Document and Entity Information Document	9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2013	Nov. 01, 2013 Class A common shares [Member]	Nov. 01, 2013 Class B common shares [Member]
Document Information [Line Items]
Entity Registrant Name	GENESEE & WYOMING INC.
Entity Central Index Key	0001012620
Current Fiscal Year End Date	--12-31
Entity Filer Category	Large Accelerated Filer
Document Type	10-Q
Document Period End Date	Sep. 30, 2013
Document Fiscal Year Focus	2013
Document Fiscal Period Focus	Q3
Amendment Flag	false
Entity Common Stock, Shares Outstanding		51,847,980	1,636,089
Entity Well-known Seasoned Issuer	Yes
Entity Voluntary Filers	No
Entity Current Reporting Status	Yes