USA: Reading & Northern will place 154 newly purchased covered hoppers into service immediately, expanding capacity for dried Pennsylvania anthracite shipments to electric-arc furnace steel mills.

Reading & Northern SD50 locomotive leading a freight train through Tamaqua, Pennsylvania
A Reading & Northern SD50 leads a freight train through Tamaqua, Pennsylvania; illustrative image, not the current railcar purchase. Photo: UpperLehighRailfan, CC BY-SA 4.0

$4 Million Deal Covers 124 Cars From CPKC

The Port Clinton-based regional railroad finalized a $4 million agreement with interchange partner Canadian Pacific Kansas City for 124 covered hoppers. It also purchased 30 more cars from another owner, bringing the current addition to 154 units.

The 124-car transaction is the largest single railcar purchase in Reading & Northern’s history, according to details of the acquisition. The railroad owns rather than leases its equipment, and the newly acquired cars are expected to enter service immediately.

Reading & Northern previously bought 30 covered hoppers from CPKC in 2025. Together with the latest purchases, those additions take its owned fleet to nearly 2,000 railcars.

Don’t miss…EIB reviews €75m loan for Zagreb trams and e-buses

Covered Hoppers Support EAF Steel Shipments

The railroad said demand has increased for Pennsylvania anthracite used by electric-arc furnace steel mills in the United States and Canada. Because most anthracite supplied to these facilities must move in dried form, the traffic requires covered hoppers.

Reading & Northern expects its EAF-related business to grow 10% in 2026 and reach nearly 375,000 net tons. The extra equipment is intended to meet current shipping requirements while providing capacity for further growth.

The purchase connects a specific fleet investment with a measurable freight market: more dedicated cars for dried anthracite and a projected increase in steel-industry volumes. However, the railroad did not identify the seller or price of the additional 30 cars.

Fleet Expansion Continues a Long-Term Strategy

Reading & Northern has owned coal cars for decades. Its official company history says the railroad began purchasing cars in 1995 to gain better control over the supply of empty hoppers for coal shipments. The fleet exceeded 1,000 cars by the end of 2013 and reached about 1,800 by the fourth quarter of 2023.

The railroad now operates more than 400 miles of track across eastern Pennsylvania. The latest covered-hopper purchases extend that ownership strategy as it prepares for higher steel-industry anthracite volumes.

News on railway transport, industry, and railway technologies from Railway Supply that you might have missed:

Don’t miss…CRRC Delivers Seven Trains for Shanghai Metro Line 22