Ballots will be mailed on September 9 to eligible members of the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen (BLET), regarding the union’s tentative BNSF-Montana Rail Link (MRL) implementing agreement and Oregon Short Line Protective Agreement, according to BLET National President Dennis R. Pierce.
In January, MRL announced it would terminate its lease with BNSF, with BNSF resuming operations on the line.
The implementing agreement governs BNSF’s hiring of the BLET-represented MRL employees, their seniority, work rules, pay, benefits, and integration into the BNSF system. The implementing agreement and Oregon Short Line Protective Agreement govern approximately 500 BLET members who work for the MRL.
Before BNSF took over operations, the Montana Rail Link was a Class II regional railroad based in Missoula, Montana, operating over 900 route miles of track in Montana and Idaho and employing nearly 1,200 workers.
Disclosure: David Mazor is a freelance writer focusing on Berkshire Hathaway. The author is long in Berkshire Hathaway, and this article is not a recommendation on whether to buy or sell a stock. The information contained in this article should not be construed as personalized or individualized investment advice. Past performance is no guarantee of future results.
Berkshire Hathaway-owned BNSF Railway has made dramatic progress in reducing unfilled grain shipments.
According to figures submitted to the Surface Transportation Board for the week of 8/20/22-8/26/2022, there were only 167 orders 1-10 days past due and 34 orders 11+ days past due.
This is a marked contrast to the week of 6/18/2022-6/24/2022 when there were 711 orders 1-10 days past due and 1,199 orders 11+ days past due.
Grain Car Backlog Status Report:
Following STB’s hearing on “Urgent Issues in Freight Rail Service” in April, BNSF Railway, CSX Transportation, Norfolk Southern Railway, and Union Pacific submitted service recovery plans explaining the specific actions they will take to improve service and identify the specific metrics they will use to evaluate their progress toward such improvements.
Starting June 3, the STB required BNSF Railway, CSX Transportation, Norfolk Southern Railway, and Union Pacific to file service progress reports further explaining efforts to correct service deficiencies. They will continue to file service progress reports every two weeks for six months. Starting June 15, the STB is also requiring all class I railroads to report additional employment data for six months.
Disclosure: David Mazor is a freelance writer focusing on Berkshire Hathaway. The author is long in Berkshire Hathaway, and this article is not a recommendation on whether to buy or sell a stock. The information contained in this article should not be construed as personalized or individualized investment advice. Past performance is no guarantee of future results.
Berkshire Hathaway’s BNSF, as well as Union Pacific, and CSX, have reached a tentative agreement with three of their labor unions. The agreement, which covers some 15,000 employees, came about after a Presidential Emergency Board, was created on July 18, 2022.
The three unions are the Transportation Communications Union/IAM, the Brotherhood of Railway Carmen, and the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers.
In a statement released by Transportation Communications Union/IAM, the union noted:
“The Tentative Agreement secures all of the recommendations of PEB 250. Under the terms of this Agreement, employees will receive the highest General Wage Increases ever achieved through National Bargaining – 24% in compounded GWIs over 5 years. The TA protects all great benefits of our Healthcare Plans and includes Healthcare Design enhancements related to the coverage and treatment for Autism Disorder and hearing benefits. It also provides an additional day of paid leave to be designated as an additional Personal Leave Day, Vacation Day or Personal Holiday. The Tentative Agreement also contains a ‘Me-Too’ provision which ensures that in the event any other union reaches an agreement that improves on the terms of this Agreement, TCU/IAM members will receive the same additional value.
This Agreement ensures that every single penny of the recommendations contained in PEB 250 go directly into our member’s pockets. TCU/IAM members will receive thousands of dollars in back pay as well as thousands of dollars from increased wages through this agreement. There is no question – getting to a PEB and receiving these recommendations would never have been possible without all of Rail Labor coming together. The Unions stood together, determined to fight the Carriers proposals to slash healthcare benefits, attack our work rules and eliminate two-man crews. We were successful in that fight.”
Disclosure: David Mazor is a freelance writer focusing on Berkshire Hathaway. The author is long in Berkshire Hathaway, and this article is not a recommendation on whether to buy or sell a stock. The information contained in this article should not be construed as personalized or individualized investment advice. Past performance is no guarantee of future results.
BNSF Railway has received approval from the Commissioners of the Northwest Seaport Alliance to develop and operate a domestic intermodal facility at Lot M in the Tacoma Harbor.
The new BNSF facility will increase cargo volumes moving to and from the NWSA and inland U.S. markets via rail. The adoption of this lease uniquely positions the NWSA as a port directly served by two mainline railroads in the domestic movement of containers.
