Railroad News

Sound Transit crews this week began construction of the first elevated section of the East Link light-rail extension in downtown Bellevue, Washington.

Crews placed two 117-foot precast girders, the first of a series that will form the base of the aerial guideway. When the girders are set, they'll support a cast-in-place concrete deck under the light-rail tracks and power system, agency officials said in a press release.

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After voters approved a number of local transportation initiatives in the November 2016 elections, many transit agency leaders felt energized about the future. Since then, however, some of their momentum seems to have sputtered out as agencies struggle to secure federal funding commitments for major expansion plans. On top of that, the Dec. 31, 2018, deadline to implement positive train control (PTC) looms on the horizon.

Former U.S. Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx has joined New York City-based developer Related Cos., where he will help build an infrastructure business.

The firm appointed both Foxx and transportation investment executive Andrew Right as managing partners of Related Infrastructure, "which will focus on transportation opportunities and businesses that drive efficiency and affordability for state and local governments," according to a company press release.

President Donald Trump yesterday met with U.S. Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao and House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee Chairman Bill Shuster (R-Pa.) to discuss the administration's potential infrastructure proposal, according to The Hill.

Both Chao and Shuster are expected to be key players in the president's plan to bolster the nation's infrastructure. The administration has proposed using $200 billion in federal "seed money," as well as permit and regulatory reform, to leverage $1 trillion worth of infrastructure.

Amtrak today marks the fifth anniversary of the return of passenger-rail service to Norfolk, Virginia.

In December 2012, the national intercity passenger railroad extended its Northeast Regional service to Norfolk. Amtrak, the Virginia Department of Rail and Public Transportation (DRPT) and the city of Norfolk partnered to bring passenger rail back to the city for the first time since 1977.

Association of American Railroads (AAR) Senior Vice President-Communications Patricia Reilly will leave the association at the end of the year to start a consulting business.

She will be succeeded by Kristin Smith, who was recently promoted to vice president-communications, according to an AAR press release.

“It is not even the beginning of the end. But it is, perhaps, the end of the beginning…”
— Winston Churchill on railroads facing up to IT challenges
(or maybe he said it after the second 1942 battle of El Alamein)
 

Transportation industry groups late last week asked U.S. Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao to delay by one year the deadline for state and local agencies to begin reporting on their transportation performance management measures.

The chief executives of the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO), the American Public Transportation Association (APTA) and the Association of Metropolitan Planning Organizations made the request in a Dec. 7 letter to Chao.

Infrastructure Ontario and Metrolinx late last week issued a request for qualifications (RFQ) for a team to build and finance infrastructure improvements on the GO Transit's Lakeshore West rail line.

The upgrades include track improvements and other work to enable increased service at the Exhibition Station in Toronto, as well as a rehabilitation of the Mimico Station on the line.

New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo has directed the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey (PANYNJ) to double its police presence at all facilities after a suspected terrorist set off a bomb yesterday in a subway passageway in Manhattan.

Yesterday morning, a man identified as Akayed Ullah detonated a pipe bomb attached to his torso as he walked between subway stations underneath the Times Square area. Ullah survived the incident, which authorities have said was an act of terrorism. The device failed to fully detonate, and Ullah was the only person seriously injured, according to local news reports.

Norfolk Southern Railway yesterday began operating trains across the new Portageville Bridge in Letchworth State Park in Castile, New York.

Under construction for the past two years, the new bridge spans the 235-foot-deep Genesee River gorge in the park. Known regionally as the Portage Bridge, the 945-foot-long steel arch structure will support economic growth and jobs across NS's southern tier in New York, according to a company press release.

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

Just like their Class I interchange partners, regionals and short lines expect to mine opportunities and confront challenges in 2018. One prime opportunity: carload growth.

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The coming year likely won’t be a barn-burner, but it won’t be a gut-puncher either when it comes to building and sustaining business, Class I chief executive officers believe.

Caltrain has appointed John Funghi chief officer of its modernization project, which calls for electrifying the railroad's corridor between San Francisco and San Jose, California.

An engineer, Funghi has "extensive experience" managing major construction projects in the public sector and as a construction contractor, Caltrain officials said in a press release.

ExxonMobil has partnered with retailer Grupo Orsan to open eight Mobile-branded service stations in Queretaro, Mexico. Fuel will be distributed by rail via two private terminals that are served by Kansas City Southern de Mexico.

The terminals are located in San Luis Potosi and San Jose Iturbide, Mexico.

The Alaska Railroad Corp. (ARRC) has named Clark Hopp chief operating officer effective Jan. 1.

Hopp is currently ARRC's vice president of engineering. As COO, he will succeed Doug Engebretson, who is retiring. The COO oversees ARRC's rail transportation, engineering, mechanical, safety and grant administration functions.

Imports at the United States' major retail container ports are projected to grow 1.5 percent this month over the same period last year, according to the latest Global Port Tracker report released by the National Retail Federation (NRF) and Hackett Associates.

Ports covered by the report are expected to handle 1.6 million 20-foot equivalent units (TEUs) this month. For October, ports handled 1.77 million TEUs, up 0.3 percent and up 5.9 percent year over year. November was estimated at 1.64 million TEUs, down 0.3 percent.

Norfolk Southern Railway trained 3,241 first responders this year on the company's hazmat safety train, a rolling learning lab that helps communities prepare for and safely respond to potential rail incidents.

The safety train visited 23 communities across 14 states during its 2017 tour, providing free training to firefighters, law enforcement, emergency management personnel and other first responders, according to an NS press release.