Freight Tracks issue 22

Stop humouring

The topic is visited more times than a house by trick or treaters at Halloween, yet never concludes with anything that could possibly justify such a project.

Time to stop humouring the road lobby at the expense of rail freight

Look, let's face facts. What on earth are gov ernments doing, humouring the road lobby with such fanciful ideas, when most countries already have a comprehensive rail network – often elec trified – over which freight could be moved? In Devon, an aggregate company recently revised plans to expand its business after it was revealed

Well, here we go again! Talk is yet again turning to whether the answer to reducing emissions is to convert lorries to electric power, which it collects via overhead cables.

Jonathan Webb is not convinced.

TALKING POINT

humouring the road lobby

TALKING POINT

that lorry movements to and from the site would increase from approximately 50 to over 200. If the movements had been by rail, I doubt if there would have been anywhere near the public out cry. Alas, with no rail connection that was not an option. This is a perfect example as to how the answer to reducing emissions is not electrified motorways, but better rail connectivity.

Road haulage advocates will say that although battery power has many drawbacks when applied to lorries, overhead electric cables are proven technology – trams using such a method for over a century. This is a distraction argument on many levels when applied to road haulage, as this feature will explain.

Funding would be a political nightmare

Trials using overhead cables to power lorries have already been carried out in Sweden, Los Angeles and Germany. Battery power for lorries is imprac tical on a number of levels, not least the fact that a battery would need to be approximately six times bigger than that used for powering an electric car. The bad news doesn't stop there though. Such a size would not only significantly increase the weight of the lorry, it would also increase the wear and tear on roads along the major haulage routes and reduce the lorry's capacity. On top of all that, the purchase price of a lorry would sky rocket to an horrendous level. Talking of cost, there would almost certainly be arguments over who should pay for the necessary infrastructure. Haulage companies seem keen, by and large, to be involved but less keen to fund such changes –that burden would invariably fall on a country's government. Good luck to any politician trying to sell that to the electorate in the present economic crisis and when public opinion is swaying towards fewer lorries and more freight on rail. Estimates for installing overhead cables along motorways is approximately £5 million a mile. Even if funding was agreed, would it be a sensible use of public money? Some doubt it, due to the ever evolv

TALKING POINT

ing battery technology that could render such a scheme obsolete within a relatively short time – It would be rather like building steam locomotives when the rail industry was on the brink of mass dieselisation. Such a move would be a political nightmare.

Batteries not a much better alternative

Heavy vehicles are often expected to make long journeys as quickly as possible. EU rules state that a single driver must drive for no longer than 4.5 hours before taking a 45 minute break. They are then allowed to drive for another 4.5 hours. This equates to approximately 270 miles for every 4.5 section of shift. Could such a battery powered vehicle be put into production – especially if rapid charging was available during the 45 minuter break? Although cost may well be less of an issue for lorries, compared to cars, due to much higher utilisation of commercial vehicles – thus being able to recover the capital cost much quicker –both are reliant on a plentiful supply of batteries.

If battery powered road vehicles really took off, the supply of necessary metals needed for bat teries would need to increase by a large multiple of the current output. This may sound simple, but new mines would have to be opened rapidly and cobalt, for example, is extracted as a by-product of extracting other metals – such as silver, nickel and copper. This inextricably ties in the economics of battery production with the demand for the other metals. If the go-ahead was given tomorrow to increase production, it would take at least a de cade to put into place the necessary infrastructure for mining operations to commence.

Other difficulties in trying to tamp up produc tion revolve around commercial pressures of gov ernment subsidies. Such financial arrangements are in place in China, making it difficult for other mining operators to mine in a way that is commer cially viable. Another issue is democracy – dem ocratic countries that offer subsidies can create commercial uncertainty, as the time taken to open

TALKING POINT

a mine can be three times the life of a democrati cally chosen government.

Rail is the greener option

Taken all around, trying to make road haulage significantly green is a noble aspiration, but one that is just not feasible at the moment and unlike ly to be anytime soon. Rail, on the other hand, is way ahead of road – being able to move numerous lorry loads in a single train

Electric lorries is just the latest in a long line of proposals that ignore the obvious fact that railways are almost always better for moving bulk loads over a long distance – even if they do sometimes require lorries to trip them to and from freight terminals. Back in 2017, the road haulage industry was salivating over the bizarre idea of platooning lorries, where a leading lorry would control a number of other lorries as they sped along the motorway. A single driver in charge of long and heavy loads – haven't we already got this in the form of freight trains? In its desperation to win over the public the trial promotor tried to sway opinion by saying that the leading platoon lorry would reduce the drag by 10% for the other lorries in the platoon and the reduction in fuel costs could be passed on to shoppers. Ironically, the green washing didn't wash with the public.

