I just took a job in Oak Brook off of 22nd St. Currently live in Lincoln Square by the Brown Line. Need to be onsite 2-3 days per week. I realize this is best done by owning a car, but I'd really prefer not to have to buy one. So here are my options:
I could Uber directly there. Costs $40-60 and takes ~1hr in rush hour traffic. Salary is good, so I can justify a few of these per week but not much more.
I could take Brown line > Pink line > 322 bus. Takes 2-2.5 hours but the transfers are pretty seamless.
I could do Brown line > BNSF metra > Uber? Seems risky due to poor frequencies for reverse commutes.
Currently I'm thinking the best way is Uber there in the morning, then take transit to get home. $150 a week is manageable. But if there's a better way that I'm not seeing, I'd love to hear your thoughts. Thanks in advance!

GLOBAL FORWARDING INSIGHTS
Stay up-to-date with market changes that impact air / ocean capacity at the trade lane level- everything you need to navigate global shipping.
COVID IMPACT in China
Shanghai has reported that 15 of its 16 districts had stamped out transmission outside quarantined areas, allowing them to outline a path out of the lockdown:

1. Movement curbs to remain in place through last weekend;
2. May 22 – May 31- if daily infection numbers continue to decrease, epidemic management will shift to ‘normalization phase;’
3. June 1 – June 30- city will seek to fully reopen.

General cargo can be booked, but do so with the understanding that all bookings are space contingent, and an additional three days of origin pickup / delivery should be factored in to estimated total transit times. Ocean terminals and Container Freight Stations (CFS) are equally impacted, resulting in slower crossdock / discharge times.
Our CHR offices are working from home to maintain operational continuity.
Global airfreight update
· COVID continues to disrupt production, transportation in China
o Improving case counts in Shanghai encouraging as the city eyes a return to normal life in June
o Trucking service in general is limited across large areas of China as COVID continues to spread
o Air imports to China and Asia in general will be challenged by the flight cancelations
· India market remains tight
o Available outbound capacity is increasing, though rates remain high
o US exports to India are facing a highly congested market with long transit times
· European capacity additions and slowing demand have softened market conditions to some degree
o Spot rates trending down from extreme highs felt in April and early May
o Ocean challenges remain and demand volatility is expected in the coming weeks
· Stark differences in southbound versus northbound LATAM market conditions
o Challenges on the ocean market are driving significant demand to air freight on northbound lanes
§ Spot pricing has increased and express service/rates may be required for urgent cargo
§ Forecasting key to mitigating cost increasing and transit delays
o Southbound capacity ex-Miami is available to most markets, though Guarulhos (GRU) has seen capacity tighten in recent weeks
· US airport operations challenged by COVID
o While recovery times at US airports remain elevated relative to pre-COVID conditions, we are seeing fewer extreme delays as demand has softened in early 2022
o Even historically challenging terminals at LAX are operating rather smoothly
EUROPE UPDATE
Solutions and Alternatives
CH Robinson offers a weekly rotation between Cologne, DE and Hamilton, CA, serving both the Canadian and US market, providing us with unique options into Canada and the U.S. Midwest along with Dallas, TX. Alternatively, reliable consistent service back to Europe.
Fuel Cost Surges
Fuel prices and truck related materials (oil, AdBlue) have been surging upwards over the last 2 to 3 weeks. Many inland carriers have adjusted their fuel floater or started to implement a FES (Fuel Emergency Surcharge).
Ukraine Invasion
CH Robinson is no longer accepting bookings destined to / from Russia or the Ukraine. This includes customs brokerage-only and freight forwarding-only shipments (air / ocean) with Russia as an origin or destination. We continue to monitor the situation as it unfolds. Cyber-security will remain a priority, as well as gauging the impact of increasing crude-oil costs associated with trade out of Russia.
CANADA update

• Spring Thaw schedule concluded on May 20th
• High congestion at:
  • CN/CP – Port of Montreal
  • CN/CP – Port of Vancouver
  • CN Brampton (Ontario)- current truck waiting time is >8hrs

Port of Montreal: 8 days ( stable for last three weeks )
Dwell time in BC terminals for week # 20 ( Centrem/ Vanterm/ Delta & PRR ):

• PRR = 9 days ( 1 day decrease from week 19 )
• CEN = 12 days ( 6 day decrease from week 19 )
• DELTA = 1 days ( same as week 19 )
• VAN = 7 days ( 6 day increase from week 19 )

ß (8-day dwell time trends outlined on chart to the left)
Port Halifax Dwell Times
US CUSTOMS UPDATE
Forced Labor
CBP recently issued guidance on the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act (UFLPA) and Withhold Release Order (WRO) enforcement mechanisms on May 20, 2022. The guidance includes examples of Known Importer Letters and current WROs and Findings lists pertaining to forced labor.
Trade Policy

• House Speaker Nancy Pelosi recently said that Congress could pass the America COMPETES Act before July 4, 2022. The House’s COMPETES Act will need to be reconciled with the Senate’s U.S. Innovation and Competition Act (USICA) before a final bill can be signed into law.
• The U.S. announced the launch of the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework (IPEF) on May 23, 2022. The IPEF aims to strengthen U.S. ties to the region and offer “an alternative to China’s approach”.

Aluminum Imports
CBP issued a reminder to importers regarding the Aluminum Import Monitoring (AIM) license requirements. Both the “country of largest smelt” and “country of second largest smelt” will need to be declared on or after June 29, 2022.
OCEAN, OUTBOUND
US-Asia trade

• Due to significant port congestion, vessels are being seriously delayed on their voyages, waiting for berths at congested ports, and slower port handling due to staff shortages as a result of COVID-19 impacts – particularly the COVID lockdowns in China. As a consequence, an increasing number of blank sailings are occurring in the market simply because vessels are losing as much as 3-4 weeks in their schedules due to these delays, and also due to soft demand from China due to the lockdowns. It has been calculated that the current delays in vessel schedules are removing as much as 15-20% of the actual vessel capacity from the market.
• The lockdown in Shanghai is still currently in effect and is now expected to last until end May 2022. Although the ports remain open during this period, these lockdowns have led to a slowdown in export volumes from Asia to USA and an increase in carrier void sailings. Due to lower TPEB volumes as a result of COVID lockdowns in Shenzhen and Shanghai, carriers have opted to introduce a substantial number of void sailings which has tightened space to North Asia in the short term. UPDATE: As a result of the extended lockdown in Shanghai, space at the port is running out to accommodate RF and DG cargoes, therefore ocean carriers are starting to refuse new bookings for these types of cargo to Shanghai port. We are also starting to see COVID 19 lockdowns in Beijing.
• SM Lines and the 2M Alliance will be terminating their slot charter agreement effective 8 May 2022. Here are the details of SM Line’s newly established separate services which will take effect in late May or early June:
• THE Alliance carriers Hapag/ONE/YML are starting a new USEC to Asia service called the AA7. The first westbound sailing is expected to be in June 2022. An important feature of this new service is a direct call at Port Klang for this alliance. The port rotation will be as follows (to the right):
  • NingboàXiamenàShekouàVung
  • TauàPort KelangàSuez Canalà
  • New YorkàNorfolkàSavannahàPanama
• ZIM have announced that they will be reinstating their call at Savannah Port on their ZSE service and will reinstate their call at New York port on their Z7S service, effective July 2022. Please find below the first vessels for which these ports will be called:

US-Europe trade

• Carriers have suspended their services into the Ukraine and Russia as a consequence of the Russia-Ukraine conflict. Most carriers have announced that any goods already in transit will be held at a transit port awaiting further instructions from the shipper. Some carriers such as MSC and CMA CGM have also announced a suspension of service to Belarus. UPDATE: There is a growing congestion issue at Europe ports due to containers destined for Russia/Ukraine or Belarus being terminated at the transshipment and awaiting the re-routing instructions from cargo owners.

· Void sailings and port omissions continue to be an important factor on the USWC-Europe trade due to severe port congestion on the US west coast as well as in Europe. This is leading to serious space shortages on the USWC-Europe all water services. Generally speaking, carriers are fully booked on the all water services 4-5 weeks out. As an alternative to all water service, CMA and MSC are offering rail service via Houston to Europe. OOCL suspended their rail service to Houston due to congestion issues transferring containers from the rail yard into the port in Houston. UPDATE: MSC and Hapag are now suspending their acceptance of cargo ex Los Angeles via Houston to Europe due to congestion, however CMA and ONE continue to accept bookings on this route, but options are shrinking.
· YML has reported that there is a possibility THE Alliance (Hapag/ONE/YML) will resume calls at Seattle port on their AL5 all water service from USWC to Europe sometime in August 2022. No firm details as to the resumption of this port call are available yet.
· As a replacement to the alternative Houston routing solution for USWC-Europe cargo, Hapag are now offering an MLB service from Los Angeles ramp via Norfolk port to Europe base ports.

