Mileposts: CPKC’s New Laredo Bridge Doubling Rail Freight Capacity
By Shawn I. Smith In February 2025, CPKC officially announced the opening of a second span of their Patrick J. Ottensmeyer International Railway Bridge, which crosses the Rio Grande between the U.S. and Mexico at Laredo, TX. This work is
Employee Spotlight: Get to know Karl Carson, General Manager of Operations
Leading Operations with Vision, Dedication, and Team Excellence. What is your job title? My title is General Manager of Operations. What does your job entail? I oversee all aspects of Complete Track Works and Highland Excavating. When did you start with the company? I started here
How Northern Plains Rail Services Powers Agricultural Growth with Track Work, Locomotives, and Safety Training
Northern Plains Provides Track Work, Locomotives, and Safety Training to New Agricultural Industries Located in Hager City, WI, ALCIVIA, a member-owned agricultural and energy cooperative recently opened a new shuttle-loading grain elevator facility in Wisconsin, served by the BNSF Railway.Northern Plains Rail Services was
Getting to Know Amanda Rey: An Employee Spotlight
1. What is your job title at Northern Plains? Regional Manager of Marketing and Development 2. What does your job entail? My role is to identify opportunities where we can strategically grow our business. I work alongside existing and prospective customers to grow
New Era: Cypress Rail Takes Over NPRS Facilities
On October 2, 2024, Cypress Rail Solutions assumed operations of rail car shops and facilities formerly operated by Northern Plains Rail Services at both Erskine, Minnesota, and Grand Forks, North Dakota. In addition, Cypress assumed operations of several NPRS-operated mobile
One of the First Industrial Railways
Located 30 miles northeast of Edmonton, within Alberta’s Industrial Heartland, is Nutrien’s Redwater Plant, producing over 950,000 tons per annum of ammonia- and nitrogen-based fertilizer products that remain essential to the agricultural industry.Taking advantage of the attributes of a local
Heartland Heritage: Rail and Agriculture’s Role in Economic Growth
Growing up in rural Alberta, I was constantly reminded that I lived in the “Heart of Alberta” – the proud slogan adopted by Stettler in its earliest days. In town, we had many similarly titled businesses, like the Heartlander Motel,
Harvest 2024 Report: NPRS Helps Deliver One of the Best Crops in Years
After the usual worries and predictions, the 2024 cereal, corn, and oil seed crop along NPR’s network in North Dakota and Minnesota proved to be generally of high quality, with good yields. The results are good news for our growers, communities,
We Go ENSCO
This past fall, Northern Plains Rail Services was pleased to be selected as the official railroad operator for the Transportation Technology Center (TTC), a specialized rail testing facility located near Pueblo, CO. The TTC – jointly owned by the Federal Railroad
Pulling for You
Like all railroads, our ability to serve customers and efficiently operate our trains is determined by the nature of our locomotive fleet. At NPR, our current 22-unit fleet includes “first, second, and third generation” locomotives, from the oldest, a 1952