Table of Contents
A Green Railroad
Did you know that railroads are one of the most environmentally friendly modes of freight transportation? It's true. Freight trains are almost four times more fuel-efficient than over-the-road trucks and have less impact on greenhouse gas emissions than trucks. Union Pacific moves one ton 830 miles on one gallon of diesel fuel. See for yourself! Haul some freight on the Association of American Railroad's Carbon Calculator.
Did You Know…Each ton-mile of freight moved by rail reduces greenhouse gas emissions by two-thirds, compared to transportation by truck. |
Union Pacific is continually improving its fuel efficiency through better locomotive technology, engineer training and employee involvement. UP is part of the SmartWay Transportation Partnership, an innovative collaboration with the Environmental Protection Agency to increase energy efficiency while reducing greenhouse gasses and air pollution.
The result: Since 1998, UP has achieved a 15 percent improvement in fuel efficiency. (See our Fuel Conservation Facts Sheet (PDF File) and our year-by-year track record for additional details.) In 2008 alone, Union Pacific saved more than 58 million gallons of diesel fuel. At the same time, Union Pacific's transportation plan increases traffic flow and asset utilization. Both have a big impact on lowering fuel consumption.
Vision
Union Pacific will be recognized as being the environmentally responsible transportation leader.
Mission
- Prevention: Prevent the causes of environmental damage that result from railroad operations.
- Preparedness: Develop partnership with internal and external customers to prepare for effective emergency response and tomorrow’s environmental issues.
- Response: Respond to emergencies involving environmentally sensitive materials to minimize health, environmental, operational and financial impact to Union Pacific Railroad.
- Recovery: Cleanup contamination for which Union Pacific is responsible.
Environmental POLICY
"At Union Pacific Railroad, we are committed to protecting the environment now and for future generations. Our employees, customers, shareholders and the communities we serve can expect our full compliance with all laws and regulations.
"Union Pacific is developing and investing in new technologies that provide for cleaner air and water, including a locomotive fleet that’s the greenest in the industry.
"Our employees understand that protecting the environment is part of every job, and they are creating and implementing world-class energy conservation techniques that are helping us to move more freight with less fuel.
"We will continue our leadership in caring for the environment while delivering the goods that America needs."
– Jim Young
Chairman and Chief Executive Officer
Union Pacific is committed to protecting the nation's environment. As North America's largest railroad, Union Pacific’s service territory spans the western two-thirds of the United States. More than 32,000 miles of track connect transportation hubs in Chicago, St. Louis, Memphis and New Orleans, and pass through pristine mountain areas in Oregon, California, Utah and Washington. UP trains carry coal, food, grain, ethanol, minerals, lumber, metals, automobiles and chemicals, and have a major impact on the country’s economy, especially in the South and the Southwest where the U.S. population is growing the fastest.
Green Technology
As North America's largest railroad, Union Pacific is aggressively working to become even "cleaner and greener" – and technology is playing an important role.
Did You Know…If just 10 percent of the freight moved by highway were diverted to rail, the nation could save as much as 1 billion gallons of fuel annually. |
There are five tiers of locomotive emission standards set by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), which are progressively more stringent. Over time, these standards require continuing reductions in locomotive exhaust emissions of nitrogen oxide, particulate matter and other pollutants.
With more than two thirds of its road locomotives certified under existing EPA Tier 0, Tier 1 and Tier 2 standards, UP owns the cleanest fleet in North America, using technology to further reduce fuel consumption and diesel engine exhaust-related emissions.
Railroads are committed to substantial reductions in atmospheric emissions and are constantly conducting research to further reduce emissions.
The Short Haul
Two new environmentally friendly switching locomotives will be significantly "cleaner and greener" than required by current EPA locomotive emissions standards. In addition, the California Air Resources Board has designated them as "ultra-low-emitting locomotives."
The Genset
Union Pacific pioneered a low-emissions switch locomotive, the "Genset Switcher." This prototype uses modified, low-emissions EPA-certified "off-road" diesel engines (derived from low-emissions, truck-style diesel engines) and was delivered to the railroad in late 2005.
It is projected to reduce emissions of oxides of nitrogen by 80 percent and particulate matter by 90 percent, while using as much as 37 percent less fuel compared to current older switching locomotives.
UP has more than 160 Gensets in service in yards and is adding newer models to increase power to push rail cars.
UP's commitment to and operation of the Genset resulted in the company earning the 2008 CALSTART Blue Sky Merit Award. The award recognizes outstanding contributions to clean air, energy efficiency and to a cleaner transportation industry overall.