“Growing the NWSA’s domestic intermodal volumes has long been a goal for the Seattle and Tacoma gateway,” stated NWSA Co-Chair and Port of Tacoma Commissioner President Don Meyer. “The new facility will increase job opportunities while reducing truck emissions associated with moving cargo to inland markets.”
BNSF currently operates a domestic intermodal facility in Tukwila serving the NWSA’s Seattle Harbor. The new Tacoma intermodal facility will bring additional key rail assets to the Pacific Northwest region with the potential for more than 50,000 container lifts in subsequent years.
“The new Tacoma South facility builds upon our joint initiative with J.B. Hunt to substantially improve capacity in the intermodal marketplace while also meeting the expanding needs of our customers,” said Tom Williams, BNSF group vice president, Consumer Products. “Our collaboration with the NWSA will help support greater warehousing and distribution needs in the fast-growing greater Seattle area.”
Currently, cargo movement occurs by truck to more than 40 transload facilities in the Puget Sound or directly by rail to inland locations. The increase in domestic rail movement will add additional jobs to NWSA-licensed facilities while reducing fuel consumption and air emissions that are caused by trucks throughout the Puget Sound region.
Operations at the new facility are expected to begin in August of this year.
Disclosure: David Mazor is a freelance writer focusing on Berkshire Hathaway. The author is long in Berkshire Hathaway, and this article is not a recommendation on whether to buy or sell a stock. The information contained in this article should not be construed as personalized or individualized investment advice. Past performance is no guarantee of future results.
BNSF Railway Company is making progress in its plans to add a fourth main track in San Bernadino, California. At its meeting last week, the San Bernardino City Council voted to certify the Final Environmental Impact Report (EIR) for BNSF’s proposed gap closure project designed to expedite the flow of trains in and out of its existing San Bernardino Intermodal Facility.
The project will improve the facility’s efficiency, with approximately 4.3 miles of new fourth main track in two segments along the current BNSF corridor from the BNSF overpass at State Street/University Parkway to its intermodal facility.
The project will enhance goods movement for this critical BNSF east-west route that connects the Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach with the rest of the nation.
“We’re pleased that this project is moving forward, as it reflects our continued commitment to improve efficiency for our customers, while providing important benefits to the local community,” noted Tom Williams, Group Vice President – Consumer Products Business Group.
By eliminating track bottlenecks that forced trains to wait to enter BNSF’s facility, train idling will be reduced by 43%, with commensurate noise and air quality improvements. BNSF is also investing in new and enhanced roadways with new sidewalks and lighting, as well as stormwater, drainage and other improvements that exceed what is required.
Earlier this year, BNSF announced a $3.55 billion 2022 capital investment plan, of which $283 million is allocated to California. This project is part of that commitment and now moves into final design/engineering, with construction expected to be complete by 2024.
Disclosure: David Mazor is a freelance writer focusing on Berkshire Hathaway. The author is long in Berkshire Hathaway, and this article is not a recommendation on whether to buy or sell the stock. The information contained in this article should not be construed as personalized or individualized investment advice. Past performance is no guarantee of future results.
BNSF Railway Company has acquired 3,508 acres of land in Surprise, Arizona in order to build a major intermodal freight and logistics center. The land was bought from the Arizona State Land Department at auction on March 30, 2022 for $49.1 million. BNSF was the sole bidder. BNSF already owns an adjacent 500 acre parcel that is currently zoned as rural residential.
In 2007, BNSF proposed a 130-acre rail yard, 200-acre automotive shipping facility with up to 16 million square feet of warehouse space in Surprise, but the project was put on hold during the Great Recession. At the time, BNSF projected the project would create 6,000 jobs.
Surprise, Arizona is on a BNSF rail line with the Ennis Spur running to the BNSF certified Southwest Railplex industrial park. The two-square mile park is shovel-ready with all major utilities to site.
Disclosure: David Mazor is a freelance writer focusing on Berkshire Hathaway. The author is long in Berkshire Hathaway, and this article is not a recommendation on whether to buy or sell the stock. The information contained in this article should not be construed as personalized or individualized investment advice. Past performance is no guarantee of future results.
BNSF Railway Company and J.B. Hunt Transport Services Inc. are launching a joint effort to substantially improve capacity in the intermodal marketplace while also meeting the expanding needs of current customers.
Demand for intermodal services has grown significantly in recent years as companies look to secure capacity, while reducing costs and their carbon footprint.