Radosław Drożdżewski

BRIDGING THE GAP: BRIDGE PROJECT COMPLETED

In the early 20th century, BNSF predecessor Northern Pacific Railway (NP) erected a bridge in Idaho across Lake Pend Oreille between Sagle and Sandpoint to replace an earlier bridge built in 1882.The original could no longer be used due to high flood waters and increasingly heavier train loads moving across the lake.

“The bridge was replaced because flooding was al ways an issue,” Will Valentine, a Bonner County historian, said. “They actually had to push cars full of rock onto the trestle to keep it from being washed away. In 1904, Northern Pacific constructed the bridge that is still there today.”

When the new bridge was completed in 1904, it boosted the local economy because of increased train traffic and demand for more commerce in the area.

The 1904 bridge is still in use today by both freight and passenger trains. In 2019 BNSF began constructing a second bridge adjacent to the existing rail bridge. The two run parallel approximately 50 feet apart.

The project is completed, and the bridge officially opened on Sunday, November 20, when a BNSF train crossed the bridge for the first time. The completed bridge is 4873 feet (1.4 km) in length, comprised of 49 spans, 224 precast concrete girders and approximate ly 55,000 feet of 36-inch pipe pile.

The added bridge will reduce congestion and help move freight more efficiently. Currently, because BNSF’s mainline track merges with Montana Rail Link, there is often a bottleneck of multiple trains needing to access the single track to get across the lake. With one bridge, rail traffic can only run in one direction at a time, requiring trains to idle while waiting to cross, often blocking local roadways.

When the two bridges are operational, trains will run in both directions, reducing driver wait times on nearby roads that cross BNSF tracks. The flow of freight and passenger trains will be improved throughout the region.

Ryan Kopera, the Sandpoint bridge project engineer, has worked for BNSF for eight years and has overseen the project since the beginning.

“This project has been in the works for several years, so it’s great to see it completed and ready to go. A lot of people put in a lot of hard work for the project to be finished on time,” Kopera said. “It is great to see trains on the bridge.”

While trains are now operating on the new bridge, the full project will not be completed until summer of 2023 as we take the opportunity to perform some maintenance work on the existing bridge. Until then, all trains will use the new bridge.

“This project is going to improve the flow of rail traffic through North Idaho, benefitting custom ers and communities. We appreciate the support of those partners throughout the entire process,” Matthew Jones, BNSF executive director of public affairs, added.

Once trains are running on both bridges, it will re duce rail congestion and benefit commerce. It’s also expected that locomotive emissions will be reduced as trains will not be idling as much or powering up to resume travel.

More pictures next page

NEW SANDPOINT COMPLETED

BRIDGING THE GAP

Why rail is a strategic axis of Nestlé Waters in carbon reduction

From 2025, Nestlé Waters France will use the first hydrogen-powered freight train thanks to an innovative solution developed by Alstom and ENGIE

NESTLÉ Waters will be the first company in Europe to ben efit from the hydrogen fuel cell solution for mass rail freight, including renewable hydrogen supply, developed by Alstom and ENGIE.

This innovative solution aims to replace diesel-powered locomotives currently used on most lines in France and most European countries.

The high-power hydrogen fuel cell system developed by Alstom will power electric locomotives in non-electrified sectors and offer a 100% electric solution for rail freight, end-to-end, including for the first and last kilometers, rarely electrified.

From 2025, this freight train should gradually transport VITTEL natural mineral water between the factory located in the Vosges and its various distribution centers in France (i.e. Vittel/Arles 600 km and Vittel/Montreuil-Bellay 760 kms).

Ultimately, this project should enable Nestlé Waters to significantly reduce emissions by 10,000 tonnes of CO2 equivalent per year, or a 90% reduction in its current annual emissions.

This corresponds to the annual emissions of more than 30,000 round trips Paris-Nice by car.

A three-way partnership

"At Nestlé Waters, we favour rail freight whenever possible. We are constantly looking for effective solutions to reduce the carbon impact of our supply chain.

"We are very proud of this project because it represents a very significant investment by our railway team to find

innovative solutions to meet climate and environmental challenges. This collaboration with Alstom and ENGIE is legitimate and will accelerate the development of a car bon-free supply chain," said Sophie Dubois, Managing Direc tor of Nestlé Waters France

This new collaboration is a continuation of the actions carried out for several years by Nestlé Waters to decarbo nise its supply chain.

