Industry News
BNSF Unveils Hydrogen Fuel-Cell Switcher
CSX Commits to Lower Carbon Dioxide Emissions
June 30, 2009 | 01:25 p.m. CDT
CSX Transportation (CSX) is setting a firm goal to reduce carbon dioxde (CO2) emissions by 2011. The railroad announced June 29 a plan to cut CO2 emissions associated with train operations by 8 percent per revenue ton mile, reports Progressive Railroading.
The commitment is part of the railroad's participation in the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) Climate Leaders program, which encourages businesses to voluntarily inventory and reduce greenhouse-gas emissions. CSX also plans to use building space more efficiently, improve HVAC systems, and install energy-efficient lighting and automatic computer-shutdown software.
Overall, CSX expects to reduce C02 emissions by 2.4 million tons, or the equivalent of taking 441,000 cars off the highway or burning 5,598,000 fewer barrels of oil, each year. By year's end, CSX expects to upgrade an additional 1,200 locomotives to further reduce emissions and cut fuel consumption by nearly 10 million gallons.
Meanwhile, BNSF Railway Co. and Vehicle Projects Inc. unveiled an operational hydrogen fuel-cell switcher June 29 at BNSF's Topeka System Maintenance Terminal. The locomotive soon will head to the Transportation Technology Center Inc. in Pueblo, Colo., for additional testing. In late summer or early fall, the switcher will enter service in the Los Angeles Basin, according to BNSF.
The demonstration of the technology – which is designed for potential niche application in areas with air quality concerns – is a milestone in BNSF's testing of fuel-cell technology in a railroad application, said BNSF Vice President of Mechanical and Value Engineering Chris Roberts.
FRA: Freight Rail Fuel Efficiency Up
Nov. 20, 2009 | 03:05 p.m. CST
The Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) Nov. 19 released a study showing vast improvements in freight rail fuel efficiency over the last two decades, approximately 22 percent between 1990 and 2006. More...
Freight Volume Down During Holiday Week
Nov. 20, 2009 | 02:55 p.m. CST
U.S. railroads reported originating 281,218 carloads for the Veterans Day holiday week ended Nov. 14, down 8.9 percent compared to the same week in 2008 and down 17 percent from from the same week in 2007, reports the Association of American Railroads. More...
New Jersey Transit Joins Safety Pilot Program
Nov. 20, 2009 | 02:40 p.m. CST
New Jersey Transit has started its participation in the Close Call Project, a safety pilot program designed to give rail employees the ability to voluntarily and anonymously report "close call" incidents that could have resulted in an accident but did not. More...
STB: Rails Cut More Jobs
Nov. 18, 2009 | 02:00 p.m. CST
The U.S. lines of the seven Class I railroads trimmed another 408 jobs as of mid-October from a month earlier, taking their total employment level down to a new low. More...
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