Railroad News

Brightline is a step closer to constructing a new rail line between Miami and Orlando, Florida.

The intercity passenger-rail company finalized bids last week from three contractors to lay rail lines between Orlando International Airport to existing Brightline track in Cocoa, according to a report by thenextmiami.com.

Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) yesterday rolled out a new earthquake early warning alert system.

Known as ShakeAlert 2.0, the system is designed to provide up to tens of seconds of advance warning that the ground will begin shaking. The alerts enable BART to slow or stop trains ahead of major seismic activity.

SunRail over the weekend conducted positive train control (PTC) testing along a 17-mile segment between Sanford and Winter Park, Florida.

The testing included uphill and downhill brake tests at defined speeds and grades to verify braking performance, SunRail officials said in a press release. The PTC test train consisted of two locomotives, four coaches and one cab car to simulate a fully-weighted SunRail train.

The Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) is in the "final chapters" of completing a final environmental impact statement (EIS) for the proposed replacement of Amtrak's Hudson River tunnels, FRA Administrator Ronald Batory told a U.S. Senate panel last week.

Batory spoke to the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation, which held a hearing to receive a status report on railroads' plans to implement positive train control (PTC).

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Last month, the Association of American Railroads (AAR) named Ian Jefferies to serve as the organization’s next president and chief executive officer. Currently AAR’s senior vice president of government affairs, he will take the reins Jan. 1, following the retirement of current President and CEO Ed Hamberger.

California's South Coast Air Quality Management District (SCAQMD) has presented its model community achievement award to Metrolink for its purchase of 40 locomotives that comply with the Environmental Protection Agency's Tier 4 emissions standard.

The new units reduce emissions by 85 percent and provide 57 percent more horsepower compared to older locomotives, Metrolink officials said in a press release.

By 2040, Caltrain could serve as many as 250,000 daily passengers, representing a 300 percent increase over the system's current ridership.

The announcement comes as the railroad develops its latest business plan. Caltrain staff found that "significantly increased" service could attract about 243,000 daily riders, up from 65,000 daily riders today, agency officials said in a press release.

Two men who helped make a difference in Michigan's rail industry will be inducted into the Michigan Transportation Hall of Honor later this month.

Robert Chaprnka and Philip Kazmierski will be among five people to be inducted at an Oct. 18 event, according to a press release issued by the Michigan Department of Transportation (MDOT).

The California High-Speed Rail Authority's board will host a meeting later this month to accept public comment on the final supplemental environmental impact report (EIR) for the Fresno-to-Bakersfield section of the state's high-speed rail system.

The authority announced late last week that the final supplemental EIR is now available. It represents a "comprehensive project-level review of the southern part of the section that runs between Poplar Avenue in Shafter and a station location in downtown Bakersfield," authority officials said in a press release.

The American Short Line and Regional Railroad Association (ASLRRA) has chosen Rockwell Collins to assist tenant short lines in creating safety documentation for positive train control (PTC).

The selection of Rockwell Collins is the next step in ASLRRA's plan to provide services to short lines equipping for PTC. Rockwell Collins will help smaller railroads create the documentation required to obtain permission to operate over a host's PTC territory, ASLRRA officials said in a press release.

The Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority's (MARTA) has approved a $2.7 billion transit expansion plan, marking the agency's largest transit investment in more than 40 years.

The "More MARTA Atlanta" program will fund 17 major transit projects in the Atlanta region, including construction of a new 22-mile light-rail system, two new transit centers, upgrades to existing rail stations and the introduction of bus-rapid transit service.

Each weekend this month, MTA New York City Transit (NYCT) will perform "critical work" to install communications-based train control (CBTC) signaling along the 7 rail Line.

Once installed by year's end, the CBTC system will enable the agency to provide more frequent and reliable service on the 7 Line, which currently serves about 500,000 riders each weekday between Queens and Manhattan.

CSX Corp. announced late last week that Chairman Edward Kelly III will retire in January after the company releases its fourth-quarter 2018 earnings.

The board elected John Zillmer chairman, effective upon Kelly's retirement.

CSX Corp. announced late last week that Chairman Edward Kelly III will retire in January after the company releases its fourth-quarter 2018 earnings.

The board elected John Zillmer chairman, effective upon Kelly's retirement.

GE Transportation and Australian iron-ore company Roy Hill yesterday commemorated two new pink ES44ACi locomotives in support of breast cancer patients and research. The units arrived at Roy Hill's rail terminal in Port Hedland, Western Australia, as countries around the world mark Breast Cancer Awareness Month. The new locomotives will join Roy Hill's existing fleet of 21 GE trains. They'll also be connected with 130 pink ore cars manufactured by China Railway Rolling Stock Corp. This is the first time GE has painted a locomotive pink, company officials said in a press release.

CIT Group Inc. has completed the sale of its European rail leasing business NACCO for net proceeds of $1.1 billion. The company's Paris-based operations and assets, including 11,000 rail cars, were sold to VTG Aktiengesellschaft in Germany, while its operations and assets in Germany and Luxembourg were sold to a consortium of buyers consisting of WASCOSA AG and a subsidiary of Aves One AG. A portion of the proceeds will be used to "optimize CIT's funding profile," including redeeming rail-car securitization in the United States, terminating the total return swap facility and repaying outstanding unsecured debt, company officials said in a press release.

The Maryland Department of Transportation's Maryland Transit Administration (MDOT MTA) today will begin redeveloping the Maryland Area Regional Commuter (MARC) Camden Station in Baltimore.

The project calls for expanding the station's waiting area and installing new ticket vending machines, service and information displays and an MDOT MTA police force substation.

The Tri-County Metropolitan Transportation District of Oregon (TriMet) has promoted Kimberly Sewell to executive director of its labor relations and human resources division.

For the past seven years, Sewell served as director of TriMet's legal services. Before that, she was TriMet's deputy general counsel.

The American Public Transportation Association (APTA) and Union International des Transports Public (UITP) last week signed an agreement to work together on mutual areas of interest, the organizations announced today.

UITP is an international network of 1,500 members, which include public transportation authorities, policy makers, research institutes and the transit supply and service industry.