• CMA/OOCL/Hapag/COSCO/ZIM have announced that they will start calling US ports on a fortnightly basis only effective May 2022, please see below the planned updated port rotation in the US. The Europe port calls will remain unchanged on a weekly cadence as Algeciras, Livorno, Genoa, Fos and Valencia:
• CMA/OOCL/Evergreen/COSCO have announced that their Liberty Bridge service ex USEC to North Europe will stop calling Charleston port in March, and will also only call Savannah on a fortnightly basis through June, per the below schedule. There will also be periodic port omissions in Europe:
• Rate increases are expected in Q2 2022 across all carriers on this trade. In addition, there will be important BAF adjustments to account for the current sharply rising fuel costs. We can also anticipate that BAF adjustments may be changed by carriers on a monthly basis rather than quarterly.
• Hapag and ZIM will be launching a new service called TEX/ZCT in June 2022 from the USEC with direct sailings to Turkey ports. Here are the service details:
  • The service rotation will be Mersin à Izmit à Aliaga à Tangier à New York à Norfolk à Savannah à Tangier à Mersin
• MSC has announced the introduction of a new Transatlantic service that will be uniquely offering direct services into the Baltic and Scandinavian ports of Gothenburg Sweden, Klaipeda Lithuania and Gdynia Poland. The first sailing will be departing US ports in mid-April 2022.
• The service rotation will be: Klaipeda à Gothenburg à Bremerhaven à New York à Philadelphia à Norfolk à Klaipeda.
• Hapag are launching a new AT3 service in June 2022 connecting Hamburg and Antwerp port to Saint John NB port. Saint John will offer rail connections into central Canada and the US Midwest. Here is the schedule for the first sailings on this new service:

Hapag is launching a new AT3 service in June of 2022 to connect Hamburg and Antwerp in to the Saint John NB port. There are outbound rail connections that stream in to Canada and the U.S. Midwest.
Service in to:
Canada: Toronto / Winnipeg / Regina / Calgary / Edmonton / Vancouver
U.S. Midwest: Chicago / Detroit / Minneapolis
US-LATAM trade

• Services to East Coast South America ports have reduced capacity by approx. 25% and blank sailings to west coast South America ports have increased to approx. 32% of capacity, due to space constraints and severe congestion at the transshipment hubs.
• Congestion at South America east coast ports is also very significant due to COVID 19 impacts and strong northbound demand. Nevertheless, space remains relatively open to ECSA ports.

· Space to WCSA ports is very tight due to many carriers suspending service and other carriers limiting their services, as below:

• COSCO and ONE have suspended their services from North America to West Coast South America (WCSA) ports due to significant operational challenges at the transhipment ports. The carriers advise that they expect to reopen bookings for all freight to WCSA in approximately 4-6 weeks. This affects available capacity on this trade significantly, particularly for cargo shipping from US Gulf and USWC ports. UPDATE – COSCO have resumed offering service to Chile, Peru and Colombia, but with very limited space. Service to Ecuador continues to be suspended.
• Hapag announced that they have removed the complete suspension of their service to WCSA ports, however space on the newly re-opened service is still very limited due to ongoing congestion issues.
• Due to severe congestion at the transshipment ports of Caucedo and Cristobal, MSC have suspended a majority of their services into Colombia.

· CMA has announced that in an effort to maintain schedule integrity, they will be alternating their port calls at New Orleans and Houston ports on their Brasex service to Latin America during the month of April and May 2022, ie from week 15 to week 23 inclusive. This means each US port will be served on a fortnightly basis during this period. UPDATE: CMA are extending the alternating port calls through week 27 to the end of June 2022.
· CMA have announced they will be resuming their call at Oakland port on the AZTECAF2 service between the USWC and LATAM ports via Lazaro Cardenas, effective with MV Maersk Avon with ETS Oakland on May 29 2022.
· CMA have announced their intention to alternate port calls at Baltimore and Charleston on their Americas Service from the USEC to LATAM for a 5 week period from week 18 to week 22. Here is a summary of the planned schedule:

• Sealand have announced a new service “Bonita Express” offering direct service ex Mobile AL to Honduras and Guatemala effective May 2022. Here is the transit timetable for this new service (table to the right):

US-Oceania trade

• We are continuing to see significant space issues on the USEC to Oceania with the direct carriers. Service out of USWC ports continue to be very fully booked as well, largely due to severe port congestion issues both in the USA and at destination. Space out of both US coasts therefore continues to be completely full for 5-6 weeks out.
• Service out of USWC ports continue to be fully booked as well, and there are many blank sailing weeks, largely due to severe port congestion issues both in the USA and at destination. Space out of the USWC therefore continues to be completely full for 5-6 weeks out.

· Direct carriers have dramatically reduced the frequency of their port calls in NZ from USWC ports, due to the persistent congestion at Auckland port and also in an effort to get vessel schedules into better alignment. UPDATE: Direct carriers have announced plans to have 1 vessel in April and 1 vessel in May call Marsden Point in NZ as a means of improving the frequency of NZ port calls from the USWC, per below schedule
· Direct carriers Hapag Lloyd, ANL and Hamburg Sud have cancelled their port calls in Seattle on the PNW service for a full vessel rotation (approx. 4-8 weeks) effective with MV Conti Cordoba V.144S, as a result of significant growing congestion at that port. They will replace the call at Seattle with a call at Oakland port during this period. UPDATE: The direct carriers will be resuming their port call in Seattle effective with MV CMA CGM Dutch Harbor V.209S with ETA Seattle March 14 2022. When the Seattle port call resumes, the service will move to fortnightly calls at Oakland port.
· MSC have advised that once the direct service ex Long Beach to Oceania becomes fortnightly in June, they will offer service ex Seattle port on the alternate weeks where there is no Long Beach port call.
· Continued severe weather conditions and flooding in Queensland (serviced by Brisbane port) is causing delays to road and rail services in the region.
US-India Subcontinent trade

• Yang Ming and OOCL have temporarily suspended their service to Pakistan and to Middle East destinations due to significant port congestion at the transhipment port and the lack of space on the connecting vessel.
• Carriers Hapag/ONE/OOCL/CMA have announced that they will also be making temporary changes to their Indamex 2 service, as follows:
• New temporary rotation for IN2: Port Qasim, PK (Temporary Biweekly*) > Mundra, IN > Nhava Sheva, IN > Norfolk, VA > Savannah, GA > Port Qasim, PK
• There will be a temporary omission at New York in the US, starting on week 10 for east bound voyages with MV APL California. This will continue until week 16 with MV Argolikos.
• There will be a temporary biweekly omission at Port Qasim in Pakistan starting on week 11 and will last until week 15.
• Yang Ming and OOCL have temporarily suspended their service to Pakistan and to Middle East destinations due to significant port congestion at the transhipment port and the lack of space on the connecting vessel.

Asia-Europe trade

• Due to COVID-19 lockdowns in China, demand continues to be soft on this trade, and spot rates are falling in this market. It is anticipated that once the COVID 19 lockdowns are over, there will be a surge of volume ex Asia which will once again drive up rates and create space shortages.
• There remain a good number of void sailings on this trade which are planned by the ocean carriers partly due to port congestion issues, and partly due to a softening demand on this trade. The blank sailing program could be dramatically increased by the ocean carriers if these prolonged COVID 19 lockdowns in China persist.
• A report by the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) warns that 1.5 million containers of Asia-Europe rail cargo could be re-routed to the ocean freight market as a result of the Russia-Ukraine conflict. Should this occur, the space will become very tight and freight rates will go higher, earlier than anticipated.

Port Terminal and Rail Operations

• The COVID 19 lockdowns in China has caused a drop of import volume from Asia to North America. This is resulting in equipment shortages in the USA at IPI points in particular, and also now at many US Gulf and US west coast ports in particular. Reefer equipment is also in very short supply with most carriers – particularly on the USWC and at rail ramps.
• Ocean carriers have been metering import rail traffic to US IPI points very closely which has greatly reduced the volume of containers coming to US rail ramps. We are starting to see the severity of the impact of this policy with equipment shortages at rail ramps, and particularly in Chicago which typically is a rail hub that is always well supplied with containers.
• Carriers have ordered a significant volume of new container builds in Asia but unfortunately the influx of new equipment has not eased the container shortage, as the port congestion and bottlenecks continue to absorb the extra vessel and container capacity entering the market.
• There is a growing congestion situation developing on the USEC due to a diversion of carrier capacity/vessels from the USWC to the USEC on the TPEB trade. The main reasons for sending more vessel capacity to the USEC is the ongoing congestion issues at USWC ports, and the demand from importers to diversify their supply chain against the possible risk of labor disruption at Los Angeles/Long Beach ports leading up to the expiry of the union contract on June 30 2022. We are currently seeing 10-15 vessels waiting to berth at all the main USEC ports.
• The contract for the labor union at LALB port is due to expire June 30 2022. The two parties will sit down to start negotiations on May 12 2022. It is expected that the negotiations may well extend beyond the contract expiry and continue into July 2022. The main bone of contention in the discussions will be automation. It is hoped that the two parties will reach an agreement without any labor disruption or strike. Any disruption in service at LALB port would have catastrophic consequences since it is the largest gateway in the USA and it would add to an already severely congested supply chain environment.
• Due to a growing demand, BNSF are starting to offer rail service between Houston port and the Dallas rail ramp in March 2022. The service is not yet a consistent weekly offering, and is running more on an “as needed” basis for now. When the rail service is not available, truck service would need to be arranged. The plan is to launch a consistent, set schedule in the coming weeks.
• We are continuing to see significant congestion at Los Angeles/Long Beach ports, Oakland, Savannah and NY ports due to continued strong TPEB flowing through the ports, increased loaded and empty equipment inventories, chassis shortages, as well as other factors.
• The situation at the port of Houston has deteriorated since Q4 2021 with growing port congestion coupled with a severe shortage of container chassis which is limiting the fluidity of truck moves into and out of the port.
• The port of Vancouver is still recovering from the congestion caused by the severe flooding and mudslides in southern British Columbia in early December. The port of Prince Rupert BC being further north was fortunately not impacted by the flooding. Although rail and truck movements are now restored to normal levels, there continue to be vessels waiting at anchor for a berth at the port of Vancouver. It should be expected that any cargo moving into and out of the port of Vancouver in the coming weeks will be continue to be delayed.
• OOCL have also announced an embargo on rail traffic from ramps west of Chicago to USEC ports, for the same reasons that MSC clarified above. This is also due to congestion and backlogs of cargo at the rail interchange point in Chicago. This embargo is expected to remain in place through Q2 2022. OOCL is able to continue to offer rail service ex Denver ramp to USEC as it is uniquely a steel wheel connection in Chicago. CMA CGM is also able to continue to offer rail service ex Denver to the USEC.
• NS rail carrier has announced an embargo on rail activity to Charleston port effective Jan 26 2022 and until further notice. Where possible, cargo should be diverted by rail through Savannah port during this period of embargo. UPDATE: The embargo has been lifted but the rail carrier is limiting the volume they will accept per day to 25 containers in order to prevent rebuilding the congestion.
• Service from Atlanta ramp to the USEC with CSX and NS rail has become so limited that it is recommended to truck cargo to Charleston or Savannah port, rather than attempt to execute rail service.

OCEAN, INBOUND
Latest events :

• After the Lunar New Year in Asia, Chinese production and trucking activity are seeing a seasonal lull, also impacted by localized COVID-related slowdowns. At the moment, full volumes are not expected to be back before end of beginning of/mid-June.
• COVID 19 updates :

Shanghai : lockdowns imposed in Shanghai on March 28 are still affecting production and shipping. However, the authorities have laid oud a plan for gradual re-opening in June, should the cases follow a downward trend.

• Trucking services efficiency is significantly reduced as truck drivers are requested to obtain negative nucleic acid test result within 48 hours.
• Ocean Terminals are slower operations as trucking availability is impacted.
• CFS Warehouse Slower operations.
• Production is being affected due to lack of raw material and/or available manpower
• The crisis in Ukraine and resulting sanctions on Russia may affect capacity from/to Europe, Middle East and North Africa. Steamship lines have announced numerous service suspensions/port omissions to Russia and Ukraine. Capacity shifts to other ports and possible blank sailings/port congestion may appear as a consequence.
• Oil prices have increased following the Russian invasion of Ukraine, fuel surcharges from the liners may be upcoming.

Operations :
Congestion in the US continues, some outstanding examples :

• West Coast :
  • LAX/LGB: 28 ships at ancholoitering. Berth wait time averages 7-12 days. Chassis shortage port wide and rail car shortage.
  • OAK : 3-5 vessels at anchor // Average dwell to berth 6 to 10 days. Terminal utilization at 90+%, rail dwell increasing due to chassis shortage to truck containers to the rail heads.
  • SEA/TAC : No ship at anchor, but lack of WB rail car supply driving increased dwell times on IPI cargo.
• East Coast :
  • CHS : berthing activity is smooth this over the past few days. Still high dwell on IPI cargo driven by congestion with the off-dock dray to the rail ramp.
  • HOU : 5 days berth delay, 6 vessels at anchor. Labor shortage. New cranes at Bayport should be operational by end of May to help.
  • ORF : 4 days berth delay, 7 vessels at anchor.
  • NYC : 18 vessels at anchor with 3-5 days dwell times. Chassis supply remains extremely tight due to high import street dwell.
  • SAV : 8 vessels at anchor, 2 days berth delay.

Congestion in Asia :

• SHA : 4-5 days dwell to berth. Waigaoqiao Terminals particularly affected due to close contact COVID cases. Vessel operators diverting ships to Yangshan Terminals to ease congestion, however leading to vessel bunching arrival and delays at those terminals as well.
• NGB : 2-4 days dwell to berth.

Southeast

• As rates in the Savannah market begin to stabilize we are seeing more of the single truck carriers move back to larger fleets. A lot of the single truck carriers that went out and secured their own authroites just do not have the capital or cash flow to stay afloat as rates level off to more competitive levels. That being said we can expect capacity to tighten again during the traditional peak season of late summer and as China begins to open.
• Norfolk Southern ramp alters their free time and storage policies in the hopes to speed cargo flow. Now designating Sunday as a business day, effective April 25th, to charge rail storage fees on domestic and international intermodal loads. NS also announced last Thursday that it is converting Detroit, Cleveland, Columbus, and Jacksonville into Tier 1 terminals effective June 1st for international containers, which cuts the free time for containers from 48 hours (about 2 days) to 24 hours.
• The Savannah ports are upgrading the current terminal operation system this spring. In the long term this transition is a good thing but as with any technology migration here is potential for disruption and a learning curve for our carriers as they become familiar with the new system.
• Charleston terminals have once again extended their gate hours to help mitigate congestion during the week. Now WWT, NCT and HLT gates will be OPEN all Sundays, April 24 through June 26 from 0800-1700. There will be NO reefer gates available on these dates.
• The Wando Welch Terminal (WWT) and the North Charleston Terminal (NCT) will accept Maersk empty returns beginning 5/11

Northeast

• Fuel is a factor in the NE with lane selection. Lanes over 150+ can be harder to cover, and transloading should be used as an option. However, advanced planning is required due to limited warehouse space.
• Drop and Pick solutions are still a struggle with equipment shortages present. Carriers are looking to reuse all equipment fluidly to avoid leaving containers behind in the ports.
• SSLs are diverting Empty equipment to locations away from the port. This practice is causing carriers to move empty equipment up to 20 miles + away from the port. This is practice is all too common that a driver would arrive at Maher or APM terminals only to rerouted to an alternative drops site. We have seen even with these terminals that space restrictions in these off-site depots are becoming a concern as the excessive amounts of empty are mounding up in NE.
• GCT (global terminals) NYCT (New York Container Terminals) Has recently refused empty returns due to space on the ports. This is causing equipment to sit with empty containers waiting for an appointment to return.
• NYCT (New York Container Terminal) and GCT (global terminals) have announced a double move policy to clear some of the empty back log. NYCT is already using this process, but GCT has announced they will follow the same process, but no confirmed date has been set on when they are going to implement this policy. However, this is done to a one-to-one ratio and the carriers will need to have a match SSL empty and import to combined.
• Genset Shortages have plagued the NE most recently. Reefer cargo from European countries has caused surges of this type of freight into the area. This is having a significant impact on the already taxed genset pool.
• Philadelphia has seen a recent shift of drayage containers moving into Chester ports. This terminal is traditionally a small port that does not see much volume. Most carriers are based around the larger terminal north of Chester. Please quote only once the capacity of converge has been guaranteed.
• Norfolk has seen an influx of diversion into this market for transload. This has caused a shortage of warehouse space and a lack of options in traditional transload locations. All New business into this area for transload work should be taken with caution with the lack of options in this market. Use of the on-port rail service or transloading in the NY/Nj would be the better option until additional space can be clear in this area for transloads.

Central / Ohio Valley
· Cleveland market carriers continue to experience long wait times at the CSX ramp. The average wait time is around 3-4 hours later in the day.
· Cleveland and Columbus are both experiencing Limited HAZ, and Tri-Axel availability. Export congestion, Chassis shortages.
· A lack of ZIM, CMA and COSCO equipment has been reported in the Indianapolis market. Empty return location change with no notification causing additional fees. SSL are pushing bookings after the containers are already loaded, which again is causing an increase in accessorial cost and a decrease in yard storage capacity.
· Detroit is reporting shortages of empties to reload especially ONE (Ocean Network Express) and CMA. In this region there is an overabundance of MSC boxes that can my reutilized.
· Memphis is still experiencing chassis shortages. Empties have been difficult to return to the rails, sometimes forcing carriers to hold containers 3-4 days until the weekend when the rails will allow more returns.
· Chicago:

• BNSF LPC is still challenging with long lift times and a complete deficit on chassis. In general, 40’ chassis are scarce in all of Chicago. Lift and wait times in this facility are still taking about 4-5 hours on average.
• Average dwell is about 5 days.