Based on current and projected trends, J.B. Hunt plans to grow its intermodal fleet to as many as 150,000 containers in the next three to five years, a 40+% increase from its count at the end of 2021. The company has completed more than four million intermodal loads since 2020.
“Over the past few years, intermodal has been disrupted by increased demand and tight capacity, resulting in poor container velocity and long dwell times,” said John Roberts, president and CEO of J.B. Hunt. “Together, J.B. Hunt and BNSF will enhance their work to bring back the consistency and reliability customers expect with intermodal services and further embrace intermodal conversion and transloading services. This priority falls directly in line with J.B. Hunt’s mission statement to create the most efficient transportation network in North America.”
Looking forward and as part of the initiative, BNSF will increase capability at multiple intermodal facilities. To further integrate its joint service product with J.B. Hunt, BNSF is providing several property locations around key intermodal hubs in Southern California, Chicago, and other key markets to increase efficiency at terminals.
Additionally, BNSF will bolster its railcar equipment to accommodate the anticipated increase in container capacity, which will support efficient throughput and strong service performance.
In addition to growing its container count, J.B. Hunt will add supporting chassis based on market need. Over the years, both companies have invested billions of dollars to ensure intermodal’s ability to grow with customers and meet the increasing demand for intermodal services.
“More than 30 years ago, J.B. Hunt Transport Services and BNSF predecessor The Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway Company loaded a Hunt trailer onto a railcar to help usher in the modern age of intermodal freight transport,” said Katie Farmer, BNSF president and CEO.
“BNSF’s industry-leading service combined with J.B. Hunt’s unparalleled intermodal product has set the standard for seamless door-to-door service. We will raise the bar on service to the next level through technology and innovation as we further integrate our platforms with real-time data exchanges. We want our customers to enjoy the best of both worlds: economical and environmentally friendly service delivered by transportation’s premium providers.”
The companies will leverage technology, including the industry leading J.B. Hunt 360°®, to improve efficiencies in rail transport. J.B. Hunt 360’s digital freight matching platform is one of the few in the industry to support intermodal services. Based on analysis of J.B. Hunt 360 transactions and annual bid activity, the company estimates that an additional 7 to 11 million shipments could be converted to intermodal, supporting long-term growth opportunities while avoiding carbon emissions.
J.B. Hunt and BNSF disrupted the transportation industry in 1989 by developing a double-stack shipping solution that would complement both rail and trucking services, a first for modern transportation. Today, J.B. Hunt operates the largest company-owned intermodal fleet in North America with more than 109,000 53’ containers supported by company-owned chassis and tractors.
BNSF operates the largest intermodal rail network handling roughly 1 million more intermodal units each year than any other railroad and through their investments offer the fastest intermodal route between Southern California and the Midwest.
Disclosure: David Mazor is a freelance writer focusing on Berkshire Hathaway. The author is long in Berkshire Hathaway, and this article is not a recommendation on whether to buy or sell the stock. The information contained in this article should not be construed as personalized or individualized investment advice. Past performance is no guarantee of future results.
BNSF Railway Company’s dispute with its two largest unions will head to arbitration to resolve a conflict over BNSF’s new attendance policy.
The unions, BLET (Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen) and the SMART Transportation Division, represent 17,000 BNSF workers and were prevented from striking by a court decision.
U.S. District Court Judge Mark Pittman ruled on February 22, 2022, that the unions’ dispute over the policy constituted a “minor dispute” under the terms and conditions of the Railway Labor Act.
In a joint statement issued by the two unions, they said that “The court’s use of ‘minor’ does not signify the importance of the issue, but is only a legal term which provides that resolution of the matter must be by arbitration. In considering a potential appeal of the District Court’s ruling, it was determined that an appeal could take another one to two years, and likely not result in a different decision. An appeal would not be the quickest, or most effective way, to stop the BNSF policy. The quickest and most direct way to challenge this policy is through a Public Law Board or Special Board of Adjustment, properly constituted under Section 3 of the Railway Labor Act. That board will have the authority to strike down either the entire policy or the most egregious parts of the policy much more quickly. The time frame will be months as opposed to years.”
BNSF’s unions maintain that the BNSF Hi-Viz attendance policy is “forcing its employees to work even when they or their families are sick, and when they are fatigued beyond the point of being able to work safely.”
Disclosure: David Mazor is a freelance writer focusing on Berkshire Hathaway. The author is long in Berkshire Hathaway, and this article is not a recommendation on whether to buy or sell the stock. The information contained in this article should not be construed as personalized or individualized investment advice. Past performance is no guarantee of future results.