In 2018, Nestlé Waters joined the FRET21 approach and signed an agreement with the Ecological Transition Agency (ADEME) in order to take action to reduce the carbon footprint of its product transport flows in France.

In 2020, the group has set itself an additional target of reducing its transport-related CO2 emissions in France by 13% by the end of 2022.

This commercial ambition is based on concrete actions including:

In 2018, the opening of a rail line between its Perrier factory and the port of Fos-sur-Mer, reducing the passage of 27,000 trucks per year.

In 2019, the EURODUAL hybrid locomotive was put into circulation , which saved 1920 tons of CO2 equivalent per year compared to a diesel locomotive.

In 2021, the Glass Train project , which promotes the transport of Vittel and San Pellegrino returnable glass bot tles by train, will reduce the passage of 1000 trucks per year.

The initiatives carried out by Nestlé Waters since 2020 have already made it possible to avoid nearly 11% of carbon emissions from transport, around 5900 tonnes of CO2 equivalent at the end of 2021.

GBRf spends Peterborough

GB Railfreight (GBRf) has confirmed that it is in vesting £4.7m in a new maintenance depot in Pe terborough next to the East Coast Mainline.

Starting in December, the project, being built by Cairn Cross Engineering will create around 60 jobs during construction and a further 20 permanent jobs when the project completes next sum mer. This continues GBRf’s sustained investment in Eastern England following construction of its new £3 million Peterborough HQ last year.

Smart sensor technology

The state-of-art maintenance hub will be a major milestone in GBRf’s ambitions to improve safe ty and reliability across its wagon fleet. The Rail Accident Investigation Branch (RAIB) recently highlighted inadequate maintenance practices as partly to blame for the Llangennech derailment in August 2020.

The investigation identified a defect in the brak ing system as the cause for 25 laden tank wag ons to derail, which resulted in a major fire and 446,000 litres of fuel to spill.

To avoid incidents like Llangennech happening again, the new GB Railfreight maintenance hub in Peterborough will use smart sensor technology to quickly and accurately analyse wheel wear and degrading wheel-bearing conditions, and identify faults in the braking system integrity much earlier.

From next summer, the company will be able to carry out ‘pitstop style’ assessments to wagons on

the East Coast Mainline rather than lengthy field maintenance.

Wagons will be returned to service far quicker using these assessments and it is anticipated that their time in traffic between repairs will be signifi cantly reduced.

Currently, GB Railfreight runs in excess of 50 intermodal services per day serving all the major seaports across the UK.

The new Peterborough maintenance hub will support GB Railfreight’s growth plans as it works up to running 75 intermodal services a day by 2025.

David Golding, Asset Director, GB Railfreight, said: "The Peterborough maintenance hub is a major investment into the sector and will form an integral part of our infrastructure long into the fu ture.

"The derailment in Llangennech was a huge wake-up call for everyone across rail freight, our state-of-the-art maintenance hub demonstrates our commitment to ensure that this type of inci dent doesn’t happen on our fleet. Our ability to ser vice wagons quickly will also allow us to deliver an even more reliable service to our customers and support GB Railfreight’s growth aspirations."

Phil Williamson, Managing Director, Cairn Cross Engineering Ltd, said: "Cairn Cross is de lighted to have secured this project in partnership with GBRf at the Peterborough maintenance hub. The project will significantly improve the efficiency of rail freight maintenance in Eastern England.”

spends big in Peterborough

ARTC Inland Rail opens track between Narrabri and Moree

THE Australian Rail Track Corpora tion (ARTC) has opened 83 km of upgraded Inland Rail track between Moree and Narrabri, with the first grain train set to run in the coming days.

With trains now running on this section of track for the first time in seven months, ARTC is urging peo ple travelling on roads between Narrabri and Moree to take extra care near the rail line and at all level crossings.

It can take a fully loaded freight train up to 1 km to stop after the emer gency brakes have been applied, so it is essential that drivers pay careful attention at level crossings.

The good news for motorists and pedestrians is that the upgraded track includes a range of new safety features.

ARTC Inland Rail carried out works to construct new embank ments, bridges and drainage cul verts, replaced existing sleepers with concrete sleepers and laid new bal last and steel tracks.

Bulk earthworks to rebuild the track foundation were also complet ed to boost the flood immunity of the rail line, which proved resilient during recent inclement weather in the re gion.

In addition, safety has been en hanced at 57 level crossings along the alignment to achieve compliance with current Australian and ARTC standards.

A further ten level crossings have been upgraded from passive to ac tive controls - meaning they now have boom barriers, bells and flash ing lights.

