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Regulatory

Using NJT, SCOTUS Sets Limits on State ‘Sovereign Immunity’

There was a legal maxim in England during the Middle Ages that “The King can do no wrong.” That ancient doctrine has come down to us today as the concept…

NTSB Issues Preliminary Report for CN-IC/Amtrak Train Collision

The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) has released a preliminary report for its ongoing investigation of the Feb. 22, 2026, collision involving a freight train (CN-subsidiary Illinois Central Railway Company…

Virginia DRPT: $750,000 to Increase Rail Access for Poultry Growers

The Commonwealth Transportation Board (CTB) on March 18 approved a $750,000 Rail Industrial Access (RIA) grant to the Virginia Poultry Growers Cooperative (VPGC) in Rockingham County. Administered by the Virginia…
Commentary

STB to UP and NS: ‘We Trust, But Verify’

So it was, following a dark night highway-rail grade crossing accident, that the train’s conductor swore under oath he was waving a lantern “back and forth” prior to the automobile…

FTA Launches Safety Investigation of Illinois DOT Oversight of CTA

The Federal Transit Administration (FTA) is initiating a Safety Management Inspection (SMI) of the Illinois Department of Transportation’s (IDOT) State Safety Oversight (SSO) program for the Chicago Transit Authority (CTA)…
Commentary

Part 5: ‘Temporary Tariff Pricing’ vs. ‘Committed Gateway Pricing’

This is the fifth in a five-part series about railroad growth coming from truck conversions contemplated in Union Pacific’s Dec. 19, 2025 application sent to the Surface Transportation Board to…

Organizations Provide Comments on STB’s NPRM to Repeal ‘Intramodal Rail Competition’ Regulations

Multiple organizations including the National Industrial Transportation League (NITL), BNSF Railway Company, the Freight Rail Customer Alliance (FRCA) and National Coal Transportation Association (NCTA), the Transportation Division of the International…

Ontario Invests C$138MM For Future Northlander Service

The government of Ontario in Canada on March 13 announced the acquisition of 127 miles (205 kilometers) of CN rail line between North Bay and Washago. The C$138 million investment…

Virginia DRPT Launches 2026 Statewide Rail Plan Survey

The Virginia Department of Rail and Public Transportation (DRPT) has officially launched a public input survey, now open through March 27, to help guide the development of the 2026 Virginia…

Metra to STB: Establish Use Conditions, Compensation for UP Terminal Facilities (UPDATED 3/16/26)

Metra on Dec. 1, 2025, advised the Surface Transportation Board (STB) that “despite concerted and ongoing efforts,” no agreement has been reached on the conditions and compensation for the Chicagoland…

STB OK’s UP Arizona Rail Line Project

The Surface Transportation Board (STB) in a March 12 decision authorized Union Pacific (UP) to construct and operate approximately six miles of new rail line in Maricopa County, Ariz., subject…

SMART-TD Urges Congress to Support UP-NS Merger

The International Association of Sheet Metal, Air, Rail, and Transportation Workers – Transportation Division (SMART-TD) on March 3 sent a letter to senators and representatives, urging them to support the…
Commentary

Kloster Advances; STB Questions Lurk

Surface Transportation Board (STB) nominee and Republican Richard Kloster received a favorable vote from the Senate Commerce Committee March 12 to fill one of two vacant seats on the five-member…
Commentary

TD Cowen: Takeaways From the Next-Gen Freight Rail Conference

RAILWAY AGE NEXT-GEN FREIGHT RAIL CONFERENCE, MARCH 10, 2026: Union Pacific sees end-to-end scale and past merger lessons supporting its consolidation case with Norfolk Southern, but peers flag competition loss…
Commentary

The 1,550-Pound Gorilla – Part 4 of 5

This is the fourth in a five-part series about railroad growth coming from truck conversions focused on the criticality of rail-to-rail competition to achieve Union Pacific’s growth outcome stated in…
Commentary

We Need Strong Public Policies. It’s Up to You!

ASLRRA PERSPECTIVE, RAILWAY AGE MARCH 2026 ISSUE: Short line railroading is a growth-focused industry, and ASLRRA’s primary goal is to provide opportunities to promote that growth through engagement, education, training…

FTA: Applications Welcome for All Stations Accessibility Grants

The Federal Transit Administration (FTA) has published a Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) for approximately $686 million in competitive grants for the Fiscal Year (FY) 2026 All Stations Accessibility Program…
Commentary

STB’s Preordained ‘Energizer Bunny’

WATCHING WASHINGTON, RAILWAY AGE MARCH 2026 ISSUE: For Surface Transportation Board (STB) Vice Chairperson Republican Michelle A. Schultz, preparation and persistence paved what likely was an already preordained career path. …
Commentary

Don’t Have a Conniption. It’s Just  Corporate-Speak

FROM THE EDITOR, RAILWAY AGE MARCH 2026 ISSUE: I’ve been wanting to write this column  for a very  long time. Recently I came across a Wall Street Journal article by…
Each of the Short Line Hall of Fame honorees—Robert Grossman (left), the late Jake Jacobson (center) and Rick Webb—“has made an indelible mark on the short line industry, from creating the industry role of advocate in government and regulatory affairs, to launching an industry-wide emphasis and recognition of safe operating performance, to growing a car repair shop with a single railroad into a multi-service entity operating in four countries by building a team focused on exceptional customer service,” ASLRRA reported.

Industry Marks Railroad Day on Capitol Hill

Nearly 400 representatives from Class I’s and short lines to suppliers, contractors, and the associations that represent them advocated for the freight rail industry on March 4 at Railroad Day…
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