Railpace Hot News
Keep up to date on the latest railroad news from the northeastern United States and Canada, edited by Carl Perelman.
July 30, 2026
AAR Reports Weekly Rail Traffic for the Week Ending July 25, 2026
The Association of American Railroads (AAR) reported U.S. rail traffic for the week ending July 25, 2026. For this week, total U.S. weekly rail traffic was 527,162 carloads and intermodal units, up 2.5 percent compared with the same week last year.
July 29, 2026
Passenger Rail Locomotive Assembly Returns to Canada Through a $1.95 Billion Government of Canada Investment
Today Canada’s Honourable Steven MacKinnon, Minister of Transport and Leader for the Government in the House of Commons, joined by Mathieu Paquette, Interim President and Chief Executive Officer of VIA Rail Canada announced a $1.95 billion Government of Canada investment to renew VIA Rail’s long-distance, regional and remote locomotive fleet while bringing passenger locomotive assembly back to Canada for the first time in decades.
July 29, 2026
MassDOT Hosts Ribbon Cutting to Celebrate Completion of East Deerfield Rail Yard Intermodal Project
On July 21, at Deerfield, Massachusetts, Department of Transportation (MassDOT) Interim Secretary of Transportation Phillip Eng, State Senator Jo Comerford, MassDOT Rail and Transit Administrator Meredith Slesinger, and local officials cut a ribbon to celebrate recent improvements completed at the East Deerfield Rail Yard
July 29, 2026
Amtrak Awards Contracts and Prepares to Begin Major Dock Bridge Rehabilitation Project
Amtrak will begin major work in the coming months to rehabilitate the nearly century-old Dock Bridge in New Jersey after awarding key construction and project management contracts. This project will improve safety and reliability for more than 200,000 daily Amtrak, NJ TRANSIT, and PATH customers traveling on over 700 trains through one of the busiest sections of the Northeast Corridor (NEC).
July 28, 2026
Union Pacific and Norfolk Southern Affirm Strength of Merger Application and Offer Unprecedented New Customer Assurances
Union Pacific and Norfolk Southern have enhanced their merger application by offering customer protections that go beyond those provided in any prior rail merger. The new commitments are provided with the supplemental information requested by the Surface Transportation Board (STB) when it accepted the companies’ merger application as complete on May 28, 2026.
July 28, 2026
CTDOT Announces Start of Major Infrastructure Project To Deliver Faster, More Frequent, and More Reliable Service on the New Haven Line
Connecticut Governor Ned Lamont and Connecticut Transportation Commissioner Garrett Eucalitto, on July 27, held a groundbreaking ceremony in Stratford to mark the start of construction on TIME-1, the largest component to date of TIME FOR CT, the Lamont administration’s comprehensive, multi-year initiative to rebuild, improve, and expand Connecticut’s rail network.
July 28, 2026
Amtrak Advances Major Construction Activities for the B&P Tunnel Replacement Program
Rail passengers on the Northeast Corridor (NEC) between Washington, D.C. and Baltimore will soon notice increased construction activity at the B&P Tunnel Replacement Program site as Amtrak’s tunneling contractor ramps up preparatory work necessary to launch the first of two tunnel boring machines in 2028.
July 27, 2026
Purple Line Vehicle Testing Across Montgomery County:
The Maryland Department of Transportation Maryland Transit Administration began live-wire testing of Purple Line light rail vehicles (LRVs) between the Lyttonsville Operations and Maintenance Facility and the Purple Line Bethesda Station in Montgomery County this week. The latest testing represents the first time the LRVs have undergone live wire testing in Montgomery County. Construction of MTA’s Purple Line project is 90% complete, with all rail tracks installed as of early May. This phase of testing marks a significant step forward for the project, expanding light rail vehicle presence to the westernmost segment of the 16-mile alignment.
July 24, 2026
Another Key Milestone in Washington Union Station Overhaul
U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean P. Duffy today announced the Department’s plans to engage the private sector in the overhaul of Washington Union Station. The Department is investing an additional $24 million into developing a public-private partnership that will be utilized in plans to expand capacity, enhance the passenger experience, and expedite the project’s timeline.
July 23, 2026
CSX Corp. Announces Second Quarter 2026 Results
CSX Corp. yesterday announced second quarter 2026 operating income of $1.51 billion and net earnings of $1.00 billion.