Find out more with our Genset Fast Facts. (PDF File)
The Green Goat
To reduce emissions in the rail yards, Union Pacific tested the world's first diesel-battery hybrid switch locomotive in early 2002. The "Green Goat" is similar in concept to the Toyota Prius automobile, which relies on both a gasoline engine and a battery-powered electric motor.
The Green Goat, however, depends entirely on its small, diesel-powered engine to charge onboard storage batteries to provide all propulsion power. The Green Goat hybrid locomotive is estimated to reduce emissions of oxides of nitrogen and particulate matter by up to 80 percent, and reduce fuel consumption by at least 16 percent, compared to a conventional switch locomotive.
Union Pacific tested the original prototype Green Goat locomotive during 2002 and 2003, and acquired its first Green Goat hybrid locomotive in March 2005. The locomotives are used in daily switching. Ten units are serving the Houston and Dallas-Fort Worth yards. An additional 11 Green Goat locomotives are used in California, most of them in the Los Angeles area.
Advanced Locomotive Emissions Control System (ALECS)
Also in 2006, Union Pacific partnered with the EPA, the California Air Resources Board, Placer County Air Pollution Control District and other local, state and federal agencies for a pilot test of the Advanced Locomotive Emissions Control System (ALECS) at J.R. Davis Rail Yard in Roseville, California.
An experimental technology, ALECS includes a stationary emissions treatment unit that is connected to diesel locomotives with flexible ducts, and a hood designed to fit over and attach to the exhaust stacks. Diesel-related emissions are then captured and treated, rather than being released into the air. UP is evaluating ALECS's feasibility.
Reduced Locomotive Idling
In a railroad operating environment, locomotive engines may be kept idling for several reasons: In a yard, they idle between work events; on the main line, they idle while meeting or passing other trains; in cold temperatures, they idle to keep their fuel and water lines from freezing.
The railroad has developed a comprehensive plan to reduce the amount of time locomotive engines idle. Part of the plan involves using automatic stop-start equipment on newer locomotives to eliminate unnecessary idling. Older locomotives are being retrofitted with similar technology. Nearly half of Union Pacific's locomotive fleet is now equipped with this technology.
UP continues to train employees and reinforce shutdown requirements, emphasizing the impact they can have on fuel conservation and diesel emissions by reducing engine idling.
- Find out more about Green Technology at Union Pacific.
The Long Haul
There are two primary types of locomotives at Union Pacific – high-horsepower locomotives that pull freight over long distances, and switch locomotives that work in train yards, sorting inbound cars, assembling outbound cars and delivering cars to customers.
Union Pacific has been working with two manufacturers to field-test new, high-horsepower locomotives that surpass the EPA's Tier 2 emission standards. UP tested the locomotives under severe operating conditions before the locomotives went into production. Since 2000, more than 3,300 new fuel-efficient, long-haul, high-horsepower locomotives have been added to Union Pacific’s fleet. More than 2,200 older locomotives were retired, and 2,800 locomotive diesel engines were overhauled or rebuilt.
The Oxicat
Union Pacific is field testing an emission-reduction device for older locomotives, in the Los Angeles area. In collaboration with the Environmental Protection Agency, Union Pacific is providing a 3,800-horsepower SD60M locomotive built in January 1992, to serve as the first freight locomotive in North America to be equipped with a set of oxidation catalysts or "Oxicat" converter devices. As the diesel engine's exhaust flows through these converters, microscopic particles – known as "particulate matter" – generated by the diesel combustion process will be converted into water and carbon dioxide.
This technology has the potential to reduce particulate emissions by about 50 percent, hydrocarbons by 38 percent and carbon monoxide by 82 percent.
The Diesel Particulate Filter
In a similar field test, a 1,500-horsepower yard switching locomotive built in November 1982, also provided by Union Pacific, has been retrofitted with a diesel particulate filter or "DPF." The DPF initiative is the result of a 4-year program, funded in part by Union Pacific, to assess clean-engine technologies for locomotive applications.
The DPF acts as a filter that uses high-temperature silicon carbide blocks to trap particulate matter in the exhaust. As the gases containing the carbon particles accumulate, the device periodically heats the carbon, causing it to ignite and burn off as water and carbon dioxide. Tests show a 75 percent reduction in particulate matter.
The Green Routine
We believe that a greener world sometimes demands a shift in how we do our business.