All crossings now have bigger and brighter signage, upgraded road approaches and new rubber cross ing panels, which reduce the time it takes for a vehicle to traverse the level crossing.

With the line between Narrabri and Moree now open, activity on the Narrabri to North Star section of In land Rail will focus on the completion of the final works north of Camur ra, which is expected in the coming months.

Efficient transport network

Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and Local Govern ment Minister Catherine King said: “Australia’s supply chains rely on a safe, reliable and efficient transport network to move approximately four

track

billion tonnes of goods across the country each year.

“The opening of the upgraded In land Rail track between Moree and Narrabri marks a major milestone in delivering a more efficient and con nected national freight network.

“Farmers in North West New South Wales gearing up for another busy harvest year will benefit from 83km of new track on the Narrabri to North Star section of Inland Rail which will support the movement of grain to export ports on Australia’s east coast.”

National infrastructure project

Inland Rail Narrabri to North Star (N2NS) Project Director Peter Bor relli said: “Inland Rail’s construction between Narrabri and North Star

has seen approximately 281,554 sleepers laid, 4776 culverts in stalled, seven new bridge structures built and 168.5km of track installed in the works.

“This national infrastructure proj ect has supported work for more than 1930 people including 623 lo cal residents.

“Local businesses are also ben efiting from the more than $196 million spent on supplies and ser vices supporting the build – includ ing some 12 Indigenous businesses across Australia who have shared in $15.2 million invested to deliver In land Rail in central west NSW.”

“Inland Rail means more money is being spent with local business es at the same time as building an asset that will benefit the region for generations.

“This project is supporting jobs, creating opportunities and enhanc ing connectivity in the region for years to come.

"With approvals expected for other Inland Rail projects in NSW in early 2023, similar supply chain benefits and local economic uplifts are expected right across the Cen tral West.

“ARTC Inland Rail has worked very hard to have the line complete in time for the commencement of grain harvest season, and to ensure minimal interference with farming operations.

“With trains now running for the first time in over seven months, we are urging the community to make sure they take extra care near the rail line and at all level crossings –stop, look, listen and then cross.

IF SHE CAN, SO CAN I

FREIGHT TRACKS contributor Jonathan Webb, publisher and owner of Chime Whistle publi cations, is looking to fund a new book in 2023 looking at women in the rail industry.

He writes: " A few weeks ago I was ap proached by a high circulation general interest magazine to ask if I would write a feature about women rail workers - including volunteers on heritage railways.

"After a discussion with the editor it soon became clear that the feature they wanted wasn't quite the feature I had in mind. From the magazine's point if view they wanted a 'fluff' piece that was both contrived and bore little resemblance to reality. In the case of heritage railway volunteers, they wanted a “My husband thinks I'm mad” type angle. In the case of the 'big' railway they wanted glamour but not the grime. When I men tioned that historically women had faced many barriers when wanting to work on the railway, the reply from the editor was “Well, we certainly don't want to talk about that!”.

Future generations

"It prompted me to consider creating a piece of work, in the form of a book, that would help inspire future generations of women to join the industry. Hav ing shot hundreds of pictures for the rail industry, for posters, brochures and calendars, I got to know many staff. Some of these pictures will appear in the book, along with pictures that have yet to be made.

"As socially important as the book will be, it would've been naive to believe that such a book would ever be a commercial success - as is often the case with socially important books. However, I'm determined - with the help of supporters - to make it a reality. I will invest around £2000 in the project, which will be used for travelling costs as I travel on trains to meet staff who will appear in the book, but this amount barely scratched the surface of the cost of producing a quality book. The aim is to publish 2000 copies of a 100-page hardback book, using quality paper and pictures, along with insights from the staff featured.

"To achieve this, I will set up a Kickstart page on January 1 2023, where there will be exclusive rewards

printed and distributed to schools, train operators etc.

"The book is called 'If She Can, So Can I. Rail Women in the 21st Century' the title referring to how today's railway women are inspiring the next genera tion, by leading by example. It's fitting that 2023 marks the 45th anniversary of Karen Harrison, qualifying as Britain's first woman train driver. How long before we see a woman driving a steam locomotive on the mainline?

The

Modility receives new funding of its CT booking platform

THE technical development of further innovations at Modility, the booking and brokerage platform for Combined Transport, is funded as of November 2022 by the German Federal Ministry for Digital and Transport (BMDV) in the context of their 'Future Rail Freight Transport' programme. The funding will be used to accelerate the development and integration of new features and thus attract new customer segments on the supply and demand side. The project will run until October 2024.

