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at Wellington, Newton has assumed the work. The loaded trains originate on Ca- nadian Pacific at Fort Edward, N.Y., and come to BNSF at Chicago. Sand from suburban Chicago to Lov-
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ing, N.M., has a new route via Train U-EOLLNS. The traffic existed pre- viously and had operated over the Transcon as far as Clovis, N.M., where it was handed off to Southwestern for the remainder of the trip to Carlsbad and Loving. Now the train is interchanged from CSX and Terminal Railroad Asso- ciation near St. Louis, Mo., and operates over former Frisco rails through Spring- field, Mo., and Tulsa, Enid, and Avard, Okla. At Avard, the train gets on the former Santa Fe to Clovis and over to Southwestern. Train U-EOLLNS, and counterpart U-LNSEOL, operate only on an as-needed basis.
CANADIAN NATIONAL SAYRE KOS
Carloads Decline in Second Quarter
Although carloadings across the net- work declined 3 percent in second quar- ter 2015, CN reported solid financial and operating results for the quarter ending June 30, 2015. Net income for the peri- od was C$886 million, an improvement over the net income of C$847 million in second quarter 2014. Also during sec- ond quarter 2015, operating income in- creased eight percent to C$1.362 billion. The railroad’s operating ratio, a valu- able indicator of operating expenses as a percentage of revenue, improved by 3.2 points to 56.4 percent compared to 59.6 percent the year before. Revenues for second quarter 2015
were flat at C$3.125 billion. Revenues advanced in automotive (up 17 percent), forest products (up 8 percent), petroleum and chemicals (up 4 percent), and inter- modal (up 2 percent). Conversely, reve- nues shrunk in metals and minerals (5 percent) and grain/fertilizers (7 percent). Like virtually every other Class I carri- er, coal revenues were down sharply for the quarter — in CN’s case, down 26 per- cent. CN attributed its revenue perfor-
mance to a weaker Canadian dollar on U.S.-dollar-demoninated revenues, freight rate increases, and strong over- seas intermodal demand and increased volumes of finished vehicle traffic. How- ever, lower volumes of Canadian grain compared to last year’s record crop, de- creased coal shipments due to rapidly softening global demand, and reduced shipments of crude oil, frac sand, drilling
pipe, steel, and iron ore virtually wiped out any gains the carrier made.
Algoma Central Passenger Service
On August 15, stakeholders in the Algo- ma Central Railway passenger service working group issued a request for pro- posal for a new operator after third-par- ty operator Railmark Canada failed to meet a precondition of securing a line of credit for $550,000. Some 25 companies across North America were invited to submit proposals. Applications were due September 9 and will be evaluated for ideas that promote increased passenger volumes and increased value of the pas- senger experience. Transport Canada has agreed to sub-
sidize C$5.3 million in bridge financing over three years based on Railmark’s Canada failed business case. This feder- al support is assured for the new opera- tor, once that concern is identified, per- haps as early as late September. An annual subsidy of C$2.2 million
from Transport Canada was slashed in 2015 but extended into 2015 while a third-party operator for the service could be found. CN said it would not operate the Sault Ste. Marie-Hearst, Ont., pas- senger service without a subsidy. The Agawa Canyon Tour Train, however, is still operated by CN and is not affected by the suspension of passenger service over the entire former Algoma Central route.
New ET44ACs Delivered
On August 5, CN Train A42231-05 (Intradivisional Manifest, Fort Erie, Ont.-Toronto MacMillan Yard) had new ET44ACs No. 3002 and No. 3004 in tow. The pair of locomotives represent CN’s first Tier 4 locomotives, of which the railroad expects to receive 39 total. As of press time, CN 3000-3002, 3004,
3005, and 3007 had been released from General Electric’s plant in Erie, Pa.
Employee Fatality in Markham Yard
Ryan Edwards, 27, was fatally injured while performing switching operations at CN’s Markham Yard in Homewood, Ill., on July 25. Prior to joining CN as a conductor, Edwards worked as an in- termodal operator at BNSF Railway and a conductor at CSX Transportation. Ed- wards leaves behind a wife, three chil- dren, and other family. CN and Federal
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