Earnings per Share Basic and Diluted EPS (Details) (USD $)	3 Months Ended
	Mar. 31, 2014	Mar. 31, 2013
Numerators:
Net income attributable to Genesee & Wyoming Inc. common stockholders	$ 40,004,000	$ 82,563,000
Less: Series A-1 Preferred Stock dividend	0	2,139,000
Net income available to common stockholders	$ 40,004,000	$ 80,424,000
Denominators:
Weighted average Class A common shares outstanding - Basic	54,841,000	51,332,000
Weighted average Class B common shares outstanding	1,609,000	1,726,000
Dilutive effect of employee stock-based awards	455,000	513,000
Dilutive effect of Series A-1 Preferred Stock	0	2,925,000
Weighted average shares - Diluted	56,905,000	56,496,000
Earnings per common share attributable to Genesee & Wyoming Inc. common stockholders:
Basic earnings per common share	$ 0.73	$ 1.57
Diluted earnings per common share	$ 0.70	$ 1.46
Class A common shares [Member]
Denominators:
Weighted average Class A common shares outstanding - Basic	54,841,000	51,332,000