Managing Director Hendrik-Emman uel Eichentopf considers the funding of Modility to be a recognition of the positive development over the past months.

He says: "Since the market launch in March 2021, we have made tremendous progress with Modility. The successful pilot phase as well as increasing user and booking numbers have shown the great demand and potential for our solution in the market. With the new funding, we can now take Modility to the next level in terms of functionality and thus facili tate the switch to more climate-friendly CT for our users."

The pilot phase of Modility had been funded by the BMDV as part of the 'Fu ture Rail Freight Transport' program as well.

New customer segments through technical innovations The objective of the demonstrator project that has now started is to attract additional custom er segments on the supply and demand side through new innovations.

"During the pilot phase, we spoke to a range of different companies that would like to use Modility but have very

specific requirements," says Eichentopf. "We have to take these into account to ensure that our online platform can be used in day-to-day operations and be comes a market standard."

Therefore, the implementation of three sets of measures is scheduled which consist of functional and modular innovations as well as market opening actions.

Specifically, this involves more pre cise illustration of transport prices and available train capacities, acceleration and simplification of the booking pro cess, and mapping of processes for ma jor client organizations. In addition, an option for the technical integration of other transport platforms is to be im plemented. Increasing offerings, users and bookings

Since its official market launch in March 2021, Modility has been growing continuously.

As of today, 40 train operators are already registered, offering a range of more than 650 bookable rail connec tions throughout Europe with around 2500 departures per week via the por tal. In total, more than 350 users are registered with Modility.

"We are increasingly noticing that with the growing range of transport options at Modility, we are not only an information site, but also a matchmak er between supply and demand," states Eichentopf.

The targeted booking volume for this year in the four-digit range was ex ceeded. In 2023, it should continue to grow - also with the help of the new funding.

headline

headline news

Tagging railcars Philly style

NEW Jersy-based scrap metal rexcyling company Giordano’s Recycling has revealed that the first of 20 new scrap-cars has been vandalised.

However, the company is taking it in a good humour, even re vealing the name of the artist: the Philadelphia-based “Masoe”.

A Year in Review

Championing zero-carbon logistics and connecting Scotland, the UK and the world via rail.

THE Mossend International Rail Park (MIRP) looks back

COP27 has come to a close in Egypt and after our involvement in last year’s climate conference, we’ve asked ourselves the question – what have we achieved at Mossend International Rail Park (MIRP) in the last 12 months towards reaching Scotland and the UK’s targets for net zero?

At COP26 we hosted Low Carbon Logistics at MIRP, the first industry event of its kind. The event, which over 500 people attended, celebrated innovation in the rail and road sec tors and promoted the importance of Pulling Together for Net Zero.

In 2022, Mossend International Railfreight Park began moving bulk trains of stone over

a 250-mile journey to Leeds – removing 84 Heavy Goods Vehicles (HGVs) from the roads, per train, with this activity set to continue.

In the last quarter, we’ve welcomed a new Culina intermodal rail service running daily between MIRP and iPort in Doncaster, Yorkshire. Several ‘high street’ names use this rail service as part of their drive to reduce carbon in their logistics supply chain… on the road to net zero.

At Mossend itself, progress has been made in the construction and preparation of the rail terminal, with a small amount of track laid to facilitate the delivery of material, via rail, to continue the build.

MIRP also joined forces with two private sector organisations and five councils in the Glasgow City Region to apply for Green Free port status under the joint banner of Clyde Green Freeport.

The bid, which was submitted in June, is currently awaiting the outcome in which two Scottish Green Freeports will be selected.

In other news in 2022, MIRP also attended the 2022 Chinese Burns Supper and China-Scotland Business Awards in Edinburgh celebrating the business relations between China and Scotland. MIRP had the opportunity to present on ‘Taking the Train to China and Decarbonisation’, recognising the potential

benefits of using low carbon intermodal rail for Scottish exports to China.

Peter D Stirling, of MIRP, was a key sponsor of this year’s Royal Highland Show and welcomed partners from Clyde Green Freeport to the event.

Director Andrew Stirling, and MIRP Consultant David Cross both represented MIRP and set MIRP's agenda speaking at the Scotland Development Conference as well as the Scotland Transport & Infrastructure Conference event.

With a productive and prosperous year almost behind us, MIRP is now looking to an exciting 2023 and beyond, says the company.

Preparations are well underway

RAILTEX will gather the UK’s railway industry from 911 May 2023 at the NEC in Birmingham.

