GATX has taken delivery of the first of more than 350 grain wagons of 95 and 103 m3 capacity which will be used by ÖBB Rail Cargo Group. ‘Demand for the Tagnpps wagon type keeps growing across the continent’, said Reinhold Pölzl, Business Unit Manager at the operator. ‘It is always our goal to anticipate and meet customer demands, and in GATX Rail Europe, we have found a strong partner with very similar values.’
The US National Transportation Safety Board is the lead agency for the investigation into the February 3 derailment of a Norfolk Southern train carrying hazardous materials at East Palestine, Ohio. The Association of American Railroads said ’immediate pushes for legislative or regulatory action absent of NTSB results and in response to the accident is premature at best — and opportunistic at worst’.
Slovakian company Prvá Slovenská Železničná has ordered two CZ Loko EffiShunter 1000 locomotives for delivery in early 2025. ‘The shortage of diesel locomotives and increased volumes in Romania and Hungary, especially on non-electrified lines, accelerated our decision’, said PSŽ director Ladislav Szuťányi. Romania will be the sixth country where the EffiShunter is approved for operation.
VTG is to end its VTG Tanktainer tank container transport and logistics activities by the end of Q2 2023, but it will retain and expand its tank container leasing business. On February 13 the company said there has been a pronounced slump in demand from the chemical industry, and declining freight rates and a massive increase in energy costs, accompanied by substantial price hikes in the intermodal segment, mean freight costs can now only be planned on the basis of prices valid for between three and six months.
Green Cargo has relaunched its website. Developed by Consid on the SiteVision platform, it includes a searchable map of the wagonload, intermodal and international networks, as well as information on services, bookings, careers and the operator’s freight advocacy work.
Railinc’s TransmetriQ software arm has introduced Asset Manager to provide wagon owners and managers with instant visibility of the location, health and status of their assets as a module of its Rail Management System. ‘Managers now have access to a single solution for all the information they need to make fleet management decisions’, said product Manager Gregg Phillips. ‘These insights allow for optimally planned repairs enabling improved fleet availability and — ultimately — profitability.’
As part of the A$400m Port Botany Rail Duplication project, Australian Rail Track Corp has undertaken a five-day project to replace a single-track steel bridge in Mascot, NSW, with a concrete double-track structure comprising two 36·5 m long, 330 tonne main girders.
Altaivagon has won two contracts to supply a total of 2 000 covered vans to RZD subsidiary FGC. Requirements include a capacity of at least 68 tonnes and 138 m2 and a service life of at least 32 years.
The first of the 12 Class 256 Stadler Euro 6000 electric locos ordered by RENFE Mercancías entered revenue service on February 17, hauling 20 wagons of steel coils from the ArcelorMittal steelworks in Trasona.
After negotiations were unable to secure all the land required, Canada’s Minister of Transport Omar Alghabra has announced that property is to be expropriated for the construction of a bypass to move trains away from the centre of Lac-Mégantic, where 47 people were killed in a derailment and fire in 2013. ‘Our government remains committed to providing landowners with fair and equitable value for their properties’, Alghabra said on February 13.
CSX has reached an agreement with the International Association of Machinists & Aerospace Workers and the National Conference of Firemen & Oilers to provide paid sick leave to its employees. ‘We appreciate the collaboration with IAM and NCFO, and are proud of the momentum we are building with our union partners to find solutions by working together’, said President & CEO Joe Hinrichs.
Dejan Pejic has been appointed Managing Director of TX Logistik Transalpine, an Austrian subsidiary of TX Logistik which was formed in 2020 through the merger of TX Austria and TX Italia. He succeeds Gero Sieberger, who will focus on his role as Director Asset Management & Claims Management at TX Logistik.
