Indian Railways’ Golden Rock workshop has manufactured a batch of 40 Type BLL high-capacity container wagons for Container Corp of India which are fitted with RFID tags for tracking.
DB Cargo UK has launched a recruitment drive seeking train drivers, engineers and ground staff, including people for the new role of Junior Driver which is designed to give practical training and experience of driving a train within the confines of the company’s yards. 'We are looking to bring new entrants into the company, with fresh ideas', said Sandra Buchser, Head of Human Resources. 'We are offering an exciting career opportunity to any individual who is enthusiastic about joining the next generation of rail freight.' Ongoing initiatives include apprenticeships, an international graduate programme and a driver exchange programme with countries including Germany, France and Bulgaria.
The Greenbrier Companies received orders for 5 000 wagons valued at more than $425m during June and July. ‘American railroads reported record intermodal loadings in June, while another 13 of the 20 commodity categories tracked by the Association of American Railroads saw monthly carload gains’, said Chairman & CEO William A. Furman. ‘June was the third straight month in which at least 14 railcar loading categories were up, the longest such streak since late 2014.’ Furman said Greenbrier was ‘seeing particular strength in intermodal, but the railcar markets that support the transport of automobiles, energy products and general cargo are also active.’
Illinois Department of Transportation has awarded the City of Peru and OmniTRAX a Competitive Freight Program grant to meet 60% of the $4·4m cost of a project to enhance safety on the 'small but vital' 3·2 km Peru Industrial Railroad which interchanges with Illinois Railway and BNSF.
RailRunner Europe is planning to increase its five days a week Braunschweig – Bratislava mega trailer carrying service with the addition of an second daily departure on three days per week from early 2019.
P&O Ferrymasters has added a sixth train per week between Poznań and Rotterdam, leaving on Mondays specifically designed for Less Trailer Load freight. Transit time is 20 h. 'We have responded to what our customers were telling us by introducing our first LTL service by rail using huckepack trailers which can be loaded from the side', said Trailer Director Mark Timmermans on July 31. 'There has been steadily increasing demand for LTL shipments to and from Poland, with rising exports from the Benelux countries driving volumes.'
The Canadian government is to provide C$5·6m for track upgrading on the Central Manitoba Railway’s Pine Falls subdivision which links Canadian National's Symington Yard to the Imperial Oil terminal at Birds Hill.