Renewed public interest in rail travel and the need for more digitalised and greener solutions are driving the attention of many key players towards more inno

vative and sustainable mobility. The upcoming Railtex edition is an unmissable opportunity for railway pro fessionals to discover the latest innovations and tech nologies in person, say organisers, Learn more about topics that move the industry from decarbonisation

underway for Railtex 2023

to digitalisation and meet business partners and new suppliers from around the world.

For more than 25 years, Railtex has been the UK's showcase event for the rail industry and it continues to reunite all stakeholders of the rail sector and its key players, including rail operators, infrastructure author ities, vehicle builders, suppliers, rail transport policy makers and planners.

Despite the challenging times the industry has been facing over the past two years, Railtex confirms to be a trusted industry event, playing a crucial role in companies’ recovery strategies in the aftermath of the pandemic.

Railtex attracts high-profile visitors with deci sion-making power, from management, engineering, planning and technical design backgrounds looking for innovative solutions for all areas of the railway supply chain. Its visitors come from all key industry sectors, including main line passenger and rail freight opera tors, rail regulation and safety bodies.

“Looking towards 2023, these are exciting times for the rail industry. The sector will not only continue to benefit from new opportunities, such as the ongo ing rail projects from North to South and East to West in the United Kingdom, but also continue to grow amongst the challenges the rail sector has been con fronted with,” says Olaf Freier, Railtex Portfolio Direc tor, on behalf of event organiser Mack-Brooks Exhibi tions.

Exhibitors renewing their trust

Numerous exhibitors have renewed their attendance for the upcoming edition, testifying the influence of

Railtex in the UK rail market; Stadler Rail, EAO Ltd, Ti dyco Ltd, Frauscher Sensor Technology, Hayley Group Ltd and many more will be showcasing their products.

Railtex provides suppliers to the railway sector with a unique marketing platform to conduct business. It gives the industry a chance to present an impressive array of technologies and innovations, ranging from total railway systems to the smallest specialised com ponents.

“Railtex is the place to be for the whole railway in dustry to meet under one roof and to experience prod ucts and equipment in action, and we look forward to welcoming the rail sector in Birmingham next May,” comments Olaf Freier, Railtex Portfolio Director, on behalf of event organiser Mack-Brooks Exhibitions.

Extensive supporting programme

Seminars and conferences hosted by high-level indus try experts and speakers are in the programme which will be organised by the main show partner RIA, the Railway Industry Association for railway suppliers in the UK.

The extensive supporting programme will provide valuable insights into future trends in railway tech nology and will feature a broad range of topics and sessions to address key challenges and opportunities facing the rail industry in the coming years.

The show’s recurring features also include an OnTrack Display and Plant & Machinery Exhibits for live machinery demonstrations, allowing companies to dis cover the latest technology in person and experience products and services from more than 180 different categories.

R. J. Corman Switching to offer service to Sasol in Louisiana

R. J. CORMAN Railroad Switching Company, LLC, a subsidiary of R. J. Corman Railroad Group, has been awarded a contract to provide Sasol with switching service operations to their Lake Charles Chemical Com plex in Westlake, Louisiana.

Sasol is a global chemical company. At Sasol's Westlake location, R. J. Corman Railroad Switching Com pany will have a workforce of more

than 50 employees covering various roles, from train crew members to mechanical, human resources and management.

This switching operation is served by Kansas City Southern (KCS) through its adjacent Mossville Yard and line.

The five-year contract with Sasol is the second location opened by R. J. Corman Railroad Switching Com

pany in Louisiana this year.

“We are excited to provide Sasol with the quality of service and safe ty-first operations that characteris es us,” said R. J. Corman Railroad Group President and CEO Ed Quinn. “We are eager to support their opera tions and become a key logistics and supply chain business partner for them. We look forward to a long and successful relationship.”

NS inaugural Thoroughbred Sustainability Partner Awards winners

NORFOLK Southern Corporation has announced the 15 recipients of its inaugural Thoroughbred Sustain ability Partner Awards. The awards recognise Norfolk Southern partner companies who are leaders in the categories of Energy Efficiency, In novation and Environmental Stew ardship.

"Sustainability is embedded in ev ery facet of our organisation, includ ing helping our customers reduce their supply chain emissions," said Norfolk Southern Chief Sustainabil ity Officer Josh Raglin. "The more we encourage and recognize our stakeholders for their collaboration with partners, the quicker we will all achieve measurable progress toward our shared sustainability goals. We recognise and honour these partners

for their leadership with the inaugural Thoroughbred Sustainability Partner Awards."

A cross-department team from Norfolk Southern reviewed applica tions for their measurable progress during 2021. Winners were selected based on their program's novelty, rel evance, and impact.

The award recipients collectively demonstrated outstanding achieve ments toward energy efficiency, inno

vation, and environmental steward ship. Achievements by the honorees included:

n Diverting 17 million pounds of waste from landfills

n Avoiding more than 500,000 tonnes of carbon emissions

n Eliminating 5.2 million miles of diesel fuel burn annually

n Achieving a 30% reduction in fuel consumption, saving 225,000 gallons annually

n Removing abandoned fishing nets and lines in the ocean and con verting them to auto parts, mitigating some of the estimated 700,000 tons of fishing gear discarded annually

Norfolk Southern will honour these winners at a ceremony at its headquarters in Atlanta in January 2023.

“There is much talk within the government about the huge benefits of rail freight in relation to the growth of the UK economy and the reduction in carbon footprint,” he says. “That seems to be all it is: talk with very little action towards actually increasing UK rail freight.”

Ever statesman-like futurologist Will Huskisson, whose inherent demeanour gifts the average Yorkshireman an air of wild optimism, predicts our finest hour is unlikely to have a date in the diary for 2023.

See next issue of Freught Tracks for his insight on what lies ahead for rail freight in 2023.

Case studies n with 24 wagons. This increased to 27 wagons and provided environ mental savings of 0.25 tonne CO2 (Carbon Dioxide). The project ed annual financial savings were £291,000. n with 14 wagons. This increased to 16 wagons and provided environ mental savings of 1.4 tonne CO2. The projected annual financial sav ings were £245,000. n with 19 wagons. This increased to 23 wagons and provided environ mental savings of 2.1 tonne CO2. The projected annual financial sav ings were £364,000. menting the improved freight cou pler load ratings and identifying routes suitable for longer freight services.

TEAMS from Network Rail have painstakingly restored an iconic railway sign just north of York station following a re quest from the daughter of the man who made it almost 90 years ago.

Pauline Kerr contacted Network Rail earlier this year to request that the sign, which marks the half-way point between Edinburgh and London, be cleaned and restored.

The sign was made and installed in 1938 by Pauline’s Dad, Ken Bainbridge, from Newton-on-Ouse.

Bainbridge made the sign when he worked as an engi

neer’s apprentice aged just 17. Building the sign took Ken two weeks and saw him craft the 50-foot sign by hand, us ing a chisel, saw and drill.

The sign, which has been next to the East Coast Main Line for 84 years, was looking a little weathered, which is why Pauline reached out to Network Rail to request it be shown a bit of TLC.

Network Rail teams have now carried out work to re fresh, repaint and restore the sign to its former glory once more.

Spick and Span: Family’s delight as Network Rail restores historic railway sign in York

A new maintenance regime has also been put in place to make sure that the sign remains in good condition and can be enjoyed by rail passengers for future generations.

Jason Hamilton, East Coast Route Programme Direc tor for Network Rail, said: “This sign is iconic and loved by many passengers who travel up and down the East Coast Main Line, so we’re really pleased that we’ve been able to get it looking as good as new.

“York has a rich railway history and it’s fascinating to learn more about how Ken made the sign when he was just

a teenager. We’re really happy to have been able to com plete this work, as we know what a difference it will make for Pauline and her family.

“The new maintenance routine will make sure it con tinues to welcome passengers to York for years to come.”

When he retired in 1984, Bainbridge told trade news paper Railnews: “All I had to do the job with were chisels, a hacksaw and a file – there were no machines then.

"When I look at those signs north of York I feel they are mine.”

Railway Reading

Shipping the Vega

The Chevrolet Vega was designed to be shipped vertically, nose down. Railroad cars named Vert-A-Pac were designed jointly by mmotor man ufacturer General Motors and Southern Pacific. The Southern Pacific was an American Class I railroad network that existed from 1865 to 1996 and operated largely in the Western United States. The first Vega was built June 26 1970.

Each Vert-A-Pac — each held 30 Vegas versus 18 in normal tri-level autoracks of the time. Each car was fitted with four removable, cast-steel sockets into the undercarriage. Plastic spacers were wedged in beside the powertrain to prevent damage to engine and transmission mounts and were removed when the cars were unloaded.

The rail car ramp/doors were opened and closed via forklift. Chevrolet conducted vibration and low-speed crash tests to ensure the suspended, nosedown cars would not shift or incur damage in railroad collisions. Chevrolet's goal was to deliver cars topped with fluids and ready to drive to the dealership. To do this, engineers had to design an engine oil baffle to prevent oil from entering the No. 1 cylinder; Batteries had filler caps located high up on the rear edge of the battery case to prevent acid spilling; the carburetor float bowl had a tube that drained gasoline into the vapor canister during shipment, and the windshield washer bottle stood at a 45 degree angle.

