Executives with Kansas City Southern (KCS) are cautiously optimistic about rail volumes in 2021, with optimism for an economic recovery tempered by uncertainties related to the coronavirus pandemic.  “The recovery has been remarkable, if a bit uneven,” said KCS Chief Marketing Officer Mike Naatz during the company’s third-quarter 2020 earnings call on October 16, 2020. Although certain businesses remain under pressure and COVID-19 is still a risk, KCS has good reason to be optimistic about an economic recovery, Naatz said. He based his observations on customers’ feedback as well as on market conditions such as a tightening truck market.  KCS achieved an operating ratio (OR) of 58.8% in the third quarter, which was an “all-time best” for the company. Operating ratio is a tool used to gauge the financial health of a company, with a lower percentage implying improving health.  By the end of the third quarter, KCS’ volumes were running 60% above the trough of April and May on a daily basis, he said. “It’s a really remarkable story and a remarkable roller coaster,” CEO Ottensmeyer said.  KCS’ third-quarter net profit rose 5.3% as a 16.7% decrease in operating expenses helped to offset a 12% decline in revenue.  Net income in the third quarter of 2020 was $189.7 million, or $2.01 per diluted share, compared with $180.1 million, or $1.81 per diluted share, in the third quarter of 2019.

Kansas City Southern sees opportunities ahead amid lingering headwinds, October 16, 2020, www.americanshippere.com

Trucking is providing one of the few bright spots to the flagging U.S. economy as tight capacity and a driver shortage push contract and spot rates higher across vans, flatbeds and refrigerated trucks, reports Transport Topics.  DAT Solutions said van spot load rates in September 2020 were up 28.8% compared with a year ago. They have continued to rise in October 2020 and now average $2.46 per mile, a 9-cent increase since the beginning of the month.  Flatbed rates are up 9.9% year-over-year and have jumped a nickel in the past two weeks, also to $2.46 a mile. Refrigerated rates are up 19% year-over-year — and 3 cents in the past two weeks — to $2.60 per mile.

US Trucking Market Outpaces US Economy as Capacity Tightens, October 16, 2020, www.ontruck.org

U.S. Secretary of Transportation Elaine L. Chao on September 3, 2020 announced the release of the first-ever National Freight Strategic Plan (NFSP).  It is the latest effort by the Department and the Trump Administration to strengthen America’s economic competitiveness. The NFSP lays out a vision for long-term investments in infrastructure, the workforce, and other essential parts of the freight system.

U.S. Transportation Secretary Elaine L. Chao Makes Historic Announcement on America’s Freight System, September 3, 2020, www.dot.gov

U.S. Secretary of Transportation Elaine L. Chao announced on September 1, 2020 that the Trump Administration will award more than $1.2 billion in airport safety and infrastructure grants through the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to 405 airports in 50 states and the Federated States of Micronesia, the Marshall Islands, the Northern Mariana Islands, Puerto Rico, Palau, and the U.S. Virgin Islands.

U.S. Transportation Secretary Elaine L. Chao Announces More Than $1.2 Billion in Infrastructure Grants to America’s Airports, September 1, 2020, www.dot.gov

Never in our lives have we experienced such a global phenomenon. For the first time in the history of the world, all of humanity, informed by the unprecedented reach of digital technology, has come together, focused on the same existential threat, consumed by the same fears and uncertainties, eagerly anticipating the same, as yet unrealized, promises of medical science.

In a single season, civilization has been brought low by a microscopic parasite 10,000 times smaller than a grain of salt. COVID-19 attacks our physical bodies, but also the cultural foundations of our lives, the toolbox of community and connectivity that is for the human what claws and teeth represent to the tiger. Read the full article here.

U.S. railroads originated 1,042,017 carloads in July 2020, down 17.6%, or 222,337 carloads, from July 2019. U.S. railroads also originated 1,295,960 containers and trailers in July 2020, down 1.4%, or 18,403 units, from the same month last year. Combined U.S. carload and intermodal originations in July 2020 were 2,337,977, down 9.3%, or 240,740 carloads and intermodal units from July 2019.  Canadian railroads reported 72,466 carloads for the week, down 11.2%, and 68,044 intermodal units, down 9.5% compared with the same week in 2019.  For the first 31 weeks of 2020, Canadian railroads reported cumulative rail traffic volume of 4,288,997 carloads, containers and trailers, down 8.5%.

AAR: “Rail Traffic Is Generally Trending in the Right Direction”, August 5, 2020, www.railwayage.com

CN announced on July 27, 2020 that, as part of its strategic investments to support growing demand and enable supply chains, it plans to invest approximately $50 million (USD) across Mississippi in 2020. The investments will focus on continued investment in Positive Train Control, the replacement of rail and ties, as well as maintenance of bridges, level crossings, culverts, signal systems and other track infrastructure.

CN Investing $50 Million in Mississippi, July 27, 2020, www.cn.ca

CN announced on July 27, 2020 that, as part of its strategic investments to support growing demand and enable supply chains, it plans to invest approximately $60 million (USD) across Louisiana in 2020. The investments includes a multi-year project to rebuild the McComb Spillway Bridge, replacement of rail and ties, as well as maintenance of bridges, level crossings, culverts, signal systems and other track infrastructure.

CN Investing $60 Million in Louisiana, July 27, 2020, www.cn.ca

Travel between Canada and the United States is still restricted but businesses, diplomats and communities that depend on cross-border traffic are urging the two countries to join forces in a co-operative approach to thriving in the new post-pandemic global economy. The Washington-based Canadian American Business Council launched a new online campaign May 21, 2020 to convince states, provinces and federal officials on both sides of the border to team up in their battle back from the impact of COVID-19. The primary goals of the council’s “North American Rebound” campaign are to encourage Canada and the U.S. to work together to secure personal protective equipment, replenish and maintain each other’s medical stockpiles and defend critical cross-border supply chains.  May 22, 2020.   (www.insidelogistics.ca)