· Minneapolis is experiencing longer than average wait times in terminal. Chassis availability is limited as empty returns are becoming more challenging to schedule.
· At the rail ramp in St. Louis, we’re seeing dwell times of 2-5 days to de-ramp. Once containers are on a chassis it’s typically a quick turnaround, but there have been less chassis available and rail operations are taking longer than usual.
· Kansas City is experiencing chassis shortages like other areas in the Midwest. Carriers are reporting longer than usual wait times over the past couple of weeks – some over 7 hours in terminal. All rail terminals are congested in the market.
West/Gulf

• LA/LB: Vessels at berth 15; average time at berth 6.1 days, total planned vessels for this week 127 with 313,906 containers. Volumes are flat compared to last week and down by 23.107% YOY. Capacity and yard space remain very slim. Chassis equipment is tight up with empties and carriers are struggling with out-gating containers at all terminals.
• Oakland remains congested due to the inconsistency of terminal appointments. Local capacity is reported to be slim and chassis equipment is very hard to come by.
• Houston, drivers continue to experience 4+ hour wait times and Barbours Cut terminal continues to be the most challenging location. Rolling of exports is causing chassis shortages as the empties sit on perfectly good chassis equipment and can’t be used. Substantial wait time at the port continues to be a big challenge, receiving windows get tighter and tighter putting more drivers in at the same time causing increased congestion. Drivers exiting the industry (although not a new problem), this is causing increased stress on an already stressed system that is happening more frequently in this market as drivers go back to hauling OTR where they do not have to deal with ports and terminal challenges.

Source: https://www.chrobinson.com/en-us/resources/insights-and-advisories/north-america-freight-insights/

I've seen many mixed messages and advice regarding hiking to the C over the last few years, so I thought I'd make a post compiling the info I've come across. For context, I've hiked to the C 3 times since the start of the pandemic.

Getting to the C

The first thing to note is that the trail is no longer on Google Maps or on AllTrails because each of these options involves a little bit of trespassing. Since 2017, there has been a fence around the railroad tracks that hikers used to cross to get to the trailhead. So now, you need to either hop the fence, find a gap under it, or go around. Here are your options for getting around it. Please read the disclaimers at the bottom of this post to keep yourself and those around you safe.
Option 1
Your first option, and the one I recommend, starts at Islander Park. It's a short distance from campus and you should enter the trail that starts on Big Springs Rd and Goodrich Dr. Alternatively, you can enter from Linden St. by Mt. Vernon Ave. This hike can take anywhere from 45 to 90 minutes, depending on your speed and your frequency of breaks.
From there, walk over to this point, where you will find this culvert. Yes, this looks super sketch, but it's been empty and clean each time I've used it. It's also the quickest way to get across without crossing the tracks and minimizes the amount of trespassing you have to do. The hole is about 4 feet in diameter, so most people get across just fine walking and crouching.
Once you're across, follow the tracks up to this point. From there, you can start following this trail from The Outbound (note: do not follow this trail from the beginning, since this route was made before the fences went up). I highly recommend downloading the map for offline use beforehand (you'll need to download their app). I beg of you to read the disclaimer below to learn how to stay safe around the tracks.
Option 2
Option 2 is identical to Option 1 in everything except its start. If you don't want to trek through Islander Park, you can start walking along the railroad right-of-way starting at Mt. Vernon Ave. and follow the tracks until you reach the trail head. Be aware that this option will make you trespass for almost twice as long as Option 1.
Option 3
Option 3 is to not cross the tracks at all, and to actually go around them. There are several options for this one, though I haven't tried any of them. The shortest detour would be to start around here towards the end of Blaine St. From there, follow the trail of your choice south until you reach the C trail I linked above. Note that due to some taller vegetation, you'll need to walk alongside the tracks for maybe a minute or two right before you reach the trail.
Alternatively, you could hike down to the C by getting to it from the Two Trees, KUCR-FM Radio Tower, or Moreno Valley M trails. Note that these are much longer detours but are completely free of train tracks.

DISCLAIMERS, SAFETY, & TIPS

• By walking on, under, and/or along railroad tracks and their right-of-way, you are trespassing and you risk being fined.
• You absolutely need to be smart and safe on these tracks. Metrolink trains especially are notoriously quiet around here. Due to some curves and cliffs, you may not even see or hear them until they're very close to you. Be extra cautious and avoid stepping on the tracks (and also the rocks surrounding them, when possible). If you hear buzzing, ringing, or rumbling from the tracks, immediately distance yourself from them further than you think is necessary.
• 10 Metrolink trains pass through here each weekday and 4 each weekend day. BNSF freight trains are less consistent but may cross a couple of times a week. You can use these schedules to determine when the Metrolink trains will pass. These tracks are between the Hunter Park and Moreno Valley stations, so expect trains in between these stations' arrival times.
• LEAVE NO TRACE: Any trash that comes with you should go with you (yes, including food scraps). Stay on the trails, leave animals alone, and don't be a chode goblin who spraypaints rocks.
• If you're a smoker, be extra very cautious with any fire. Do not light anything up near brush and make sure anything you smoke is fully extinguished when you're done (and take what's left over with you). If you cause the IE's next wildfire, your mom's a ho.
• Bring lots of water. However much you think you'll need, bring even more. Not only for drinking, but also to rinse any scrapes if you fall.
• Don't hike on an empty stomach, and drink water throughout your ascent.
• Bring tweezers. Some plants and even some rocks may have many tiny thorns that are a pain in the butt to get out.
• Yes, there are rattlesnakes on this mountain. No, they're never gonna attack you unless it's in self-defense. They're also not too common (I've never seen one). Regardless, keep your eyes on what's ahead of you and around you. They like to chill under and in between rocks for the most part, but you may find one out and about. If you come across one, leave it alone. Either take a detour or wait for it to go a good distance off the trail. If you hear rattling, don't be a dingus who approaches the sound. Never try to touch, handle, or move any snake.
• If you're new to hiking, maybe try hiking Mt. Rubidoux first.

Feel free to chime in with any other pointers in the comments, and I'll try to answer any questions that arise. Be smart, stay safe, and don't be the person who gets hit by a train and gets the trails fenced off forever!

