Railroad News

New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy last week signed an executive order to enforce New Jersey Transit social distancing policies to limit the spread of COVID-19. The order went into effect yesterday.

Under the order, NJ Transit rail riders are required to wear a mask and workers must wear gloves when in contact with riders. 

Amtrak yesterday suspended the Downeaster service between Boston and Brunswick, Maine, due to the COVID-19 pandemic. 

The suspension will remain in effect through at least April 30, Northern New England Passenger Rail Authority officials said in a press release.

A coalition of rail labor organizations is asking the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) to ensure freight railroads are recalling furloughed workers before seeking waivers from federal safety regulations.

In an April 9 letter to Federal Railroad Administrator Ronald Batory, the unions said there "must be a strong burden of proof for rail carriers to demonstrate that there is a true labor shortage" before requesting waivers from certain regulations due to a COVID-19-related worker staffing shortage.

The Port of Indiana-Mount Vernon has completed a $2 million capital improvement project geared toward attracting more cargo to the southwest Indiana port.

The project called for installation of a new concrete floor and an overhead gantry crane at the 40-year-old general cargo terminal facility, port officials announced late last week.

The Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority (MARTA) announced it will provide an additional 80 hours of paid sick leave to all employees affected by COVID-19, and a one-time payment of $500 to frontline employees.

MARTA last week modified its labor contract with the Amalgamated Transit Union (ATU) Local 732 to add the emergency paid leave. ATU Local 732 represents the majority of MARTA employees, agency officials said in a press release.

Metrolinx and Infrastructure Ontario last week selected Stantec to provide technical advice for the Hurontario light-rail project, which will connect Mississauga and Brampton, Ontario. 

As lead technical adviser, Stantec will provide design, construction and commissioning oversight of the 11-mile Hurontario light-rail line and a rail-car operation, maintenance and storage facility, Stantec officials said in a press release.

The Port of New York and New Jersey (PANYNJ) moved 55,595 containers by rail in February, a 12.2 percent increase over the same month last year and the best February for rail cargo at the port.

Total volume at the port was 579,124 20-foot equivalent units (TEUs) during the month, a 1 percent decrease compared with February 2019's level. Still, February's volume was the second best on record, PANYNJ officials said in a press release.

Metra last week released a new schedule for the Electric Line between downtown Chicago and southern suburbs that was made necessary by positive train control (PTC) implementation. 

The new schedule — which will take effect when the line is restored to full service following the COVID-19 pandemic — allows Metra crews more time to initialize the PTC system before each trip.

U.S. Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao and Federal Railroad Administrator Ronald Batory late last week formally announced $1 billion in federal funding for Amtrak to address the impact of the coronavirus pandemic.

Congress approved the funding last month as part of the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security (CARES) Act.

The Port of Long Beach has been awarded a $14.5 million federal grant to help fund the Terminal Island Wye Track Realignment Rail Project, which when completed will move trains in and out of the port faster, reduce locomotive idling and improve safety, port officials announced late last week.

The project will "dramatically" improve rail efficiency throughout the port complex, especially on Terminal Island, which is home to the California port's largest container terminal, Pier T, port officials said in a press release. The project calls for construction of new tracks and an enhanced triangular rail junction where long trains can be turned and staged.

The Greenbrier Cos. Inc. reported $623.8 million in revenue for the second quarter of its fiscal-year 2020, a decrease of $125.6 million from the prior fiscal quarter due to fewer deliveries. Adjusted net earnings were $15.3 million, or $0.46 per diluted share, excluding $1.7 million of integration related expenses from the American Railcar Industries acquisition. Greenbrier also received 8,500 rail car orders, valued at over $185 million, in the second quarter of FY2020.

The Govia joint venture has obtained an 18-month government contract to continue operating the Southeastern railway network in England. Govia — a joint venture between Keolis and Go-Ahead Group — has operated the high-speed rail route since 2006. 

The Delaware River Port Authority has awarded Skanska USA a $195 million contract to rehabilitate the Benjamin Franklin rail and vehicle bridge connecting Philadelphia to Camden, New Jersey. 

Construction on the 3,500-foot suspension bridge — which carries seven lanes of traffic and two rail lines — began in February and is scheduled to be completed in December 2024.

The Carrollton City Council in Texas earlier this week approved an agreement for the first building within the Dallas Area Rapid Transit (DART) Trinity Mills Station urban development.

The 125,000-square foot, six-story structure will serve as the marquee building within DART and the city's transit-oriented development (TOD), which involves 26 acres around Trinity Mills Station. 

The North Carolina State Ports Authority earlier this week announced the Port of Wilmington is ready to accept the world's largest container ships calling on U.S. East Coast Ports, now that the second phase of the port's turning basin expansion project has been completed.

The project widened the turning basin in the Cape Fear River form 1,400 feet to 1,524 feet. The additional feet allows 14,000 20-foot-equivalent unit (TEU) vessels to safely and efficiently turn around in the Wilmington Navigational Harbor, port authority officials said in a press release. 

More than two dozen Texas state lawmakers are asking the U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT) to end a private company's work on a Dallas-to-Houston high-speed rail line that would pass through the Brazos Valley.

In a letter to USDOT officials, the state representatives claim that Texas Central Partners, the company that has proposed the rail line, "simply does not have the financial resources required or expertise employed to continue with this project," The Eagle news outlet reported yesterday.

Estimates indicate that imports last month at major U.S. retail container ports dropped to their lowest level in five years, according to the Global Port Tracker report released this week by the National Retail Federation (NRF) and Hackett Associates.

Imports are projected to remain significantly below normal levels through early summer, as the coronavirus pandemic continues, NRF officials said in a press release.

Members of the Delaware General Assembly yesterday introduced a resolution to add regional rail service options between Newark, Delaware, and Perryville, Maryland.

Co-sponsored by State Rep. Ed Osienski (D-Newark) and State Sen. Stephanie Hansen (D-Middletown), the resolution would direct the Delaware Department of Transportation (DDOT) to work with Amtrak and surrounding states to strengthen regional rail service in the corridor, Delaware Public Media reported.

The impact of the coronavirus pandemic on U.S. freight-rail traffic is growing, with the number of carloads and intermodal containers and trailers transported during the week ending April 4 tumbling 15.9 percent to 429,095 units compared with volumes logged in the same week a year ago, according to the Association of American Railroads (AAR).

Total carloads for the week plunged 16.2 percent to 210,911 units, while intermodal volume dropped 15.7 percent to 218,184 containers and trailers.

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Governments, transit-rail agencies and railroads have been spending the past several weeks responding to the coronavirus pandemic.