The railroads reached an agreement with the leaders of 11 of the 13 unions, but those unions do not include the...

In light of the possibility of a rail labor strike, the six Class I freight railroads participating in national bargaining will begin to take steps to manage and secure the shipments of hazardous and security-sensitive materials, such as chlorine used to purify drinking water and chemicals used in fertilizer, starting as early as Monday, September 12. Railroads are taking all measures necessary to handle sensitive cargo in accordance with federal regulations to ensure that no such cargo is left on an unattended or unsecured train in the event of a work stoppage due to an impasse in labor negotiations. Additionally,...

Railroad freight traffic across the United States could come to a screeching halt July 18 if progress isn’t made on a labor contract between national rail carriers and their unions. Union officials stressed they do not want to go on strike, but argued they are being forced to consider the option in a bid to get better benefits, wages and staffing. The unions have worked without a contract since July 1, 2019. The two sides were forced into a 30-day “cooling off period” after failing to reach an agreement working through the National Mediation Board. The cooling off period prevents...

Picture yourself on BART. Now subtract half a century of technology and add on-board dining, a ferry connection and windows that passengers could open to catch a breeze. The image forming in your mind should start to resemble the Sacramento Northern, one of the Bay Area’s vanished electric railroads and a forerunner of BART. As late as 1940, the company operated trains from San Francisco and Oakland to Walnut Creek, Concord and points northeast all the way to Chico. The railroad disappeared in phases. It was done in by cars, competition and the cost of renewal. Today, BART and Capitol...

The Surface Transportation Board held two long open sessions in late April – a total of nearly 18 hours of testimony. The invitation it sent out asked for the Class 1 carriers – the biggest railroads in the country – to send “senior executives” to face questions from the board. The railroads took that to mean executive vice-presidents, corporate attorneys and other key managers. Despite the instructions not calling for CEOs, Robert Primus, a member of the board, lectured each of the representatives who came before him the board that yes, it was good they were there, but their CEOs...

Today’s Situation Update podcast (see below) reveals worrisome new intel that describes Joe Biden’s “controlled demolition” of the US food supply as a means to deliberately cause food scarcity, panic and chaos nationwide. US rail carriers, we have learned, are right now declaring force majeure and cancelling contracts on their obligations to deliver hundreds of thousands of rail cars of bulk grains to cattle and dairy operations in America. Right now, tens of thousands of dairy animals face starvation within weeks, and grain supplies will be gone in many areas in just a few days. Importantly, if dairy animals are...