PLEASE SHARE!
Re: BNSF HI-VIZ Policy
To Whom It May Concern:
The health of BNSF employees is critical to the safety of other crew members, community and the company. Employees already suffer dearly due to the availability policy. Employees have never-ending and inescapable pressure to maintain attendance, typically having as little as 10 hours at home between trips. The majority of employees spend twice to three times as many hours at work and in hotels than at home. Employees are already putting off regular health appointments, forgo emergency treatment, dental appointments for broken teeth and cavities, or symptoms that may be a sign of a greater health issue due to unpredictable train schedules and required hours of availability. Since the company prioritizes business over employee health, and employees feel intimidated when considering time off for their health, these visits are frequently rescheduled or canceled altogether until health deteriorates to the point of catastrophic illness. In order to attend appointments without being called to work, employees must take off multiple days (sometimes up to 3 in a row) to successfully be present for one-hour long appointment. The new Hi-Viz policy will single out and target those who have the need to see doctors frequently, and punish anyone who needs to see a doctor or care for the health at any normal frequency if at all. Additionally, this policy will further alienate our spouses from helping their families who have medical issues both acute and long term. Taking 3 days off to ensure an employee will make an appointment would result in between 4 and 9 or more points out of 30 total career points. To earn those points back in order to safely attend the next appointment, the employee would need to work between 2 and 6 weeks without a single unavailable day. Due to the overall lack of time to rest and to get regular preventative medical attention, BNSF employees rely on their other crew members to intervene in emergency situations and for medical emergencies that in almost every case is unforeseeable. In past years, a crew consisted of five employees which has been whittled down to just two people. The presence of a minimum of two crew members has saved the lives of employees stricken by unforeseen medical emergencies, like heart attack, seizure, anaphylaxis, which incapacitates them to the point they are unable to call for medical help. Without another crew member on board, these individuals are at grave risk. Due to strict policies on attendance, employees are sick, overtired, and with an unethically restrictive attendance policy such as Hi-viz being rolled out, employees face a brand new, never before experienced category of mental and emotional turmoil caused by ever-increasingly overbearing and unsustainable work policies, that will surely result in far more harm than good.
We have compiled stories from our lives for your consideration:
A few years ago, my fiancé got his wisdom teeth pulled. He was too scared to take the pills they gave him, because what if they did a random drug test. So, he took some Aleve and went to work the following day, still in serve pain.
This past summer, we were building a fence for our pandemic puppy, and he stupidly wasn't wearing gloves when dealing with metal fencing and sliced his finger up really bad. He got it all stitched up and back together. But he couldn't take another weekend day off because it was the beginning of the month, and what if something came up. And he went back to work the next day.
My fiancé has severe anxiety about missing a call, and he won't sleep. Or when he is off for a bit, and someone does call him, his heart sinks because he thinks it's work again. And lastly, because he has a terrible sleep schedule, he now sleepwalks.
I had to rush my daughter to the hospital because of a severe allergic reaction to medication. I called the BNSF Emergency number and explained to them what was going on. They assured me that they would contact my husband and get him off the train so he could get to the hospital. They NEVER even notified him! They kept his train moving and when he tied up he called to say he made it in and asked what everyone was doing. He didn’t contact me for 5 hours after I called the emergency number. I was still at the hospital when he called so I informed him what was happening and that I had called the emergency number. Our daughter ended up being ok because I was able to get her care as soon as I noticed a reaction. She wasn’t even a year old. BNSF management told my husband that from this point forward there will be a protocol followed. Apparently, they didn’t have anything to go by.
My husband’s father was on hospice, he had bladder cancer. We knew it was going to be soon. I called the emergency number explaining to them that my husband’s father has hours left, and I need him home. They contacted him, saying there is an emergency at home and they will get him in as quickly as possible. They kept him moving. His father passed while he was on a train. Not one call from anyone giving condolences. When he tried to lay off to plan the funeral with his mom, it was denied and he was told by a train master “why don’t you just use your bereavement days”. He needed his bereavement days for the funeral. Not one official from this company said a word. My husband’s father was a retired engineer in the same terminal.
My husband was sitting in the yard on a locomotive for several hours it was well over 120 degrees outside and the inside of the cab was much hotter. He became severely dehydrated and threw up in the depot. One of his co-workers called me and explained what was going on. They covered him in cool rags, put ice under his armpits and tried cooling him down. He was driven home. We live 1 hour away from the depot. They never even considered taking him to the hospital. I explained to his co-worker that he will be going to the hospital to be treated so as soon as he got home. I took him to our local hospital. He had extreme heat exhaustion. His train master drove to the hospital he was at and waited in the waiting room until he was discharged. Then paperwork had to be filled out. My husband had his conductor go inside several times to cool off while they were on the train waiting so that he wouldn’t get overheated. 2 bags of iv fluid while in the hospital then I continued to give him extra electrolytes at home for the next 2 days. Then back to work for him.
A few years ago, I got a call while I was working. The call was from my husband’s phone but it wasn’t him. It was the conductor he was working with. My husband wasn’t feeling good when he called me to let me know they made it to their away from home terminal. Well, they stopped at a fast-food place to get something to eat before going to the hotel. My husband passed out (some sort of convulsive episode) he was in a pool of sweat, eyes rolled back, had to call an ambulance. The doctor suspected it was from exhaustion! He goes to a sleep doctor regularly because he’s been doing this for almost 18 years. His brain never knows when it’s day or night.
My railroader had a massive pulmonary embolism that started as a DVT or deep vein thrombosis (clot is his leg) which is caused by sitting on the train during the trips. This is a huge risk. A PE can kill you instantly. I’m a nurse and have watched that happen to a patient within an instant.
My husband has Shift worker Syndrome, it has left him where he basically has a state similar to insomnia. When he needs to sleep his brain knows he needs to sleep, but it prevents him from sleeping out of fear of missing a call out to work.
I know of a guy just within the past couple months who got Covid but didn’t tell anyone and still went to work because he had just had surgery and took off so much time that he was on his superior's 'sh** list' as they say and so he was afraid of getting in trouble if he took any more days off and so he was super sick and his coworker had to take him to the ER because he passed out at work.
My husband has been in excellent health. He has been an engineer for nine years. He recently was diagnosed with high blood pressure, and he had a heart attack walking a train three miles long at 2 AM out in the middle of the desert. He was also diagnosed with COPD he’s 43 years old and he’s not overweight. He is stressed out every day, and he suffered a bout of depression. I forced him to go see a doctor, and that’s how all of these Health issues came to light. He got so sick his body went septic and he was airlifted to a trauma hospital he was in the hospital for four days. I thank God that my family member is in upper management, and was able to help my husband get time off. Had there been the new high viz. point system my husband would’ve been put on suspension. Now my husband has to see two specialists, and his regular primary care physician. He tries to see the doctor on smart rest or on Risa.
My husband now has chronic recurring prostatitis at the age of 34 all because he couldn't get in to fix his first 4 episodes of it. It leaves him in extreme pain and will last the rest of his life.
My husband has not been able to lay off to help with our children I ended up having 5 surgeries and losing half my left breast due to an infection and rapid growing tumor in my breast. I had to immediately wean our infant and spend almost a month in the hospital. I was left with an open wound in my breast for 4 months and on 2 occasions was taken by ambulance due to losing 1/3 of my blood volume.
My husband can’t even attend any of his appointments, he is supposed to be going 3x a week for PT, 1 a week for a mental health, on top of a monthly appt with his PCP. He has already gotten dropped from a couple providers for poor compliance. Even the tele visit is impossible as he cannot schedule it or predict a month out. The days he has off he tries to call and see if anyone can squeeze him in, but because of the population and lack of providers, it’s not as simple as being squeezed in. No choice of appts, they tell you when they can see you
When my daughter was 3 years old she fell and fractured her skull and needed to be air lifted to another town. I NEEDED him. He was not able to lay off away and come to us until she was stable.
He needs a follow up colonoscopy. Colon cancer runs in his side of the family. He will have to take two days off as we all know there is a day to prep the day before (if he does not have to lay off the day before to make sure he is not called out and not back home in time to travel/clean out). He is wanting to put it off because it off because he does not want to use the points. His dad is not doing well and he knows he may need days. Both of my daughters graduate from different schools this year. The schools did not pick the low point days for graduation days.
My husband went into anaphylaxis on the train. The engineer at the time had to stop the train, and call 911 and meet the ambulance with him. He ended up in the hospital. The train master got him, and brought him home. If he’d been alone on that train he would’ve died.
My husband went to work with spinal meningitis in pain and wearing sunglasses in the day time. He was so pressured to go ahead and work. He ended up with me calling him telling him to go to the ER. Trainmaster and his conductor came with him.
My husband had a cavity that he kept putting off seeing the dentist for. He would have to go in one day for exam, and then a separate day for treatment. He was on a train one night, and spiked a high fever while running his train. His tooth was so infected that he couldn’t do his job. His train master had to take him to the ER. They told us that if he waited any longer the infection could have passed to his heart and killed him.
A railroader in our terminal died on the switching lead from a heart attack. His conductor found him, but it was too late.
My railroader has anxiety. A lot of it stems from the job and being on call. If he’s first out and due out in a couple of hours he lays down to sleep. The lineup changes and he doesn’t get called until the morning. He then has slept at the “wrong time” and is up all night stressing out that he can’t fall back asleep, and is going to get called God knows when. Then, by the time he is called he’s tired from being up all-night stressing.
My husband hasn’t seen a dentist, eye doctor or had a physical in 17 years because every time we schedule the appts I have to cancel because he gets called. He also has terrible anxiety due to the job. He doesn’t sleep through the night even when at home because he constantly thinks he will miss a call.
My husband is MOW but his brother is TY&E and in the past couple of years has had some issues with blood clots. I know he was also exhausted and not feeling great a year or two ago but went to work trying to tough it out and ended up fainting on the train. Thank God the other crew member was able to call for help. The past year and a half my husband's health has started to deteriorate slowly.... from sleep deprivation, anxiety, depression from inability to lose weight, and sacrificing time away from his family. This is just the tip of the iceberg and now it is time to do bloodwork and see the doctor. He is afraid to chance taking the time off.
My husband passed away at home after arriving home and being awake for 26+ hours because he got called to work early at 11pm when it showed him getting called later the next morning. Nothing could be tied to the job but I know in my soul that the railroad did not help his heart. Widowmaker at 32 years old. Weird to feel thankful in his passing but he got to come home that morning instead of passing away in the crap motel that they were projecting him to stay at.
These are but a few examples of the daily struggles of BNSF employees. These people have devoted their lives and sacrificed time, health and life to serve the company and America. Please reconsider the new attendance policy and try to put the well-being of your devoted employees first.
Sincerely,
Concerned Wives of the BNSF Employees

UnionStrong #railroadlife #unionproud #TwoManCrew #railroadwife #SpreadTheWord #safetyfirst

Hey Austin folks! I wonder if any of you know about UP/BNSF train railroad through Austin? Like what is its schedule, frequency, etc? We are thinking about buying a house, and UP/BNSF railroad is right behind it.

The LOSSAN corridor is one of the most travelled Amtrak routes outside of the Northeast Corridor. However, to get it to remotely the standards seen on the Northeast Corridor, a lot of improvements would have to be made. These improvements include dual-tracking (at minimum), grade separation to eliminate all grade crossings, and electrification.
Phase 1 (Los Angeles-San Diego): This is where much of the ridership comes from so I expect this is where the rebuilding will first take place.

• Miramar Hill Tunnel: At La Jolla, the tracks take a u-shaped turn to run around Miramar Hill, so a tunnel will be built to cross Miramar Hill. This includes a new station at UC San Diego.
  
• Track relocation from Del Mar to La Jolla: At Del Mar, the tracks run dangerously close to the coast line, and at La Jolla, they go through a hairpin turn, so the tracks will be relocated.
  
• San Diego freight bypass: This would reroute freight radiating from the San Diego area to follow Interstate 15 and Interstate 215 into Riverside, redirecting freight traffic radiating from the San Diego area, and also making the LOSSAN tracks between Fullerton and San Diego virtually freight-free. This can work as a public-private partnership with BNSF similar to Norfolk Southern's Heartland Corridor.
  
