Railroad News

The Federal Transit Administration (FTA) recently approved the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority's (Metro) request for a letter of no prejudice for the Purple Line extension’s third section between Century City and Westwood, California.

LA Metro now can proceed with a contract it awarded earlier this year to Tutor Perini Corp. for stations, trackwork, systems, testing and related section 3 activities, authority officials said in a blog. To be completed in 2026, section 3 of the subway extension will run 2.56 miles from the Century City Station to two stations in Westwood, one at Wilshire and Westwood boulevards and the other in front of the Westwood VA Medical Center.

Canadian Pacific reported first-quarter 2019 revenue of CA$1.77 billion grew by 6 percent and earnings rose about 3 percent during what company officials described as the one of the most challenging winters for the railroad in decades.

CP posted diluted earnings per share (EPS) of CA$3.09 (up 28 percent) and adjusted diluted EPS of CA$2.79 (up 3 percent). Operating income climbed 1 percent to CA$543 million, while net income rose 25 percent to CA$434 million versus the same period in 2018.

Norfolk Southern Corp. today reported first-quarter 2019 net income rose 23 percent year over year to $677 million, as a result of a 16 percent increase in income from railway operations and a boost in other income.

Diluted earnings per share jumped 30 percent to $2.51 compared with Q1 2018. The Class I logged operating revenue of $2.8 billion, a first-quarter record and a 5 percent year over year increase. NS attributed the revenue growth to a rise in revenue per unit, resulting from higher rates and fuel surcharges.

The Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA) yesterday announced the creation of a five-year initiative to reduce energy usage and greenhouse gas emissions.

As part of its Energy Action Plan, WMATA will invest $65 million from its capital budget by 2025 in energy efficient technology and modernized operations, according to a WMATA press release.

The Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) and National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) last week relaunched a $5.6 million safety awareness campaign urging people to take greater care at grade crossings.

In 2018, 270 people were killed at railroad crossings. Of those, 99 people died — a 10-year high — after the vehicle driver drove around lowered crossing gate arms, according to an FRA press release.

U.S. Class Is employed 144,948 people in mid-March, down 0.58 percent compared with mid-February's level and down 0.11 percent compared with March 2018's count, according to Surface Transportation Board (STB) data.

On a month-over-month basis, four of six employment categories posted decreases. They were: executives, officials and staff assistants, down 2.45 percent to 7,928 employees; professional and administrative, down 2.33 percent to 11,424; maintenance of equipment and stores, down 1.86 percent to 26,478; and transportation (train and engine), down 0.28 percent to 61,673.

The Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) yesterday issued a request for proposals to lease the roof space of seven MTA properties for solar power development. 

MTA will lease the real estate to companies that would use the roof space to install solar panels and generate electricity to sell back to the municipal grid, MTA officials said in a press release.

Union Pacific Railroad is "pausing" construction of its new $550 million Brazos Yard in Robertson County, Texas.

The Class I will shift remaining funds planned for the Brazos construction in 2019 to siding extensions on UP's Sunset route — which runs between Los Angeles and El Paso, Texas — and a block-swap yard in Santa Teresa, New Mexico, a move that will add to UP's network flexibility, Chief Operating Officer Jim Vena told analysts during a first-quarter 2019 earnings conference call last week.

Amtrak has appointed Dennis Newman executive vice president, planning and strategy, railroad officials announced yesterday.

Newman will be responsible for corporate planning and strategy, schedule and consist planning, services and host groups, and the railroad's participation in the Gateway program, Amtrak officials said in a press release.

The U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT) is soliciting applications for $900 million in fiscal-year 2019 funding through the Better Utilizing Investments to Leverage Development (BUILD) grants program, the department announced yesterday.

The grants for surface transportation infrastructure will be awarded on a competitive basis to projects that will have a significant local or regional impact, USDOT officials said in a press release. Grants can be used to support road, bridge, transit, rail, port or intermodal projects.

The San Diego Metropolitan Transit System (SDMTS) last week began rolling out its new generation of light-rail vehicles (LRV) on the UC San Diego Blue Line that operates between downtown San Diego and San Isidro, California, at the U.S.-Mexico border.

The S700 LRV is part of a 46-car order from Siemens that SDMTS placed in 2016, according to a SDMTS press release. 

Trinity Metro in Fort Worth, Texas, last week announced Jon-Erik Arjanen has been named vice president and chief operating officer for rail. 

Arjanen previously served as VP and general manager for Martin Marietta Materials subsidiary Rock & Rail LLC in Lakewood, Colorado, according to a Trinity Metro press release.

The Regional Transportation District (RTD) of Denver last week tested trains along the North Metro rail line, a future commuter-rail line under construction. 

“The testing process, referred to as systems integrated testing, evaluates all the elements [of the system] to verify that the construction produced a safe and reliable operating rail line,” said Chuck Culig, RTD North Metro rail-line project manager in a press release. 

Metra last week added two stations in Chicago to its capital program after Illinois state officials restored funding in recent state budgets.

The state released $20 million to build a station at Auburn Park on the Rock Island Line and $15 million to build a station at Peterson and Ridge Avenues on the Union Pacific North Line, according to a Metra press release.

The New Brunswick Southern Railway Co. (NBSR) has been fined CA$10,000 and required to pay CA$40,000 to implement safety research programs for two counts of violating Canada's Transportation of Dangerous Goods Act.

NBSR was charged in 2017 after an investigation revealed it did not comply with all applicable safety requirements by transporting dangerous goods that were not accompanied by the required documentation, according to a Transport Canada press release.

The Greenbrier Cos. has entered into an agreement to acquire the manufacturing business of American Railcar Industries from ITE Management LP for $400 million this year. The acquisition will diversify and broaden Greenbrier’s product offerings, according to a Greenbrier press release. Greenbrier will acquire two rail-car manufacturing facilities in Arkansas and five other operations that provide rail-car component and parts supply. These operations build hopper car outlets, tank car valves, axles, castings and rail-car running boards, among other ancillary railcar products, according to a Greenbrier officials.

Wireless Advanced Vehicle Electrification (WAVE) will partner with Cummins Inc., Schneider Electric, Utah State University and Total Transportation Services Inc. (TTSI) to develop, deploy and demonstrate a 500 kilowatt wireless inductive charger to support zero-emission battery electric drayage trucks at the Port of Los Angeles. The project was awarded $8.4 million in funding from the U.S. Department of Energy, according to a WAVE press release. The WAVE technology transfers power through the air from an embedded charging pad placed in the pavement to a receiving pad mounted on a vehicle's undercarriage. The fast charger will allow TTSI’s zero-emission drayage trucks to charge during normal cargo loading and unloading stops. WAVE will deploy and field test the system this year and next.