Energy-saving features were a major part of the construction plan for Union Pacific Center, which opened in 2004. The 19-story building includes an atrium allowing in natural light, an under-floor cooling system providing comfort-conditioning for employees and power for business operation needs, and a computerized energy-management system.
For optimal efficiency, the building is equipped with an air-handling system that has variable speed fans and direct digital controls for computerized management of mechanical equipment and lighting. Instead of drawing in a standard amount of outside air, the ventilation system automatically adjusts fresh air for the number of people in the building. In addition, a hydraulic economizer is used in the cooling tower for optimal energy savings.
Union Pacific Center was recognized with an Energy Star® designation from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and an Energy Innovators Award from the U.S. Department of Energy as one of the nation’s most energy-efficient buildings.
Stewardship changes in our day-to-day operations also are having a real "green" effect on our railroad.
Did You Know…One double-stack train can haul as much as 280 trucks. |
Reduce, Recycle, Renew
Union Pacific's comprehensive waste reduction and recycling program touches nearly every part of the company.
Concerted efforts are being made to address high-volume items such as wooden track ties, used oil and e-waste.
Crossties
Whenever possible, track ties that are no longer needed are refurbished for use elsewhere in the UP system. Ties not used internally are sold to contractors.
In addition, Union Pacific has been using concrete ties for nearly 20 years and continues to add concrete ties to its system. Concrete is more durable in high-tonnage, high-traffic areas and requires less maintenance than wood. Because concrete lasts longer, it generates less waste. Composite ties are also being used as an alternative to wood ties in Arkansas, Louisiana and East Texas.
Fuel and Oil
Union Pacific's standard operating equipment for fueling and locomotive-maintenance activities includes automatic fuel-nozzle shutoffs to prevent overflows, drip pans to catch spills, separators to recover oil from industrial wastewater, tank gauges and alarms. On-board retention tanks capture residual oil from locomotive engines for proper disposal. In addition, recycling used oil is a high priority at Union Pacific. One hundred percent of the oil captured at fueling and servicing facilities is recycled.
E-waste
E-waste is generally characterized as computers and computer monitors, televisions, cell phones, DVDs, VCRs and audio equipment, and is one of the world's fastest-growing sources of waste.
As the use of electronic devices for personal and business use continues to grow, so does the amount of e-waste. At Union Pacific, any electronic equipment no longer needed is evaluated to determine if it can be recycled, reused or rebuilt. The company has recycled more than 700,000 pounds of electronic equipment and nearly 2.5 million pounds of signal batteries in 2007 and 2008.
Prevention
Running a green operation demands constant vigilance and forward thinking to safeguard our environment. Here are a few examples:
Spill Prevention
Spill Prevention Control and Countermeasure (SPCC) plans have been prepared and implemented at 135 Union Pacific facilities. SPCC plans identify inspections, maintenance and response requirement for facilities that store, transfer and use oil products. The plans are designed to prevent releases of oil to the environment.
Wastewater
Union Pacific operates and maintains more than 100 wastewater treatment facilities across its system.
The facilities are designed to capture and process wastewater from UP fueling and maintenance operations. The wastewater is treated to a quality standard set by the regulating agency authority. The treated wastewater is then either discharged to surface waters, i.e., adjacent rivers or streams, or transferred to publicly owned treatment works to receive additional treatment prior to surface discharge.
Union Pacific has implemented and maintains Stormwater Pollution Prevention plans at all facilities where maintenance of locomotives and rail cars occurs. These plans identify inspections, maintenance and best-management practices to ensure the stormwater that contacts our facilities is not contaminated.
Monitoring and Inspections
Inspections and ongoing monitoring are proactive examples of Union Pacific's commitment to the environment.
For example, one employee team in Omaha tracks all rail cars containing chemicals that are time-sensitive. UP was the first railroad to monitor, on a daily basis, every time-sensitive shipment. If a rail car appears to be delayed en route to its destination, this team initiates a series of actions to ensure safe arrival of the material in the designated time period.
Inspections are also performed regularly on source areas and operations that generate air emissions, industrial wastewaters and storm-water runoff, and/or that store hazardous waste and petroleum products.
At UP, periodic testing is performed on locomotive fuel storage tanks and underground petroleum pipelines to ensure container integrity and prevent releases of fuel or oil into the environment.
Customers and Employees
Working with Customers
It's a common misconception that trains made up of tank cars are owned by the railroad.
In fact, while Union Pacific owns the locomotive, customers own the tank cars. Therefore, Union Pacific works closely with customers on training issues related to protecting the content by properly securing cars that contain hazardous materials. More than 400 cars are randomly selected for inspection each month throughout UP's system. Although not required by any rule or regulation, Union Pacific believes these regular, proactive examinations can help identify defective cars, and provide opportunities for the training needed to reduce accidents and spills.
Union Pacific also recognizes customers who maintain zero releases of hazardous materials from their cars each year, while offering separate awards for customers demonstrating excellence in their billing procedures. Billing accuracy is critical, because an exact description of the rail car’s contents is needed if an emergency occurs.
You'll find more information on efforts with Chemical customers on our Chemical Transportation Safety and Responsible Care pages.
Green Employees
Union Pacific employees are a major component of operating a safe and environmentally friendly railroad.
Many of these employees are Union Pacific's "front line," actively engaged in identifying any issues that prevent the railroad's safe operation. For example, Union Pacific has its own police force, specially trained in railroad operations. These special agents live in the community and work closely with local emergency response personnel.
Union Pacific also has environmental field managers and hazardous material managers assigned to specific locations. These managers are knowledgeable about unique issues and can address local community needs and requirements.
Our 3,600 UP trains operating daily are in good care, with engineers and conductors following appropriate rules and instructions regarding the proper handling of hazardous materials.
Green Communities
Despite the company's thorough safety initiatives, occasionally accidents do happen.
Did You Know…Fuel efficiency for U.S. railroads has increased by 86 percent since 1980. |
Union Pacific invests significant resources training local emergency responders, who often are first at the scene of a derailment. Since 1986, nearly 900 local response personnel have been trained at a formal test center in Pueblo, Colorado, which provides hands-on practice with simulated train derailments. Union Pacific invites emergency responders from communities across its system and pays 100 percent of their expenses.
Union Pacific also supports emergency response training programs in San Luis Obispo, California, and Longview, Texas. In addition, Union Pacific provides one-on-one training to any emergency response team upon request. Since 1979, Union Pacific has trained more than 170,000 local fire and law enforcement personnel.
Union Pacific also participates in industrywide "Whistle Stop" training tours that roll through communities every year. Nearly 6,000 local emergency responders have been reached through these various training programs provided locally, which focus on emergency response as it relates to all forms of transportation, including railroads and truck lines.
Emergency Response Committees
Union Pacific employees take an active role in state and local emergency planning committees, which were mandated by the federal government in 1984.
The government requires every state to form a State Emergency Response Commission; in turn, each state commission forms local emergency response committees. These committees consist of representatives from local fire and health departments, education, industry, transportation and the public. The committees receive information about chemicals located in their communities, and use this information to help formulate local emergency plans. Union Pacific requires its hazardous materials managers to participate in the local planning committees; railroad employees are involved at the state level as well.
In addition to providing local training and participating in local emergency planning committees, Union Pacific has established or participates in local advisory committees to give communities a forum to discuss health, safety, noise, environmental or any other railroad-related issues. A third party facilitates these meetings, which include a diverse group of community citizens and Union Pacific personnel. UP has formed advisory committees in Little Rock, Ark., North Platte, Neb., and San Antonio, Texas.
TRANSCAER
Union Pacific and Dow Chemical created TRANSCAER ® (Transportation Community Awareness and Emergency Response), a national initiative to improve community awareness of hazardous materials transportation throughout the country.
UP has participated with Dow to create a safety train to provide free railroad and chemical transportation training to local firefighters and emergency response personnel. The train is equipped with a classroom and training center on rails. TRANSCAER is one of eight strategic goals Dow and UP are jointly addressing, as outlined in a memorandum of cooperation established in 2007. For Dow, TRANSCAER also is an integral part of the Company's long-standing commitment to local protection of human health and the environment, one of the foundational tenets of Dow's 2015 Sustainability Goals.
UP also participates in Responsible Care , the chemical industry's national quality initiative to improve processes related to safety, health, environment and security beyond levels required by the U.S. government. Union Pacific was the only railroad to be certified under Responsible Care 2000 standards, and was the first railroad to be certified under 2004 standards. Certification requires outside auditors to review the company’s management practices at headquarters and in the field.
