Thursday, 18 February 2021 / Published in The BOC Blast

The BOC Blast 398 – Vaccinations for LALB and Severe Weather Affects Rail

Vaccinations for LALB and Severe Weather Affects Rail

Lots of news coming out today in the world of transportation. 800 longshoremen in the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach have received their first COVID-19 vaccinations. This will significantly help to reduce potential service reductions due to labor disruptions. Hopefully more states throughout the United States will follow suit and vaccinate their port and transportation workers.

With the severe weather that is affecting the majority of the country the Union Pacific Railroad will be closing most of their intermodal network due to snow and icy conditions. These conditions have affected transportation the Pacific Northwest, Midwest and as far south as Texas.

BOC will continue to monitor these stories and all those that affect global trade.

Tuesday, 09 February 2021 / Published in The BOC Blast

The BOC Blast 397 – Severe Cold Weather Impacts Train Lengths

Severe Cold Weather Impacts Train Lengths

We would like to update you on the severe cold weather conditions that we are currently experiencing in some parts of the network impacting trains length in the following corridors:

  • Prince George/Kamloops to Edmonton: Tier 2 currently in effect
  • Edmonton to Jasper: Tier 2 currently in effect
  • Edmonton to Winnipeg: Tier 2 currently in effect
  • Winnipeg to Toronto: Tier 2 currently in effect
  • Winnipeg to Superior: Tier 2 currently in effect

Due to these extreme temperatures we reduced train lengths in accordance with our winter operations plan. Based on forecasts, we expect that Tier restrictions will remain in effect intermittently across the network during the month of February. We are actively monitoring traffic and will be in direct contact with customers with shipments at risk of delay.

For a daily snapshot of the current weather conditions across the CN network, our Winter Situation Report is now available on cn.ca. It is updated daily at 09:30 (ET). Severe cold and high snowfall present challenging conditions to safe railway operations, primarily to our braking system. As part of CN’s winter preparedness and train operating plan, when temperatures fall below -25C, to ensure safe train operations, trains length is restricted, resulting in longer transit times.