• San Juan Capistrano Tunnel: At near Dana Point, there is a near 90 degree turn, which will hamper speeds. A new tunnel between San Clemente and San Juan Capistrano will have to be build.
  
• New ROW between Santa Ana and LA Union Station. Amtrak California can acquire the lightly-used Anaheim Subdivision from UPRR between Santa Ana and Norwalk and redevelop the ROW. Between Norwalk and Commerce, a new ROW following Interstate 5 will be built (can certainly make better use of that widening they've been doing), and between Norwalk and the Redondo Junction Grade Separation, a new elevated ROW will be built following the existing ROW. In tandem with the BNSF Southern Transcon relocation, two tracks will diverge to run on the BNSF line to Fullerton.
  
• BNSF Southern Transcon relocation: A parallel freight rail line runs through La Habra before connecting to Fullerton. There is enough space to lay two more tracks, creating a 3-track freight line. As the line east of Brea has been made a rail trail, starting between S Harbor Boulevard and E Lambert Road, the line will go in a trench before going under a tunnel at Berry Street. The tunnel goes south to the BNSF Southern Transcon, connecting at between S State College Boulevard and CA-57. In order to connect, the Southern Transcon between Fullerton Station and N Tustin Avenue would have to be rebuilt into a trench, causing a lot of road underpasses to have to be rebuilt. Also as part of the relocation, the Southern Transcron will be rerouted at Los Nietos Junction to follow the new alignment. Upon completion, the Norwalk/Santa Fe Springs station will be relocated to the south and the existing tracks between the new station and Los Nietos Junction will be removed. Additionally, ownership of the trackage between Norwalk/Santa Fe Springs and Fullerton will be transferred from BNSF to SCRRA/Metrolink.
  
• New maintenance facility: Amtrak has an existing maintenance facility (8th. Street Yard). While it's currenly fine as it, should the LOSSAN line and its radiating lines be modernized, the rail yard would be insufficient to handle the increased frequencies (this issue would also likely plague Metrolink). A reactivated Taylor Yard could have happened but G2 (where the majority of it is) has been earmarked for redevelopment as a residential community. This would make finding space for a new maintenance facility extremely difficult. A new maintenance facility in Commerce would be impractical as it's too far out from LA Union Station. The closest would be the existing ex-SP rail yard, but Amtrak and the SCRRA would have to negotiate with UPRR to gain a piece of it to remake it into a new maintenance facility. Such a development can happen best in tandem with a new route following I-10 via a redeveloped El Monte Busway.
  

Phase 1.5 (Salinas-San Jose): Amtrak is planning on extending Capitol Corridor services to Salinas. Modernization and improvement of this route can happen in tandem with the Los Angeles-San Siego modernization.

• Salinas Direct: This rail line closely follows US Route 101, bypassing Watsonville and Castroville, as well as several wildlife preserves.
  
• New Gilroy-Salinas via Castroville and Watsonville alignment: The existing ROW runs sandwiched between wildlife preserves. This realignment will have the tracks run in parallel with CA-1. To bypass a granite mine, the realignment will tunnel south of Aromas to connect with the Salinas Direct.
  

Phase 2 (Los Angeles-San Luis Obispo): Compared to the Los Angeles-San Diego, this section will be more difficult to build as there will be a lot more ROW acquisitions as the existing route is too winding for even a modern higher (i.e. 125 mph) speed rail line (particularly on the ROW that parallels UP's Coast Line as UP is clingy with their tracks but I can see them benefit from a rebuilt and modernized rail line)

• New Los Angeles-Camarillo rail line: Between Camarillo and Los Angeles, a new rail line will be built, largely parallelling US Route 101. Much of this new rail line will be either elevated (such as through Ventura Boulevard) or underground (such as from LA-Studio City and much of the Conejo Valley). Upon being built, all Amtrak and Metrolink services will relocate to the new line. This would end up supplanting Metrolink services through the Simi Valley, so a DMU will be used for the old Ventura County line.
  
• New Gaviota-San Luis Obispo track: Similar to the new Camarillo-Los Angeles track, a new ROW will be built parallelikg US Route 101. This will bypass Lompoc and Vandenberg AFB and enable Amtrak to serve Santa Maria
  

Phase 3 (San Luis Obispo-Salinas): This section has no corridor service, being only served by the long-distance Coast Starlight. Currently along this section, Amtrak plans to add stops to Soledad and King City. This section will likely be the last to be completed in the modernization program.

• Cuesta Base Tunnel: The existing route has a very long and winding segment north of San Luis Obispo as it asends the Cuesta Pass. Building a new tunnel will shave off a sizeable portion of time.

BNSF started slashing the boards up in Spokane/Seattle-Interbay/Everett fairly hard about 2 weeks ago. Major furloughs are taking place this week. Mostly trimmed some of the fat extra-boards but those guys that hung on are spinning so fast and hitting RISA regularly, which before was non-existent. They are burning through crews too fast and calling Switch extra-board guys for trains.
108 division wide currently are furloughed. Looks like they are about to start trimming the yard boards next, especially in Seattle and Tacoma. (8 KLAFOR, 36 VANCWA, 22 SPOKAN, 1 BELLIN, 5 EVERET, 10 INTERB, 14 TACOMA, 8 PASCO, 4 WISHRA)
The major thing I've noticed personally is how few grain trains are coming through the terminals now. Normally, there are multiple boats anchored, waiting for the grain to start coming in about a month or two, but it seems like an insanely low trickle these days. Oil, Stack, and Merchandise trains seem about the same frequency.
Curious whats going on with the other divisions.

https://drive.google.com/open?id=1aakS3Mpli3eGpZHw1nvuk3seX1anErRJ&usp=sharing
This is an idea I’ve been tinkering with for a while, and I would love some input. This is an idea for a cost effective plan to expand transit in St Louis, addressing current traffic needs and allowing for growth in the most cost effective way possible.
The two biggest traffic pattern issues that need resolution are the North County - South County corridor and traffic in and out of Clayton. Future needs would require more access between job centers in the county and the growing population in the City. Unlike other cities experiencing urban sprawl, Downtown and the City are no longer the center for the majority of jobs in the area. The only locations for residential development in the area are expanding further out or redeveloping the rundown areas in the City, and avoiding further urban sprawl would be a positive goal for St Louis. Transit is an important component to economic expansion and urban redevelopment, encouraging new businesses to move to the area. Younger generations have shown a keen interest in moving to cities with good public transit.
Though there are plenty of other proposals for expanding the system, this plan is the most cost effective, by avoiding as much new ROW and new overpasses as possible. Many other proposals have cast aside the use of existing ROW and simply focus on where the need for transit is the greatest, this plan provides a compromise between cost and effectiveness. There are other freight rail corridors and retired Right-of-Ways which have the potential for use as transit corridors, though I did not include the ones I thought would be better served by other transit options.
Using existing Right-of-Way is the most cost effective way to expand the system. Ideally this would mean building off current freight rails. This would be accomplished by improving rails where necessary to meet the increased traffic and building stations as sidings rather than on the existing rails where there is room, as to limit the effect passenger traffic on freight traffic. Unfortunately, to keep capital costs down this means that any shared-used corridor could not be electrified. Many other american cities use heavy commuter rail trains in these types of shared-use corridors, however it would be far more effective to use rolling stock and service frequency similar to light rail instead of commuter rail. For the purpose of this explanation, I’ll refer to this type of service as hybrid rail, as it would have the level of service of a light rail system, but a shared-use corridor that a commuter rail would use. All shared-use corridor line would have to run separate from light rail lines, as the Federal Railroad Administration does not light rail rolling stock to run on heavy rail track, and vice-versa. None of these lines would incorporate street-running ROW, which I see as a very poor use of funds. Street running light rail would continue to encounter many of the same issues as buses, and the only real advantage they have over buses is their electrification.
The plan also utilizes Bus Rapid Transit, a transit system that uses buses as vehicles, but a level of service similar to rapid transit or light rail. This greatly reduces capital costs compared to a light rail system, and is far more efficient than a typical bus line. The BRT buses would only stop at physical stations, and passengers would transfer to local buses to reach their destination if it is not within walking distance of the station. The stations would be build either on the shoulder of the road or in underused parking lots. BRT buses would use sensors to coordinate stoplights and limit time spent stopped.
The map includes all existing and confirmed Metrolink expansions. The map does not include the local bus routes that would be added to support the new expanded system, though these would be integral to the success of the system. In the City, bus routes would not change much and continue to run along most every major street, connecting to transit stations as they do now. In the county, routes would be reorganized to use transit stations as hubs, and reduce the number of routes running from the City, as these routes would be served by the new transit lines. The location of the stations allow for a less than 10 minute bus ride to most job centers in the area. Express buses between stations on different lines would also be added to support the system. It would also be assumed that large businesses and tourist attractions may also provide their own private shuttles to transit stations. Each of the lines should be able to contribute to the system on their own, though obviously they would be most effective all together. The hope is once enough people switch over to using public transit, that congestion for everyone will ease.
The upgrades in service would also include a technology and aesthetic upgrade. New technologies would track passenger usage for the ability to add new bus lines to better serve the community. The technology would also give the public access to the location of transit vehicles, allowing them to better plan their trips. Aesthetic upgrades would be necessary to attract a broader socioeconomic group. Public transit, outside of cities with excellent systems, is looked down upon by those who are not dependent upon it, and maximizing usage by everyone would be key to getting the most economic benefit from the new system.
The biggest drawback to this system I can see is the number of transfers necessary to reach most of the city and county. While it is nice to have the freedom to travel around the area without a car, meaning you can do something else besides look at the car in front of you on your commute, needing several transfers to reach your destination will probably be seen as a burden by many. The lack of electrification on the shared-use corridors is also an issue. Avoiding track upgrades is integral to keeping capital costs down, and electrifying existing track would defeat the purpose of this plan.