Emergency Contact
UP has created a single, nationwide 24-hour emergency hotline to report hazardous materials releases, personal injuries, criminal activities, illegal dumping or other environmental incidents. Calls for the toll-free number go to UP's Response Management Communication Center (RMCC), which immediately takes action based on the nature of the call. Additionally, UP has installed emergency notification signs at thousands of rail crossings. Each sign carries a unique Department of Transportation number. The DOT number enables RMCC to identify the motorist's exact location. If, for instance, a vehicle is stuck on the track, the dispatcher is notified to stop train traffic.
Green Success
Making a greener environment is a long road marked with many milestones along the way. Union Pacific's J.R. Davis Yard in Roseville, California, is one of those milestones.
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Following the merger of Southern Pacific into Union Pacific in the late '90s, Union Pacific undertook a major reconstruction and modernization of the Roseville rail yard. The $142 million dollar renovation transformed the rail yard into UP's most modern railroad classification yard in the western United States.
Today, the J.R. Davis Yard receives daily trains from Los Angeles, Long Beach, Oakland, the Central Valley, and the Pacific Northwest. Approximately 98 percent of all rail traffic in Northern California moves through the yard. Modernization has reduced car handling in Roseville by about 400 per day.
More efficient rail car processing has reduced transit times by up to five days for at least 75 percent of all rail traffic moving through Roseville. Consequently, consumers and businesses in Roseville, Northern California and beyond receive their products more expeditiously and economically.
Many of the same concepts are at the heart of Union Pacific's efforts to modernize its Intermodal Container Transfer Facility near the Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach. Read more about plans to nearly double capacity at the facility while reducing air emissions and the size of the yard.
Did You Know…Trains are more than 3 times as fuel efficient as trucks on a ton-mile basis. |
California Air Resources Board
For more than a decade, Union Pacific has worked closely with the California Air Resources Board (ARB) in a cooperative effort to reduce emissions and improve California's air quality.
The genesis of these efforts began with a first-of-its-kind commitment in 1998 to bring the most advanced and least polluting technology to the South Coast Air Basin. This 1998 Memorandum of Understanding, or MOU, already has achieved major reductions and is expected to reduce locomotive NOx emissions in the South Coast by 65 percent by 2010.
Beginning in 1999, Union Pacific worked with ARB to prepare the first-ever comprehensive Health Risk Assessment (HRA) of an operating rail yard. The findings of this study were summarized in the Roseville Rail Yard Study (ARB 2004) regarding the J.R. Davis Yard in Roseville. Based on the success of that project and the identification of effective emission reductions measures, ARB brought the two California Class 1 railroads - Union Pacific and BNSF Railway - together to sign a voluntary Memorandum of Understanding in 2005.
The 2005 ARB/Railroad Statewide Agreement is wide-ranging, and contains provisions for the railroads to install idle control devices on all intrastate locomotives, perform locomotive exhaust opacity inspections, maximize the use of Ultra Low Sulfur diesel fuel, invest in new technology research, assist ARB with preparation of HRAs for 17 rail yards throughout the state and work with local stakeholders to evaluate emission reduction ideas.
By 2007, UP reduced overall emissions significantly from year 2000 levels while still accommodating growth in the volume of goods and materials moved through the region. The railroad achieved these reductions using a combination of:
- new technology
- operational changes
- new equipment
- fuel quality improvements and
- working cooperatively with ARB
Union Pacific is committed to seeking reduced emissions. Compared to 2005 levels, ARB has estimated UP and BNSF actions will reduce rail yard diesel Particulate Matter emissions by an average of 50 percent as early as 2010, 65 percent by 2015 and 80 percent by 2020.
For additional information, see UP's Progress Report and the ARB Web site.
Green Programs
Environmental Recognition
On Earth Day 1994, Union Pacific presented the first annual "Chairman's Environmental Award." The award was established to recognize a Union Pacific Railroad employee demonstrating outstanding environmental awareness, leadership and responsibility.
The Chairman's Environmental Award winner represents Union Pacific as its nominee for the Association of American Railroads' (AAR) John H. Chafee Environmental Excellence Award.
The Chafee Award is given to those who exhibit outstanding stewardship of the environment. The award is named for John H. Chafee, a four-term U.S. Senator from Rhode Island, and a noted environmentalist. Sen. Lincoln Chafee, son of the man for whom the award was named, has presented the award to recent recipients.
One nominee is selected from among all participating railroads for the prestigious award. Since 1993, five of Union Pacific's Chairman's Environmental Award winners have been recipients of the AAR award (** represents AAR winners).
