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A significant capacity expansion project on Canadian Pacific Railway’s busiest corridor didn’t put a damper on the Class I’s ability to post solid second-quarter revenue increases.

The Class I had net income of $123 million in the second quarter, a 46.4 percent increase compared with net income of $84 million in second-quarter 2004. A focus on higher-yield traffic helped CPR boost revenue per carload 14 percent compared with the same 2004 period, the railway reported.

Overall, CPR recorded revenue of $1.11 billion, a 10 percent increase compared with the same period a year earlier. Revenue was up in five of the railway’s seven business lines, led by coal (up 48 percent compared with second-quarter 2004), intermodal (up 10 percent) and grain (up 7 percent).

The performance was “remarkable,” considering it was achieved “with major track capacity work in full force between the Canadian Prairies and the Vancouver gateway, our busiest corridor,” said CPR President and Chief Executive Officer Rob Ritchie in a prepared statement.

In another “remarkable” line item, CPR's fuel expense increased by 35 percent compared with the same 2004 period, although more than three-quarters of the increase was recouped via fuel surcharges, hedging and a range of fuel-efficiency measures, according to the railroad. Excluding fuel costs, CPR’s operating expenses were up less than 2 percent. The railway’s second-quarter operating ratio of 75.5 represented an improvement of 2.5 percentage points compared with second-quarter 2004’s ratio.

“The fluidity across our network is generating greater operating efficiency, which is driving more of our growth to the bottom line,” Ritchie said.