Railroad News

Positive train control (PTC) systems were operating on 92.4 percent of all federally required route miles as of Sept. 30, the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) announced yesterday in its latest report on railroads' PTC implementation status.

Based on the railroads' third-quarter PTC reports, the FRA reported that the majority of 42 railroads subject to the federal PTC mandate are operating PTC systems in revenue service or in advanced field testing, known as revenue service demonstrations, as of Sept. 30.

CN and the Teamsters Canada Rail Conference have reached a tentative contract agreement, ending a week-long strike of about 3,200 CN conductors and rail yard crews in Canada.

The agreement will allow CN employees to return to work at 2 p.m. local times today, with yard assignment to start at 6 a.m. local times Wednesday, CN officials said in a press release.

New Jersey Transit last week secured the final environmental permits required to begin work on the Delco Lead Storage and Inspection Facility in New Brunswick and North Brunswick, New Jersey, along the Northeast Corridor. 

The Delaware and Raritan Canal Commission granted its final approval for the $370 million facility that will be capable of storing 400 rail cars upon its completion in 2025.

The Sacramento Regional Transit District (SacRT) last week approved construction of a housing and retail complex on property next to the University/65th Street Transit Center, marking SacRT’s first transit-oriented development (TOD) property sale.

SacRT sold the parcel for $2 million to a joint venture of The Martin Group, Symphony Development and AECOM Canyon Partners. 

The Societe de transport de Montreal (STM) last week released its 2020 budget, valued at almost CA$1.6 billion, an increase of CA$140 million compared with 2019.

The agency will invest CA$48.6 million to increase service by 2.6 percent compared with 2019, STM officials said in a press release. 

The Chicago Transit Authority's (CTA) board last week approved a $1.57 billion operating budget for 2020 and a $5.1 billion budget for capital improvements in 2020-24.

Expenses for the 2020 operating budget are $18.4 million higher than the 2019 budget and $44.5 million higher than the 2019 forecast. The majority of the increase is due to rising pension, health insurance and workers’ compensation costs, according to the budget proposal document. 

Dave Genova, general manager and chief executive officer of the Regional Transportation District of Denver, has announced his retirement after nearly 26 years at the agency.

Genova notified RTD Chairman Doug Tisdale of his decision on Nov. 21, RTD officials said in a press release.

The Federal Railroad Administration last week announced an amendment to a proposed rulemaking regarding training, qualification and oversight for safety-related railroad employees.

The amendment calls for delaying the regulation's implementation dates for all contractors, and those short lines and regionals that are not intercity or commuter passenger railroads that register 400,000 total employee work hours annually or more, according to the agency's published notice in the Federal Register.

Bay Area Rapid Transit's (BART) board yesterday approved a $11.3 million contract to modernize  Powell Street Station in San Francisco and the construction of additional parking spaces at Antioch Station in Antioch, California.

Under the Powell Street Station contract, ProVen Management Inc. will reconfigure bathrooms, relocate ticket vending machines to the middle of the concourse, install LED lighting, install a glass fare barrier and relocate existing fare gates to improve passenger flow.

The U.S. Department of Labor HIRE Vets Medallion Program named Union Pacific Railroad a 2019 Gold Medallion recipient for its support of military veterans.

The department recognized the railroad’s operations management training program, employee benefits and the UP VETS employee resource group that connects service members to provide camaraderie and mentorship, UP officials said in a press release.

Texas Central yesterday announced an early contract involvement (ECI) agreement with Mass. Electric Construction Co. to define a future construction contract to build a high-speed train between Houston and Dallas.

The ECI will define the scope, execution plan, schedule and price for the future construction contract, which is expected to be signed later this year, Texas Central officials said in a press release.

Montana Rail Link (MRL) announced earlier this week that Derek Ollmann has been appointed president of the regional effective immediately.

A veteran of MRL's parent Washington Cos., Ollmann most recently served as president of Southern Railway of British Columbia (SRY), which also is part of Washington Cos.

The Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority (SEPTA) has appointed Pennsylvania Department of Transportation (PennDOT) Secretary Leslie Richards as the authority's new general manager.

Richards will join SEPTA in January, following the retirement of GM Jeffrey Knueppel, SEPTA officials said in a press release.

Trinity Metro earlier this week expanded its ZIPZONE first- and last-mile solution for TEXRail commuter-rail riders at Mercantile Center Station in Fort Worth, Texas.

ZIPZONE allows riders to book a shared vehicle on-demand through a mobile application while at the station or a bus stop within the service area. Riders can then monitor their route and check their estimated time of arrival.

Sound Transit last week announced it will create a new naming system for its Link light-rail service.

The new naming convention stems from rider objections to the agency using the phrase “red line” to broadly represent the light-rail service.