Week 30 grain movement finally starts to improve...

[farming101]

For CP Canadian grain freight was the single biggest segment of their freight revenues.
It brought in more per revenue ton mile than coal, potash or crude.
988 million in revenue in 2014. Looks like low value, bulky grains have hit the big time for some of the players in the game.

[TOM4CWB]

Farming,

It was interesting to see that BNSF does not own any of the oil tank cars they pull with crude in them. They are all leased look like the oil producers. CP has about 300 sitting east of Stettler so the shine is going off the oil haul for CP as well... at $50/bbl the $18/bbl to haul the oil does not compute... once the higher priced supply contracts that were hedged run out!!

http://flatheadbeacon.com/2015/03/23/oil-train-fires-leaks-put-rail-safety-back-in-the-spotlight/

"Jones said that no oil has been discovered along BNSF’s right-of-way through North Dakota, Montana, Idaho and Washington.

When the leaks were discovered, the railroad notified Washington environmental officials and the U.S. Department of Transportation. In Vancouver, Federal Railroad Administration inspectors looked at the seven tank cars that had been removed there and found that the top valve fitting seals, made by McKenzie Valve & Machining, were broken. Inspectors found that the valves used on the tank cars, which are owned by the Union Tank Car Company, were not consistent with the standards set by the Association of American Railroads. On March 13, the FRA issued a directive for all tank car owners to replace the faulty valves within 60 days. Most tank cars are owned by leasing companies and not the railroads that move them.

“Any type of hazardous materials release, no matter how small, is completely unacceptable,” said Acting FRA Administrator Sarah Feinberg. “The removal of these valves from service will help reduce the number of non-accident hazardous materials releases.”

Jones said the railroad fully supports the FRA directive to replace the faulty valves.

“Although BNSF does not own the tank cars, nothing is more important to us than safely operating through the communities that we serve,” he said. “We will work closely with our customers and shippers as they undertake the steps outlined in the directive.”

But leaking tank cars are not the only issue to have cropped up along North America’s rails this year. In less than three weeks, beginning in mid-February, four oil trains derailed and exploded in North America, including two in Ontario, one in West Virginia and another in Illinois. All four trains that derailed had the CPC-1232 tank cars, which were believed to be more puncture resistant and safer than the DOT-111 tank cars that were at the center of the deadly 2013 Quebec oil train wreck that killed 47 people and leveled 30 buildings in the small town of Lac-Mégantic.

Following the recent rash of wrecks, Canadian regulators mandated that shippers and railroads start using new tank cars, called the DOT-117, which feature an even thicker shell and thermal protection jackets. Transport Canada has also announced that all CPC-1232 cars, the ones that were meant to replace the old and outdated DOT-111 cars, must be off Canadian rails by 2025."