Railroad News

The Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority (MARTA) earlier this week launched a yearlong pilot program with HOPE Atlanta to find solutions for people that are homeless and taking refuge in rail stations.

HOPE Atlanta is a non-profit organization that offers housing, social services, substance abuse counseling and employment services.

Metra yesterday announced it has completed renovations on Hazel Crest Station on the Metra Electric commuter-rail line in Chicago.

The station is now fully compliant with the accessibility requirements of the Americans with Disabilities Act, and features a new street-level depot, a waiting area and a restroom, Metra officials said in a press release. 

A coalition of labor and passenger-rail groups has written to the Surface Transportation Board (STB) in support of Metra's request for an injunction to require Union Pacific Railroad to continue operating commuter-rail service on three Chicago-area rail lines.

Filed Aug. 18, the coalition's statement notes that the STB determined earlier this month it would not rule on Metra's injunction request, at least until a U.S. District Court rules in a legal case between the two railroads. Metra granted UP's request to hold the injunction proceeding in abeyance. 

The Federal Transit Administration (FTA) yesterday announced it has launched an online peer-to-peer discussion forum for transit agencies to exchange information and practices during recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic.

The FTA COVID-19 Recovery Discussion Forum provides an opportunity for transit agency officials to ask questions and request and share resources with the transit community during and after the FTA's COVID-19 Recovery Listening Sessions, administration officials said in a press release.

Nicole Teska, 38
Audit partner
Bowers & Co. CPAs

Nominator’s quote: “As an audit partner at Bowers & Co., Nicole handles many of our short-line railroad clients. She has attended Railroad Day on the Hill on multiple occasions to participate in face-to-face lobbying meetings with Congress members. According to Jim Bowers, partner-in-charge of our firm’s Railroad and Transportation Industry Group and past chairman of the ASLRRA Finance and Administration Committee: ‘Nicole has been an instrumental part in the growth of our short-line railroad group.’” — Erin Wisneski, Bowers & Co.

The Orange County Transportation Authority (OCTA) yesterday opened a survey to begin collecting public suggestions on how the authority can improve 12 rail stations in Orange County, California, to better shield riders from weather conditions. 

The survey — which will be open through September —  is a part of a larger Rail Infrastructure Defense Against Climate Change study to identify challenges and opportunities for improving service, operations and infrastructure along Orange County’s 25-mile rail corridor and ways to better withstand severe weather conditions.

The San Joaquin Regional Rail Commission (SJRRC) yesterday began the environmental review process for the proposed Stockton Diamond Grade Separation Project, which will identify concepts to separate two rail lines at California’s most congested at-grade railway junction in downtown Stockton.

SJRRC is working with BNSF Railway Co. and Union Pacific Railroad on the project. The intersection causes significant delays for both freight and passenger rail that use the lines, SJRRC officials said in a press release.

Sound Transit yesterday announced that Atkinson Construction crews have completed the civil construction of the light-rail tunnel that will connect the East Main and Bellevue Downtown stations when the East Link light-rail extension in Seattle begins operating in 2023.  

By adapting to different ground conditions, the contracted crews were able to complete the tunnel excavation five months earlier than expected, which helped keep the project on schedule despite delays due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Sound Transit officials said in a press release.

Class Is employed 117,230 people as of mid-July, down 0.95 percent from June and down 16.68 percent from July 2019 levels, according to Surface Transportation Board data.

Five out of six employment categories logged month-to-month decreases. They were: maintenance of way and stores, down 2.18 percent to 19,550 employees;  maintenance of way and structures, down 1.44 percent to 29,931; professional and administrative, down 1.25 percent to 10,381; transportation (other than train and engine), down 1.17 percent to 5,075; and executives, officials and staff assistants, down 0.92 percent to 7,521.

The South Dakota State Railroad Board yesterday authorized the South Dakota Department of Transportation (SDDOT) to finalize a purchase agreement with the Dakota and Iowa Railroad (D&I) to acquire the state-owned Sioux Valley Line.

The Sioux Valley Line is located between Canton and Elk Point with a spur to Beresford. The D&I is a subsidiary of L.G. Everist Inc., SDDOT officials said in a press release.

For a second consecutive week, U.S. railroads reported an increase in intermodal volume — a small bright spot in the nation's still-declining freight-rail traffic compared with year-ago figures, according to Association of American Railroads (AAR) data.

The railroads posted 278,210 containers and trailers for the week ending Aug. 15, a 1.9 percent increase compared with the same week in 2019, AAR reported in a press release.

The Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) yesterday announced major progress on implementing positive train control (PTC) on MTA Long Island Rail Road (LIRR) and MTA Metro-North Railroad lines. 

The progress reaffirms both New York railroads will be in full PTC operations by the end of 2020, a federally mandated deadline, MTA officials said in a press release. 

Jacob Street, 37
Head of automated rail
Siemens Mobility Inc.

Nominator’s quote: “Jacob leads the Siemens office solutions group, helping the railroads implement software and PTC tools to operate more efficiently.” — Mike Nolan, Siemens Mobility

TRAC Intermodal announced that President and Chief Executive Officer Jennifer Polli will leave the company on Sept. 1. TRAC did not announce the reason for the departure. Daniel Walsh, formerly president of the Last Mile business at XPO Logistics, will replace Polli as president and CEO. Polli joined the company in 2012, and was promoted to CEO in 2018. She lead the company through its sale to Stonepeak Infrastructure Partners earlier this year and guided the company through unprecedented challenges brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic, TRAC officials said in a press release.

Alstom has supplied, tested and commissioned part of Cairo Metro Line 3 Phase 4 from Heliopolis to Adly Mansour, Egypt. In 2015, the National Authority for Tunnels (NAT) awarded Alstom, as a consortium leader, a contract to provide system and subsystem design, installation and commissioning for signaling, centralized control and telecommunication systems for the Line 3 Phase 4A project. NAT also awarded Alstom, as a member of the G3 Power Supply Consortium, a contract for the design, supply, installation and commissioning of a power traction system. In 2017, an Egyptian joint venture serving as the main contractor awarded Alstom a sub-contract to extend the Cairo Metro Line 3 with additional four stations and a main depot. Meanwhile, Thales provided telecommunication and integrated supervision systems for Cairo Metro’s Line 3 Phase 4B.

Metrolinx on Sept. 5 will increase its GO Transit rail service to accommodate an anticipated uptick in demand as Ontario riders return to school and the workplace during the COVID-19 pandemic.

GO Transit is resuming rush-hour service on all lines, returning the Stouffville weekend train and reintroducing four trips between the West Harbour GO to Union stations. 

The Capitol Corridor passenger-rail service in California last month continued to log ridership levels far below average due to the ongoing impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Last month, the Capitol Corridor carried 18,382 passengers, down 87.5 percent from July 2019's count. Revenue fell 87.3 percent to $400,636, Capitol Corridor Joint Powers Authority (CCJPA) officials said in a monthly performance report.