Below is the latest edition of The Signal ™ — our biweekly newsletter delivering freight rail news, insights, and interesting facts. Enjoying it? Subscribe to get the email sent straight to your inbox every other week. You can also check out past editions here.

Former transportation secretaries encourage room for innovation.

A bipartisan letter from eight former U.S. transportation secretaries reframes the debate over surface transportation reauthorization around a fundamental policy choice: Should Congress prescribe specific safety practices or establish performance-based standards that encourage continuous innovation?

Drawing on decades of experience across multiple administrations, the former secretaries argue that many of transportation’s greatest safety gains—including freight rail’s deployment of Positive Train Control, automated inspections, advanced track monitoring, wayside detection, and predictive maintenance—were made possible because federal policy emphasized measurable safety outcomes rather than mandating specific technologies.

As Congress considers reauthorization, they urge lawmakers to preserve that approach by creating a framework that enables the responsible deployment of emerging technologies such as artificial intelligence, connected infrastructure, predictive analytics, digital twins, and next-generation automation.

🎧 Listen to a new AAR Audio to hear how outdated freight rail regulations really are.

How did Lollapalooza land in Chicago?

(Nathan Zucker / Lollapalooza)

Lollapalooza, which draws roughly 450,000 people to Chicago every year, kicks off this week. Did you know that long before Chicago became one of America’s premier festival cities, it was America’s railroad city?

By 1860, eleven major rail lines converged in Chicago, turning the Windy City into the nation’s leading hub. As freight moved seamlessly in every direction, business followed. Hotels, convention halls, and commercial centers popped up rapidly, transforming Chicago into the ultimate destination for large-scale public gatherings.

So in 2005, when Lollapalooza decided to retire its touring format and find a permanent home, Chicago was the obvious choice. Decades of hosting outdoor concerts in Grant Park—paired with unmatched rail connectivity, massive hotel capacity, and robust infrastructure—meant the city was uniquely built to handle a mega-event of that scale.

Fast forward to today, and Chicago remains the nation’s busiest rail hub. Serviced by all six U.S. Class I freight railroads as well as major passenger lines, roughly one in four U.S. freight trains passes through the region.

And it’s not just festivals that keep moving here. Through the Chicago Region Environmental and Transportation Efficiency (CREATE) program, major infrastructure work is underway right now to make both freight and passenger rail faster, cleaner, and more efficient than ever.

Intermodal is having a moment.

Intermodal continues to gain momentum as more shippers shift freight from highways to rail. J.B. Hunt reported posted its highest-ever second-quarter intermodal volumes.

Industry leaders say rail’s value proposition is now the strongest it’s been in a decade as rising trucking costs, tighter capacity and improving rail service make intermodal an increasingly attractive option for moving freight efficiently over long distances.

And June marked the sixth straight month of carload growth and a record month for intermodal in June.

CPKC achieves world first with hydrogen locomotives.

Hydrogen-powered locomotives are now switching railcars in daily revenue service at Canadian Pacific Kansas City’s Ogden Yard. Built to perform like conventional diesel locomotives, the engines are integrated into normal operations and maintenance while producing only water vapor at the exhaust. Employees say the transition has been seamless, offering the same performance they’re used to—without the emissions.

 

The Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) approved a waiver allowing railroads to replace some manual track inspections with advanced inspection systems that scan the track using cameras, lasers, and sensors while trains keep moving.

The technology can spot defects earlier and more often than traditional visual inspections. This helps crews combine their expertise with powerful tools to address potential issues before they become bigger problems.

👉Learn more about automated track inspections.

INDUSTRY READS

• TRAINS: Upswing Continues for U.S. Rail Traffic
• RAILWAY AGE: Hedlund Nears Second STB Term
• JOURNAL OF COMMERCE: U.S. Importers Feel Peak Season Capacity Pinch to East Coast