Canadian National Railway is committing approximately C$3.4 billion in 2025 capital spending to widen bottlenecks and move more freight across its 20,000-mile network. The plan, disclosed by the Montreal-based carrier behind the tickers CNR and CNI, is framed as a capacity and safety upgrade for a supply chain that still contends with volatile trade flows and periodic port congestion.
The budget is presented net of customer reimbursements and is similar in size to last year’s outlay, signaling a steady investment cadence rather than a one-off splurge. The company said the goal is simple: move more volume, more reliably, at lower unit cost.
In a press release, Chief Executive Tracy Robinson said the spending is about “strengthening the resilience, efficiency, and sustainability of our operations.”
What the plan buys
Most of the money, about C$2.9 billion, is earmarked for maintenance and strategic infrastructure across Canada and the United States.
Canadian National said projects already under way include more than 225 miles of new rail installation and roughly eight capacity enhancements in Western Canada, with the additions expected to come online by the end of 2025.
The railway is also allocating more than C$500 million to rolling stock, a mix of upgrades and fleet expansion that should sharpen service for bulk, merchandise, and intermodal customers.
The focus on Western Canada is notable. That is where port throughput and long inland hauls can strain networks during peak seasons, particularly for grain and container traffic. Extra passing capacity and terminal improvements tend to produce immediate operating gains by reducing meets and dwell.
Canadian National pointed to its recent track record to underline the point. In 2024, it invested about C$3.5 billion, including a four-mile siding extension near Chicago that it says lifted corridor capacity by 17 percent, along with fluidity projects in Greater Vancouver and upgrades at MacMillan Yard near Toronto. Those projects, while historical, show how targeted additions can translate into faster turns and steadier train speeds.
Capacity projects that remove recurring slow spots can support higher revenue ton miles without a matching rise in crew, fuel, and locomotive hours. That leverage is central to margins in a business where fixed costs dominate. Canadian National’s second-quarter results offered a reminder of how cost control and operating discipline can show up in headline metrics.
The company reported a year-over-year improvement in operating ratio and higher diluted EPS, even as revenue slipped slightly. Management also trimmed its 2025 adjusted EPS growth outlook to the mid to high single-digit range, citing economic uncertainty and tariff volatility. The C$3.4 billion capital program remained intact under that guidance.
The commitment arrives as shippers recalibrate inventory and routing strategies after several years of supply chain whiplash. North American grain production looks broadly supportive, and intermodal volumes can benefit if West Coast port schedules normalize and consumer demand holds.
Canadian National’s choice to keep capital steady through the cycle suggests it aims to meet that demand without sacrificing service quality when the next upturn hits. By maintaining ballast, rail, and bridge integrity while adding strategic siding length and terminal functionality, the company is positioning for both reliability and growth.
There are risks. Rail projects can face weather delays and permitting hurdles. Demand could weaken if trade friction intensifies or if industrial output softens more than expected.
Forward-looking statements in the company’s disclosures note those uncertainties. Even so, the broad outline of the plan, with most dollars going to core track and structures and the balance to equipment, aligns with a playbook that has historically delivered incremental capacity at attractive returns.
For customers, the near-term benefits should be visible in fewer delays at known pinch points and greater consistency on high-density corridors.
For shareholders, the payoff will be measured in train velocity, asset turns, and the ability to add revenue carloads without outsized operating expense.
The scale of this year’s budget, close to last year’s total, implies Canadian National intends to keep pressing on both fronts.
If the company executes on the schedule it has set out, the added track and terminal capacity in Western Canada, together with the rolling stock upgrades, should finish the year with a network better equipped for peak season and a balance sheet still anchored by disciplined spend.
That combination is what rail investors typically want to see in a slow-growth macro backdrop: steady capital, targeted projects, and room for margin work as volumes ebb and flow.
