Atlas railcar for spent fuel shows lighter axle load, as Idaho readies line for first cask

A 78-foot, 12-axle Atlas railcar built to haul a single spent-nuclear-fuel cask carries about 355 tons when loaded, but distributes roughly 59,000 pounds per axle—lighter per axle than the adjacent 4-axle buffer car welded with 98 tons of dead weight. Idaho is refurbishing its rail line for Atlas’s first shipment, expected in late 2027 from North Anna, Virginia, to Idaho National Laboratory’s INTEC. DOE and rail regulators have issued a conditional path to full approval, contingent on miles of service (up to 100,000) and further testing; the program underscores the logistical challenges of moving nuclear fuel across the U.S. despite the lack of a federal interim storage site.