Railroad News

Amtrak, in coordination with BNSF Railway Co., will implement positive train control (PTC) over several BNSF-owned subdivisions this week, which will mark the first activation on host-owned territory used by Amtrak.

Subdivisions that serve Amtrak's Southwest Chief and California Zephyr routes are the first to roll out the technology, with full PTC activation on BNSF-owned track expected by the end of August, Amtrak and BNSF officials said in a press release.

The American Public Transportation Association (APTA) yesterday announced the winners of the 2018 Rail Safety and Excellence Awards at the association's annual Rail Conference, which this year is being held this week in Denver.

The awards recognize recognize public transportation organizations for their "innovative and proactive" safety and security programs. It also provides value to the industry by benchmarking successful programs so other public transit systems can adopt them and derive similar benefits, APTA officials said in a press release.

By This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it., Managing Editor

Amsted Rail has formed Amsted Digital Solutions to deliver the next generation of onboard telematics and wireless sensor products. The company has re-engineered its IONX telematics hardware and software to create an end-to-end platform for freight-rail cars and other unpowered assets, Amsted officials said in a press release. The digital solutions arm also is expanding its machine learning engineering team, rolling out a new generation of E-Series Internet of Things (IoT) devices and expanding its presence abroad.

Siemens and Alstom have jointly filed an application for merger control clearance with the European Commission. Due to extended pre-filing preparations and data gathering in multiple countries, the companies expect a delay of a few months, leading to a closing date during 2019's first half. The transaction is subject to approval at Alstom's July 17 shareholder meeting, according to an Alstom press release. The deal must be approved by "competition authorities," company officials added.

The North Carolina Department of Transportation (NCDOT) has awarded a $48.6 million contract to Crowder Construction Co. to build track structures for the future Charlotte Gateway Station.

The work will include construction of the platform, structures and roadbed for track to the planned station. The project is slated to begin July 9 and wrap up by April 2022, NCDOT officials said in a press release.

Linda Bauer Darr has been named president and chief executive officer of the American Council of Engineering Cos. (ACEC). She will begin her new job in August.

Darr is currently president of the American Short Line and Regional Railroad Association (ASLRRA), which announced last week that she would resign in July to accept a post with a larger trade association.

The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) yesterday released a preliminary report of its investigation into the May 19 derailment of a CSX train in Alexandria, Virginia.

The derailment occurred about 500 feet north of two CSX bridges that cross Norfolk Southern Railway tracks. A CSX bridge on main track No. 1 was extensively damaged; a CSX bridge for main tracks No. 2 and 3 remained in service. Some of the derailed CSX cars fouled the NS tracks below the bridge, according to the NTSB report.

The Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority (Metro) late last week revealed initial concepts for a proposed transit-rail line through the Sepulveda Pass.

The agency is exploring four concepts for the corridor: heavy rail, light rail, monorail and a rubber-tired train system.

The South Carolina Ports Authority's (SCPA) Charleston Harbor deepening project has been allocated $49 million in federal funds in the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers' (USACE) fiscal-year 2018 work plan.

Coupled with financial support from the state of South Carolina, the funds will enable the port to further deepen the harbor to 52 feet, port officials said in a press release.

The Railway Association of Canada (RAC) has named Marc Brazeau as president and chief executive officer.

Brazeau, who will begin his new job on July 3, succeeds Michael Bourque, who was the association's president and CEO from April 2012 to November 2017, according to an RAC press release.

The Utah Transit Authority (UTA) won the top honor at the American Public Transportation Association's (APTA) International Rail Rodeo, held June 7-10 in Denver.

The Rail Transit Team Achievement Award is given to the system with the highest rail operator and maintainer team combined score in the rodeo, which was held in conjunction with APTA's 2018 Rail Conference, which ends tomorrow.

By This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it., Managing Editor

U.S. Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) has secured language in a federal transportation appropriations bill that would ensure Amtrak employs at least one ticketing agent in every state.

Manchin lobbied for the measure after Amtrak announced it was terminating its only ticketing agent position in West Virginia. Although Amtrak sells most of its tickets online, about 30 percent of West Virginia has no internet access, Manchin wrote in a letter to Amtrak President and Chief Executive Officer Richard Anderson.

Sound Transit has scheduled three open houses to provide an update on station designs for the Lynnwood Link light-rail extension.

The agency has made a series of "design refinements" to cut costs for the 8.5-mile extension, Sound Transit officials said in a press release. The line will run from Seattle's Northgate neighborhood to Lynnwood, Washington.

Caltrain's board has approved a $151 million operating budget for fiscal-year 2019, which begins July 1.

The budget includes $25.4 million from Caltrain's three partners: the San Mateo County Transit District, the Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority and the city and county of San Francisco. It also includes $1.2 million from a newly established revenue stabilization fund, Caltrain officials said in a press release.

The Association of American Railroads (AAR) on Friday sent a letter to numerous U.S. mayors highlighting the freight-rail industry's business and external relations efforts, including its economic impact, safety record and technological gains.

The letter cites freight railroads' ongoing work to install positive train control and references the AskRail app that was developed with the International Association of Fire Chiefs. Available to qualified first responders in the case of an emergency, AskRail can be used to learn the contents of rail cars involved in an accident.

The Port of Long Beach, California, last week released a draft environmental study on Toyota Logistics Services' proposed reconfiguration of its Pier B auto facility, including new power and fueling infrastructure.

The study found that the project would have no significant impacts on the environment. The public can submit comments on the draft study until July 10.

Brightline late last week announced the appointment of four new executives, including a former Amtrak officer.

The company named Jeff Swiatek chief financial officer; Ravneet Bhandari, chief commercial officer; Michael Cegelis, executive vice president of infrastructure development; and Jeff Schappert, senior VP of technology.

CN plans to spend about CA$130 million this year to bolster infrastructure in Manitoba, including an expansion of Symington Yard in Winnipeg.

The yard project calls for building or extending a dozen tracks to help improve the efficiency of handling rail cars from Canada and the United States, CN officials said in a press release.

The U.S. Department of Transportation on Friday announced plans to allocate nearly $1.5 billion in proposed grants for 26 projects through the new Infrastructure for Rebuilding America (INFRA) discretionary grant program.

INFRA grants "support the Trump Administration’s commitment to fix the nation’s crumbling infrastructure by creating opportunities for all levels of government and the private sector to fund various upgrades," USDOT officials said in a press release. Moreover, the grant program encourages innovative approaches to improve the necessary processes for constructing significant projects and increases accountability for projects that are completed, they added.