Winners
- 2007:Debra Schafer**, General Director, Maintenance of Way - Environmental, Omaha, NE
- 2006: Dennis Sullivan, Carman, DeSoto, MO
- 2005: Wayne A. Kennedy**, General Director, Fuel Conservation–Continuous Improvement, Omaha, NE
- 2004: Tom Franklin **, Mgr. Mechanical – Locomotive, North Little Rock, AR
- 2003: Kent Denkers, Mechanical – Locomotive, Omaha, NE
- 2002: Gary Biggs, Maintenance Supervisor, Fort Worth, TX
- 2001: Tim Kraus, Water Serv. Lead Man, San Antonio, TX
- 2000: David Simpson, Foreman General, , Hermiston, OR
- 1999: Audrey Butler, Material Supervisor, Pocatello, ID
- 1998: Dennis Sullivan, Carman, Desoto, MO
- 1997: Mitch Dugger **, Work Equipment Supervisor, Fairdealing, MO
- 1996: Carl Leroy Lachance, Manager Car Maintenance, Desoto, MO
- 1995: Richard Jacobs **, Locomotive Shop Foreman, Ft. Worth, TX
- 1994: David Hartley, Car Foreman, Desoto, MO
- 1993: Ben Crandall, Car Foreman, Salt Lake City, UT
Fuel Masters
Union Pacific has incorporated a number of strategies to reduce fuel consumption per thousand gross ton miles hauled by 1.5 percent each year since 2004. Each 1 percent improvement in the fuel consumption rate saves approximately 12 million gallons annually.
One of the most visible strategies is the Fuel Masters program, an employee-driven conservation program that rewards the fuel-saving efforts of locomotive engineers.
More than 6,800 engineers on almost 150 routes are taking part in the program.
As part of this innovative program, locomotive engineers, and the dispatchers working with them, are rewarded for efficiently operating trains.
As creator of the Fuel Masters program, Wayne Kennedy, general director-fuel conservation, was honored with the rail industry's 2005 Chafee Award.
UP is continually evaluating additional ways to reduce fuel consumption to make rail's environmental benefits even more compelling. Those initiatives include making operational changes for more fuel efficient train handling, researching aerodynamic efficiencies, incorporating additional technology, and expanding both engineer and dispatcher training.
SmartWay Program
UP is a participant in the SmartWaySM Transport Partnership, a voluntary collaboration between the U.S. EPA and the freight industry designed to increase energy efficiency while significantly reducing greenhouse gases and air pollution.
SmartWay Transport Partners lead the way toward a cleaner, more efficient transportation future by adopting fuel-saving strategies that increase profits and reduce emissions. SmartWay Transport Partners are commercial, industrial and public sector organizations that commit to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and air pollution and to improve fuel efficiency of ground freight transportation. The EPA provides Partners with benefits and services that include fleet management tools, technical support, information, public recognition, and, for exceptional environmental performers, use of the SmartWay Transport Partner logo.
Green Reference
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UP and the Environment |
External Resources |
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Green Facts
We don't think there's anything trivial about the following trivia that highlights why railroads are one of the most environmentally friendly modes of freight transportation.
- Trains are almost four times more fuel efficient than trucks on a ton-mile basis.
- The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) estimates that for every ton-mile, a typical truck emits roughly three times more oxides of nitrogen and particulates than a locomotive.
- If just 10 percent of the freight moved by highway were diverted to rail, the nation could save as much as 1 billion gallons of fuel annually.
 Cumulative Reduction in GHG Emissions if 10% of Long-Haul Freight Moved by Truck Were Moved Instead by Rail (million tons) AAR, June 2008. |
- Fuel efficiency for U.S. railroads has increased by 86 percent since 1980.
- Railroads and rail suppliers have reduced the weight and increased the capacity of rail cars to improve fuel efficiency and reduce emissions. The average freight car capacity is now nearly 100 tons, up 20 percent since 1980.
- One double-stack train can take 300 trucks off of congested highways.
A 25 percent shift of freight from trucks to rail in urban areas in the U.S. by 2026 would, on average,:
- Save each commuter 41 hours a year,
- Save $985 in congestion costs per commuter each year,
- Save each commuter 79 gallons of fuel each year, and
- Reduce air pollution by nearly 920,500 tons each year.
Green TV
"California Air Agencies Celebrate Newest Ultra-Low Emitting Switch Locomotive"
"Clean Air Locomotives"
KSEE24 News - Fresno, CA.
"Green Trains Stop in Oakland"
KGO-TV/DT - San Francisco/Oakland/San Jose, CA