BNSF Railway Company and Wabtec have announced a new biofuel testing project that will quantifying the impact of alternative fuels on emissions, durability, and performance in Wabtec locomotives.
“The rail industry is intently focused on reducing its environmental footprint by exploring emerging technologies,” said Bob Bremmer, Group Vice President for Wabtec’s Fleet Innovation and Transformation division. “Biofuels provide a unique near-term opportunity to have a significant impact on reducing carbon intensity.”
BNSF and Wabtec will begin testing biofuel in the second quarter of this year. The two companies will demonstrate the performance of biodiesel (B20) and renewable diesel (R55) in revenue service on Wabtec Tier 3 and Tier 4 Evolution Series locomotives in California. BNSF will operate the locomotives between Barstow and Los Angeles, California.
“BNSF is pleased to partner with Wabtec to test higher percentage blends of biodiesel and renewable diesel,” said John Lovenburg, Vice President, Environment & Sustainability. “Rail is already the most carbon-efficient mode of land freight transport, and the use of these lower carbon fuels is another means for BNSF to reduce its emissions and help meet its carbon reduction goal. Wabtec continues to be a good innovation partner for us – last year, we piloted the first battery-electric freight locomotive in North America.”
Wabtec already has approved a 5-percent biodiesel (B5) and 30 percent renewable diesel (R30) blend for its locomotive engines. There currently are approximately 11,000 Evolutions Series engines in operations today with railroads around the world.
Biofuel is a domestically produced, clean-burning, renewable substitute for petroleum diesel. This renewable fuel increases energy security, improves air quality, and provides safety benefits.
Today’s announcement comes after BNSF conducted a pilot last year with a battery-electric locomotive developed by Wabtec in commercial service between Barstow and Stockton that showed an 11% reduction in fuel consumption and greenhouse gas emissions compared with standard diesel units operated on the same route.
Union Pacific has also announced that it will start testing B20 biodiesel and R55 renewable diesel on trains powered by Wabtec FDL locomotives operating in California.
Disclosure: David Mazor is a freelance writer focusing on Berkshire Hathaway. The author is long in Berkshire Hathaway, and this article is not a recommendation on whether to buy or sell the stock. The information contained in this article should not be construed as personalized or individualized investment advice. Past performance is no guarantee of future results.
BNSF Railway Company’s 2022 capital investment plan will be $3.55 billion. The amount is up markedly from the 2021 capital investment plan of $2.99 billion.
This year’s capital plan focuses on projects that support the company’s growth and efficiency objectives while maintaining a strong and reliable railroad.
“Every year through our capital plan, we work to ensure we are able to continue to operate a safe and efficient rail network, provide our customers with the level of service they have come to expect from BNSF as well as position ourselves for future growth opportunities,” said Katie Farmer, president and CEO.
The largest component of this year’s capital plan will be to replace and maintain BNSF’s core network and related assets. Maintaining the railroad results in less unscheduled service outages that can slow down the rail network and reduce capacity.
The maintenance component of this year’s plan is $2.71 billion. The projects included in this part of the plan mostly entail replacing and upgrading rail as well as track infrastructure like ballast and rail ties (which are the main components for the tracks on which BNSF trains operate) and maintaining its rolling stock. It will include nearly 14,000 miles of track surfacing and/or undercutting work and the replacement of 381 miles of rail and approximately 2.7 million rail ties.
$580 million of this year’s capital plan will be for expansion and efficiency projects to support the growth of our Consumer, Agricultural and Industrial Products customers’ businesses. On its Southern Transcon route between Southern California and the Midwest, BNSF will continue a multi-year effort to add several segments of new double-track in eastern Kansas and begin a multi-year effort to add a new segment of triple-track in California, both supporting traffic growth. In addition, BNSF will continue a multi-year bridge project near Sandpoint, Idaho, to increase train capacity in the Pacific Northwest. Finally, BNSF will continue or begin multi-year intermodal facility expansion projects in North Texas (Alliance) and Chicago (Cicero). In Southern California (San Bernardino), BNSF is undertaking various initiatives to improve the efficiency of its intermodal facility. $259 million of this year’s capital plan is for freight cars and other equipment acquisitions.
Disclosure: David Mazor is a freelance writer focusing on Berkshire Hathaway. The author is long in Berkshire Hathaway, and this article is not a recommendation on whether to buy or sell the stock. The information contained in this article should not be construed as personalized or individualized investment advice. Past performance is no guarantee of future results.