In 1973, Chevrolet Motor Division has added another page to its production record book with the assembly of the division's 1,000,000th Vega. The milestone car, a bright orange GT hatchback coupe, came off the assembly line at the Lord stown. Ohio plant amid the bright lights of television cameras.

F. James McDonald, a General Motors vice president and Chevrolet general manager, hailed the event as one of the highlights in the division's 62-year history.

"It took Chevrolet nearly 12 years to build its first million passenger cars," McDonald said. "This latest milestone was achieved in less than three years.”

McDonald praised the Chevrolet dealer organisation at the milestone celebration as well as the division's own employees, General Motors Assembly Division workers and the hundreds of supplier companies which provided parts.

Five years before, General Motors and the Southern Pacific Railroad had jointly begun work on development of a radical new rail car designed to carry the Chevrolet Vega, a new compact car being developed by GM. Known as Vert-A-Pac, the rail cars would hold 30 Vegas in a ver tical, nose-down position, versus 18 in normal tri-level autoracks. Each Vega was fitted with four removable, cast-steel sockets inserted into the undercarriage that locked into the hooks on the bottom-hinged doors that made up the car side.

The prototype car, SP 618000 was turned out in December 1968 and tested through 1969.

Chevrolet conducted vibration and low-speed crash tests to make sure nose-down Vegas would not shift or be damaged in railcar collisions. Chevrolet's goal was to deliver Vegas topped with fluids and ready to drive to the dealership. To do this Vega engineers had to design a special engine oil baffle to prevent oil

"Ittook Chevrolet nearly12years tobuilditsfirst millionpassengercars," McDonaldsaid. "Thislatest milestonewas achievedin lessthanthree years.”

Railway Reading

Vega on the nose

from entering the No. 1 cylinder, batteries had filler caps located high up on the rear edge of the case to prevent acid spilling, the carburetor float bowl had a special tube that drained gasoline into the vapour canister during shipment, and the windshield washer bottle stood at a 45-degree angle.

Plastic spacers were wedged in beside the powertrain to prevent damage to engine and transmission mounts. The wedges were removed when cars were unloaded. The rail car doors were opened and closed by means of a forklift truck.

The first production Vert-A-Pacs entered service in April

1970; the last ones entered service in January 1973. Besides Southern Pacific, the Baltimore & Ohio, Burlington Northern, Denver & Rio Grande Western, Florida East Coast, Illinois Central Railroad, Louisville & Nashville, Milwaukee Road, Missouri Pacific, Penn Central (Merchants Despatch Trans portation), Rock Island Railroad, Seaboard Coast Line, Frisco Railroad and Southern Railway operated Vert-A-Pacs.

All were withdrawn from service at the end of the 1977 Vega model year and were reracked with conventional tri-level racks.

KEEP THE DATE: Railway industry calendar of events

06 December London, UK Rail Industry Forum 2022

07-08 December Duisberg, Germany European Silk Road Summit

08 December Paris, France 101st UIC General Assembly

2023

07 February London, UK Rolling Stock Forum 2023

09 February Birmingham, UK TransCityRail Midlands

21-23 February Rome, Italy International Railway Summit

23 February London, UK Rail Business Awards

28 Feb-2 March São Paulo, Brazil NT Expo São Paulo

03 March London, UK Golden Whistle Awards

08 March Glasgow, UK Rail in Scotland

28-30 March Lille France SIFER13th International Exhibition of Railway Technology

09-11 May Birmingham, UK Railtex

09-11 May London, UK Railtex

23 May London, UK Railway Innovation Awards

31 May-1 June Asia Pacific Rail Bangkok, Thailand

03-05 October Milan, Italy Expo Ferroviaria

If you would like your event listed here free of charge, just send details to freighttracks@gmail.com

Bye-bye 2022, Hello 2023

This year represents the third year since the Covid pandemic hit the world's population. It was also the year that Freight Tracks was launched. Drawing on the talents of some of the finest railway journalists writing today,we set out to bring rail freight to the fore.

In our last issue of 2022, due out on Monday December 19, we will look back at the year just completed and what might lie ahead in the year to come.

We will be inviting industry leaders to comment on 2022 and what they might expect in 2023.

At the same time, we will be provid ing the opportunity for firms in the rail freight industry supply chain to invest in advertising to thank those customers that kept loyal during the year while reaching potential advertises in 2023.

We welcome contributions from our readers in this issue.

Just get in touch with the email be low.