Car Velocity is defined as the average miles per day traveled by loaded and empty, active system, foreign and private cars on company lines.

A Class I railroad in the United States, or a Class I railway (also Class I rail carrier) in Canada, is one of the largest freight railroads, as classified based on operating revenue. Smaller railroads are classified as Class II and Class III. The exact revenues required to be in each class have varied through the years, and they are now continuously adjusted for inflation. The threshold for a Class I Railroad in 2006 was $346.8 million.

CN is the tradename for Canadian National Railway Company (CNR) and its operating railroad subsidiaries.

Cogeneration plants simultaneously generate both electricity and useful heat and can utilize a variety of fuel sources including wood.

In Canada, the Canadian Transportation of Dangerous Goods Regulations, section 1.4, defines dangerous goods as: explosives, gases, flammable and combustible liquids, flammable solids, oxidizing substances, organic peroxides, poisonous (toxic) and infectious substances, nuclear substances, corrosives, or miscellaneous products, substances or organisms considered by the Governor in Council to be dangerous to life, health, property or the environment when handled, offered for transport or transported.

In the United States, a dangerous good is defined by the U.S. Department of Transportation Hazardous Materials Regulations as a substance or material which has been determined by the Secretary of Transportation to be capable of posing an unreasonable risk to health, safety, and property when transported in commerce, and which has been so designated.

• 12’ in height or exceeding 15’ 6” above top of rail (ATR)
• Combined center of gravity equal to or above 98” (ATR)
• Gross weight (including load and railcar) exceeds track capacity on standard railcar
• Any load requiring a 6 axle car or greater
• Exceeds the length or width of a railcar (including securement)
• 10’ 8” in width or greater than Plate C

This term refers to how effectively energy is being used for a given purpose. For example, providing a similar (or better) level of service with less energy consumption on a per unit basis is considered an improvement in energy efficiency. Energy efficiency is measured in units of energy such as British thermal units (BTU), megajoules (MJ), gigajoules (GJ), kilocalories (kcal), or kilowatt-hours (kWh).

The amount of energy used per unit of activity. Examples of activity measures are households, floor space, passenger-kilometres and tonne-kilometres.

The output one gets for a unit amount of fuel input such as "miles per gallon" or "litres per 100 kilometres" (l/100 km) for an automobile or ton-miles (of freight) for rail.

Greenhouse Gas Intensity at CN refers to the number of kilograms of carbon emissions emitted per ton-mile of freight moved.

A measure of the movement of one ton of freight or equipment over one mile.

A truck with a gross vehicle weight that is more than, or equal to, 14,970 kg (33,001 lb). The gross vehicle weight is the weight of the empty vehicle plus the maximum anticipated load weight.

Interline refers to shipments that involve more than one railroad as they move from origin to destination.

Railroad-Controlled Cars on-Line is defined as the average of the daily on-line inventory of freight cars under railroad control and exclude: private cars once placed at customer location, foreign or system empty cars placed at a customer location for greater than 24 hours, and foreign or system loaded cars placed at a customer location for greater than 48 hours. Articulated cars are counted as a single unit. Maintenance of way cars are excluded.

Environmental remediation deals with the removal of pollution or contaminants from the environment that have affected the soil, groundwater or surface water, for the general protection of human health and the environment.

RTM is calculated by multiplying the weight in tons of the shipment lading being transported (or “tons of lading carried in the Carload”) by the number of miles that the shipment (or Carload) is transported on company lines. The tare weight of the car is excluded.

The miles of right-of-way owned or leased and operated by the designated railroad. Route miles exclude mainline trackage operated under trackage rights. In multiple track territories, only one mainline track counts as route miles.

The ability to meet present needs without compromising those of future generations. It relates to the continuity of economic, social, institutional and environmental aspects of human society, as well as the non-human environment.

The TEST car is a refurbished passenger coach car that contains state-of-the-art technology that analyzes and monitors geometric imperfections of the track structure as well as rail wear using video cameras, lasers, electronic sensors, simulators and talking computers. Any imperfections that exceed FRA or Transport Canada safety guidelines or CN's own standards are immediately addressed by maintenance personnel. Information from the car is also used for long- and short-term maintenance planning purposes as well as in capital.

Through dwell is the average time a car resides within terminal boundaries expressed in hours. The measurement begins with a customer release, received interchange, or train arrival event and ends with a customer placement (actual or constructive), delivered or offered in interchange, or train departure event. This excludes stored, bad ordered, maintenance of way cars, or cars with dwell greater than 10 days.

Through network train speed measures the line-haul movement from origin to destination, including time at terminals. The average speed is calculated by dividing train-miles by total hours operated, excluding yard and local trains, passenger trains, maintenance of way trains, and foreign trains.

A detailed transit plan for every shipment on CN and connecting lines that includes the stations the shipment is scheduled to pass through and estimated time of arrival at destination.

A name applied to any number of energy sources other than conventional fuels used in the cement industry. It includes materials such as tires, municipal waste and landfill off-gases.