• Purple: Hybrid Rail Lines
  • Southwest: City to Eureka
    • This is the best option for expanding the system, as the entire line is already double tracked, meaning there is almost no necessary upgrades to the track, the only capital costs are building stations and rolling stock. This route is already used for Amtrak service towards Kansas City, with an existing station in Kirkwood. Service levels similar to existing Metrolink would be most effective, though this level of service is likely not needed to the Eureka station.
  • Northwest: City to Wentzville
    • This route is the most important to providing transit access to the poorest areas in the area, an important goal of transit. Most of this line is only single tracked, and it will likely need to be double tracked handle the level of traffic. Again service levels similar to Metrolink would only be useful out to St Charles, and past St Charles there is not enough passenger traffic to necessitate this frequency.
    • Edit: With new expansion coming to the GM plant in Wentzville, there's the possibility BNSF may double track this line to keep up with the increase in traffic
• Yellow: Commuter Rail Lines
  • Northeast: City to Alton
    • This isn’t really a high traffic corridor, however this line also already has double track, meaning there is almost no necessary upgrades to the track, the only capital costs are building stations and rolling stock. This route is already used for Amtrak service towards Chicago, though the Alton station on the map is different from the Alton Amtrak station. Service levels would be similar to normal commuter trains in other cities, with potentially higher levels between Granite City and Civic Center, as this corridor is a very dense industrial job center.
  • Washington
    • Southwest Hybrid Line could also include a limited service commuter line to Washington, as there is already a station there and would therefore require no additional infrastructure.
• Light Blue: Metrolink Expansion
  • Metrolink Blue North Extension: Clayton to Earth City
    • This line is mostly retired ROW, and very underused ROW, which can be justified in being re-purposed for light rail use. This would be built as brand new double track, the exact same as the rest of the existing Metrolink system. While this line would have higher capital costs than the shared-use corridors, it reaches the most dense commercial job centers in the county, and is still more cost effective than many other light rail projects build in the US. The two lines indicate the options for either running on existing ROW or building on a new ROW which would better suit the area but would cost more.
• Green: Rapid Bus Transit
  • 40: Brentwood to Wentzville
    • This line would use highway 40, and use stations built in underused parking lots. Service levels similar to existing Metrolink would be useful out to Chesterfield Valley, but past Chesterfield Valley there is not enough passenger traffic to necessitate this frequency. This corridor is the most underserved transit corridor, yet there is a huge number of service jobs along this corridor.
  • Lindbergh: South County to Alton
    • This line would roughly follow Lindbergh, and use stations both in parking lots and along the road. Service levels similar to existing Metrolink would be useful. Service to Alton however is probably not needed at this level. This line would fulfill the traffic needs for commuting between North and South County.
• Pink: Multiple Options, less practical but still ROW that could be used
  • South: Shrewsbury to Arnold
    • This line is existing single track ROW. It could be used as a Hybrid line, though there is no easy connection to the rest of the planned system. The easiest connection would be to existing Metrolink, however it is likely not possible for existing Metrolink rolling stock to share this ROW with freight service.
  • Central: North City to Olivette
    • The existing line carries a large amount of freight traffic. This corridor could only be used as a shared-use line. The line is also too far away from existing stations to connect, but too close to justify new stations.
  • South City: FPSE to Carondelet
    • This existing underused single track ROW could be a shared-use corridor, or converted to a light rail line. The only northern connection would be to a Hybrid line, so for trains to continue on they could not be light rail.
  • 170: Olive to Berkeley
    • This is mostly retired ROW but new construction would require many overpasses and navigating through the interchange at 70. Would be an extension of the existing Metrolink light rail.

I thought you guys might find this kind of cool.
I was scanning 2m last night and my radio stopped on 160.560MHz when a train came through town. It announced over the radio "BNSF Detector. No defects, repeat, no defects. Axle number 260. Out." I thought it was kind of cool, so I left my handy talkie on that frequency and now I know when a train is coming through town a few minutes before I hear the whistle blow. I did some searching online and found out that this "defect detector" operates on what is known to BNSF as channel 30. I don't know much more than that. Probably not that useful, but worth sharing.
Edit: Here's some video of what I heard tonight.
Edit 2: Here's another one from tonight.

