Container ships now piling up at anchorages off China’s ports

There are over 60 container ships full of import cargo stuck offshore of Los Angeles and Long Beach, but there are more than double that — 154 as of Friday — waiting to load export cargo off Shanghai and Ningbo in China, according to eeSea, a company that analyzes carrier schedules. The number of container […]

Why is the number of railcars in storage important?

Rail equipment manufacturers, suppliers and industry observers will talk about the number of railcars in storage being up or down. But why is that figure important? Knowing how many railcars are in storage is significant because that figure helps observers understand network capacity in relation to the broader economy. Industry participants also look at the […]

Regulators gear up for rule setting minimum train crew size

The nation’s top rail regulator confirmed that the Federal Railroad Administration is on track to issue a proposed rulemaking this fall on one-person train crews, including minimum requirements depending on the type of rail operation. Testifying on Wednesday at his nomination hearing to fill the vacant FRA administrator post, Amit Bose, currently deputy administrator, told […]

Indiana Rail Road kicks off 3-year intermodal expansion project

Short line Indiana Rail Road (INRD) is planning a multiyear expansion of intermodal facilities for customers that want service to and from the Indianapolis market and Canadian and U.S. West Coast ports. INRD has kicked off the first phase of its expansion project, which will span three years and will have an anticipated completion date in 2023, […]

FreightWaves Classics/Fallen Flags: Gulf, Mobile & Ohio Railroad made key acquisition in 1940

There are many people interested in former transportation companies, whether they were trucking companies, railroads, airlines or ocean lines. They are called “fallen flags,” and the term describes those companies whose corporate names have been dissolved through merger, bankruptcy or liquidation. On this date 81 years ago, the new Gulf, Mobile & Ohio Railroad (GM&O) […]