Get ready for the first U.S. railroad strike in three decades: Analysis By Bill Stephens | October 27, 2022 Two unions' rejection of tentative contract deals make it more likely that engineers' and conductors' unions will vote no, too, increasing the prospect of a strike A Kansas City Southern crew prepares to board a northbound intermodal train at Robstown, Texas, in November 2017. Bill Stephens A U.S. railroad strike now seems inevitable. The Brotherhood of Railroad Signalmen overwhelmingly rejected their tentative contract agreement with the railroads this week, following in the footsteps of the Brotherhood of Maintenance of Way Employees, who turned down their deal earlier this month. This makes it almost certain that the rank-and-file members of the two largest rail unions — the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen and the SMART-TD union that represents conductors — will vote down...

  Rail strike averted for now, but the industry’s not out of the woods yet: Analysis By Bill Stephens  | September 15, 2022 Will the rank and file ratify tentative agreements? Two Union Pacific crew members provide a roll-by inspection for an intermodal train near Wamsutter, Wyo., on Sept. 1, 2022. David Lassen The prospect of a disruptive U.S. freight railroad strike was averted thanks to the tentative deal reached overnight between the Class I railroads and the labor unions that represent engineers and conductors, but three key questions remain unanswered. And all of them suggest that railroads, their workers, shippers, and the U.S. economy are not out of the woods yet. First, will the rank-and-file approve the contract? That’s not clear. Rail labor in general and train crews in particular have been up in arms for the past few years. They’re upset about working conditions, the massive wave of layoffs that began in 2017, and operational changes related to Precision Scheduled ...

  Sabotage blamed for disruption to German rail operations By | October 8, 2022 Cut cables at two sites knock out communications to trains in northern Germany German ICE high speed trains arrive and depart Frankfurt in 2016. Portions of the Deutsche Bahn network suffered disruptions on Saturday that authorites are saying were caused by sabotage. David Lassen BERLIN — German national rail operator Deutsche Bahn says sabotage shut down its rail network in northern Germany for several hours Saturday, broadcaster DW reports . Investigators said communications cables were cut at one location near Berlin and another in the state of North Rhine-Westphalia, leading Interior Minister Mancy Faester to say that officials “have to assume intentional acts” were responsible for the disruptions, while Transport Minister Volker Wissing said, “It is clear that this was a targeted and malicious action.” No information has b...

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                                                                                              BNSF Intermodal Trains!                                                            

BNSF To Build $1.5 Billion Intermodal Facility at Barstow, CA!       BNSF to build $1.5 billion facility in Barstow, Calif., to handle container traffic By | October 1, 2022 Barstow International Gateway will process port traffic, handle transloading between international and domestic containers A Chicago-bound BNSF Railway international stack train departs Barstow, Calif., on Aug. 9, 2022. BNSF will build a $1.5 billion facility in Barstow to process container traffic to and from the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach. (Bill Stephens) BARSTOW, Calif. — BNSF Railway has announced plans for what it is calling the first master-planned rail facility built by a Class I railroad — costing more than $1.5 billion and including a rail yard, intermodal facility, and warehouses for transloading from international to domestic containers. The Barstow International Gateway, to be on the west side of the commun...