Cut and pasted from a great amazon forum on AG jazz This one
3rd Man, 8 Bold Souls
A
a qui avec Gabriel, a hundred times beloved, The AALY Trio, Aardvark Orchestra, Elvind Aarset, Ahmed Abdul-Malik, Ahmed Abdullah, Kaoru Abe, Rabih Abou-Khalil, Phil Abraham, Muhal Richard Abrams, The Abstractions, Bruce Ackley, Carlo Actis Dato, George Adams, Steve Adams, Christopher Adler, Aercine, Aesop Quartet, Afro Asian Ensemble, Oskar Aichinger, Air, Aisha Duo, Jason Ajemian, Noel Akchote, Tetuzi Akiyama, Pheeroan akLaff, Christian Alati, Jeff Albert, Brian Ales, Aleski, Ralph Alessi, Aaron Alexander, Rashied Ali, All Rectangle, All Time Present, Byron Allen, Marshall Allen, Ben Allison, Misha Alperin, Maarten Altena, Alterations, Barry Altschul, Ama Jazz, Amalgam, Ambiances Magnétiques, Ambient Jazz Duo, Scott Amendola, The American Saxophone Quartet, American Watercolor Movement, Amis 4tet, Anansi, Anarchestra, Arild Andersen, ,Fred Anderson, Jacob Anderson, Ray Anderson, Reid Anderson, Pier Luigi Andreoni, Louis Andriessen, Paolo Angeli, Theo Angell, Anticubicle, Jim Anton, Tatsu Aoki, Peter Apfelbaum, Apostolic Polyphony, Mark Applebaum, Arawi, Arc, Arcado, Arcado String Trio, Neil Ardley, Sasha Argov, The Art Ensemble of Chicago, Art Music Ensemble, Asian American Jazz Orchestra, Astreja, Tubman Atnimara, Marcel Aucoin, Australian Art Orchestra, Available Jelly, AWN, Albert Ayler, Nick Ayoub, Azeruz
B
The Bad Plus, Derek Bailey, Aram Bajakian, Jim Baker, Ginger Baker, Iain Ballamy, Billy Bang, Abdulai Bangoura, Harrison Bankhead, Bar Kokhba, Barbez, Joey Baron, Robert Barry, Steffen Basho-Junghans, Bass Drum Bone, Bateau Lavoir, Victor Bateman, Django Bates, Michael Bates, Alvin Batiste, Stefano Battaglia, Matt Bauder, Conrad Bauer, Marc Beacco, Chris Beattie, Carlos Bechegas, Harry Beckett, Gordon Beeferman, David Behrman, Richie Beirach, Erik Belgum, Gregg Bendian, Aaron Bennett, Han Bennink, Steve Beresford, Karl Berger, Vincent Bergeron, Sean Bergin, Borah Bergman, Berkowitz, Lake & Dahmer, Berlin Contemporary Jazz Orchestra, Tim Berne, Tim Berne's Bloodcount, Steven Bernstein, Between, Bexar Bexar, Faruq Z. Bey, Big Black, Big Satan, Arlo Bigazzi, Greetje Bijma, Billband, Billy Tipton Memorial Saxophone Quartet, Dave Binney, Birth, Jeb Bishop, Michael Bisio, Jason Bivins, Bject, Cotch Black, Jim Black, Black Moth, Ed Blackwell, James Blackshaw, Richard Blair, Michael Blake, Ran Blake , Rob Blakeslee, Michael Bland, Blast, Theo Bleckmann, Peter Blegvad, Jeremy Bleich, Carla Bley, Paul Bley, Bliggidy Blam, Richard Bliwas, Jane Ira Bloom, Blue Dog, The Blue Notes, The Blue Series Continuum, Blue Velvet, Hamiet Bluiett, John Blum, Martin Blume, Arthur Blythe, BNSF, Boca Raton, Michael Bocian, Eric Boeren, Ross Bolleter, Borbetomagus, Karen Borca, Thomas Borgmann, David Borgo, C.J. Reaven Borosque, Boston Art Quartet, Mwata Bowden, Simon Bowden, Graham Bowers, Lester Bowie, Dougie Bowne, Ronnie Boykins, Charles Brackeen, Bobby Bradford, Anouar Brahem, Brain Killer, Brasserie Trio, Anthony Braxton, Tyondai Braxton, Patrick Brennan, Willem Breuker, Paul Brody, Magnus Broo, The Brooklyn Sax Quartet, The Brotherhood of Breath, Caspar Brotzmann, Peter Brotzmann, Bill Brovold, Dan Brown, Chris Brown, Guillermo E. Brown, Marion Brown, Richard "Ari" Brown, Rob Brown, Steven Brown, Kyle Bruckmann, Ettiene Brunet, Buca Pecuna (James Dell'Orefice), Thomas Buckner, Lenni Bukowski, Hermann Bühler, Christian Burchard, Mark Burdon, Charles Burnham, Dave Burrell, Andre Bush, John Butcher, Ken Butler, Jaki Byard, Taylor Ho Bynum, Don Byron, Michael Byron
C
CCM4, C.O.M.A., Juan Pablo Caceres, Pete Cafarella, John Cage, Adam Caine, Michael Caine, Uri Caine, Roy Campbell, Dave Cantwell, Carbon, Steve Cardenas, Cornelius Cardew, John Carey, Rudiger Carl, Frank Carlberg, John Carlson, Ralph Carney, Francois Carrier, Baikida Carroll, Daniel Carter, James Carter, John Carter, Kent Carter, Andrea Centazzo, Raven Chacon, Eugene Chadbourne, Chamaelo Valgaris Group, Matt Chamberlain, Joe Chambers, The Chance Trio, Vincent Chancey, Change of Time, Thomas Chapin, Denis Charles, Richard Chartier, Ken Chastain, Djamchid Chemiran, Don Cherry, Andrew Cheshire, Claudio Chianura, Chicago Underground, Chien-Yin Chen, Leonid Chizhik, Ellen Christi, Cinematic Orchestra, Circle, Citizen X, Clarinet Summit, Jay Clayton, Cleaning Women, Gerald Cleaver, Climax Golden Twins, Alex Cline, Nels Cline, Cloudland Canyon, Diane Cluck, Clusone Trio, Greg Cohen, Rafael Cohen, Steve Cohn, Cold Bleak Heat, Anthony Coleman, Ornette Coleman, Denis Colin Trio, Collective 4tet, Collective Identity, Graham Collier & The Collective, Eugenie Colombo, Alice Coltrane, John Coltrane, Cory Combs, Conference Call, Graham Connah, Stephen Connolly, Bill Connors, Coat Cooke Trio, Nigel Coombes, Jerome Cooper, Lindsay Cooper, Cooper-Moore, John Corbett, Rich Corpolongo, Christine Correa, Correa-Carlberg Duo, Larry Coryell, Cosmosamatics, Courage, Jacques Coursil, Cousin Silas, Sylvie Courvoisier, Anthony Cox, Rik Cox, Lol Coxhill, Morgan Craft, Ollie Cram, Create (!), Creative Construction Company, George Cremaschi, Crib, Marilyn Crispell, Connie Crothers, Stephen Crump, CTB, Alexis Cuadrado, Curlew, Alvin Curran, Ted Curson, Beth Custer, Stew Cutler, Leo Cuypers, Andrew Cyrille
D
DDYGG (Dodge's Drye Young Glass of Ginnis), Daddy's Band, Tim Daisy, Paolo Damiani, Andrew D'Angelo, Ted Daniel, Olu Dara, Carlo Actis Dato, John Davey, Solamen David, Anthony Davis, Emery Davis, Ian Davis, Matt Davis, Miles Davis, Ernest Dawkins, DayVee & The Rockett Band, Elton Dean, Dan DeChellis, Dedalus, Deep Listening Band, Degenerate Art Ensemble, Jack DeJohnette, Chris Delaurenti, Benoit Delbecq, Tobias Delius, James Dell'Orefice see Buca Pecuna, Nick Del'Nero, David Demnitz, Stuart Dempster, Amy Denio, Denominators, Derek and the Ruins, Tom DeSteno, Roberto Detree, Ernesto Diaz-Infante, Robert Dick, Whit Dickey, Die Like a Dog Quartet, Ralph Diekemper, Jorrit Dijkstra, Mike Dillon, Thomas Dimuzio, Divination, Bill Dixon, DJ Spooky, DKV Trio, Aaron Dodd, Le Doight De Galilee, Dolbar, Eric Dolphy, Uz Jsme Doma, Barbara Donald, Michel Doneda, Christy Doran, Pierre Dorge, Axel Dorner, Double Naught Spy Car, Dave Douglas, Dave Douglas' Tiny Bell Trio, John Drac, Hamid Drake, Dreamend, Paul Dresher, Mark Dresser, Arnold Dreyblatt, Kevin Drumm, Drumplay, Andrew Drury, William Duckworth, Marc Ducret, Gerd Dudek, Dukew, Randall Dunn, Paul Dunmail, The Durham Ox Singers, Dominic Duval, Johnny Dyani, Ann Dyer, The Dyslectics
E
EKG, Ex, The, Earth People, Marc Edwards, Moritz Eggert, Marty Ehrlich, Marty Ehrlich's Dark Woods Ensemble, Markus Eichenberger, Eric Eigner, Elise Einarsdottir, Bruce Eisenbeil, EitheOrchestra, El-P, Elan, Elegy, Robert Eliscu, Ehran Elisha, Ellipsis, Don Ellis, Lisle Ellis, Mike Ellis, Liberty Ellman, Nedley Elstak, Kahil El' Zabar, Carol Emanuel, James Emery, Marco Eneidi, Roger Eno, Peter Epstein, Equal Interest Trio, Marty Erlich, Ilhan Ersahin, Booker Ervin, ESE, Ellery Eskelin, Pierre Esteve, John Etheridge, Andrew Eulau, Brandon Evans, Gil Evans, Evidence, explosion: cerebral, Extra Virgin, Ez Pour Spout
F
FJF, Face Ditch, Jon Faddis, Peter Fairclough, The Fantastic Merlins, Far East Side Band, Kali Z. Fasteau, Malachi Favors, Pierre Favre, James Fei, Misha Feigin, Mark Feldman, Marcos Fernandes, Agusti Fernandez, Mongezi Feza, Scott Fields, Fieldwork, Figure 8 (Rova X 2), Milo Fine, Milo Fine Free Jazz Ensemble, Michael Jon Fink, James Finn, Fire, Donat Fisch, Morgan Fisher, David Fiuczynski, Hans Fjellestad, Paul Flaherty, Flaming Fire, Ingebrigt H†ker Flaten, J. B. Floyd, Flugelschlag!, Fluid Motion, The Flying Luttenbachers, Henry Flynt, Brigitte Fontaine, Forest Floor, Joel Forrester, Michael Formanek, Chris Forsyth, Forward Energy, Donal Fox, Jim Fox, Peter Fraize, Jacob Fred Jazz Odyssey, Free Music Quintet, Frequency, Erik Friedlander, The Fringe, Bill Frisell, Henrik Frisk, Fred Frith, Wolfgang Fuchs, Cor Fuhler, Satoko Fujii, Yuichiro Fujimoto, Ellen Fullman, The Fully Celebrated Orchestra, Stephane Furic, Joel Futterman
G
GMT, Gaijin, Yoav Gal, Eddie Gale, Ganelin Trio, Vyacheslav Ganelin, Kyle Gann, Garbo's Hat, Todd Garfinkle, Peter Garland, Carlos Garnett, Jimmy Garrison, Jeff Gauthier, Charles Gayle, Gianni Gebbia, Heinz Geisser, Genelin, Carol Genetti, The Georgian Ensemble, Mike Georgin, Renato Geremia, Chris Gestrin, Joe Giardullo 4tet, The Gideon Leeches, Paul Giger, John Gilmore, Gisburg, Jimmy Giuffre, Frode Gjerstad, Glands Of External Secretion, Mike Glendinning, Globe Unity Orchestra, Go-GO Fightmaster, Gold Sparkle Band, Ben Goldberg, Golden Quartet, Malcolm Goldstein, Vinny Golia, Anne Gomez, Dennis Gonzalez, Good For Cows, Joe Goode, Annie Gosfield, Gunda Gottschalk, Alan Gowen, Andre Goudbeek, Georg Graewe, Gerhard Graml's Lunapark, Jerry Granelli, Lou Grassi, Frank Gratkowski, Mel Graves, Milford Graves, John Greaves, Green Sneaky Chili, Burton Greene, Sonny Greenwich, Gregor Samsa, Guillermo Gregorio, Michael Gregory, Drew Gress, Grey Ghost, Robert Griffin, Fernando Grillo, Henry Grimes, Groove Weaver, David Gross, Richard Grossman, Groundtruther, Gruppo Di Improvvisazione Nuova Consonanza, Louis Guarino Jr., Andy Guhl, Guinea Pig, Gul 3, Gush, Mats Gustafsson, Barry Guy, Guy-Gustafsson-Strid Trio, Vyacheslov Guyvoronsky