BNSF plan to invest this year USD 3.3 billion on maintenance and network expansion, the company announced. This is the same amount as the 2017 capital investment programme.
USD 2.4 billion will be invested in rail and rolling stock maintenance projects. It will include 20,921 km of track surfacing and/or undercutting work and the replacement of more than 800 km of rail and nearly 3 million rail ties. “This allows our maintenance investment to be at similar levels year-to-year,” Carl Ice, BNSF president said.
For expansion and efficiency projects, the company will invest USD 500 million, focused on key growth areas along BNSF’s Southern and Northern Transcon routes, connecting Southern California with Chicago and the Pacific Northwest to Upper Midwest respectively.
The company has also allocated USD 100 million for positive train control as it moves toward meeting the Dec. 31, 2018 implementation deadline. Currently, BNSF is the only Class I freight rail company to have completed the installation of PTC on all its federally mandated subdivisions and is currently running hundreds of trains daily with PTC as it tests revenue service across its mandated territory. Another element of its capital plan will be USD 300 million for freight cars and other equipment acquisitions.
In the last seventeen years, BNSF invested USD 60 billion in its network all while remaining focused on its commitment to safety, maximizing efficiency and continuing to meet customers’ expectations.
Share on:
