Archive for January 9, 2020
USDOT unveils updated AV guidance
(Source: Progressive Railroading 01/09/2020) U.S. Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao yesterday announced updated federal guidelines for the development of automated vehicles (AV). Chao unveiled the guidelines, titled “Ensuring American Leadership in Automated Vehicle Technologies: Automated Vehicles 4.0,” during a speech at the CES 2020 gadget show in Las Vegas. The guidelines aim to ensure a unified…
Read MoreU.S. rail traffic starts out slow in 2020
(Source: Progressive Railroading 01-09-2020) U.S. freight railroads started out the new year the same way they ended the old one — with a dip in weekly traffic volume. U.S. rail traffic declined 5.1 percent to 414,014 carloads and intermodal units for the week ending Jan. 4, compared with the same period last year, according to Association…
Read MoreBNSF train inspector helps rescue trapped crew in Kootenai River derailment
(Source: Television station KHQ, January 9, 2020) SPOKANE, Wash. — Adam Reeves was the first one to get the call when a BNSF freight train partially derailed into the Kootenai River. Reeves works for BNSF and is a volunteer with the Boundary County Search and Rescue team. The night when the BNSF train went into…
Read MoreForecast for 2020: More oil trains and the rise of LNG by rail
(Source: Desmog Blog, January 7, 2020) NEW YORK — As 2019 drew to a close and the new year ramps up, a number of signs point to the growing risks of transporting oil and gas by rail, with little government oversight to speak of: from increasing oil train traffic into the U.S. to fiery oil…
Read MoreRailroads want price-fixing lawsuits in one venue
(Source: Freight Waves, January 8, 2020) CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. — The Class I railroads that have been named in numerous lawsuits alleging price fixing are seeking to move those lawsuits to one court, according to a recent court filing. The railroads want the lawsuits transferred to the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia or…
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