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Aug
01

Norfolk Southern, Heartwood 3D develop employee-training simulator

Norfolk Southern Corp. is deploying 3D simulation-based training apps built in partnership with application developer Heartwood 3D.

The apps are part of the Class I's efforts to "reimagine an even safer, more effective employee-training program," NS officials said in a press release.

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Aug
01

Port of Vancouver USA dedicates freight-rail access project

Rail News Home Intermodal 8/1/2018 Rail News: Intermodal
(From left) Port of Vancouver Commissioner Jerry Oliver, Washington Gov. Jay Inslee, U.S. Rep. Jaime Herrera Beutler (R-Wash.), Port Commissioner Eric LaBrant, Port Commissioner Don Orange and Port CEO Julianna MarlerPhoto – Port of Vancouver USA

Port of Vancouver USA, Washington state and rail industry officials yesterday dedicated the West Vancouver Freight Access project, a $251 million investment in rail infrastructure at the port.

The decade-long project is designed to improve freight-rail movement through the port and along BNSF Railway Co. and Union Pacific Railroad mainlines connecting the Pacific Northwest to rail hubs in Chicago and Houston, and from Canada to Mexico.

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Aug
01

Rising Stars: Xiang Liu, Rutgers University

Xiang Liu, 32

Job description: Serves as assistant professor at the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering at Rutgers University. Also serves as director of the Rutgers Rail Program. Leads or coordinates rail-related research studies, teaches rail transportation and engineering, works with industry collaborators to solve critical problems, develops new technologies and nurtures the future workforce for the rail industry.

Education: M.S., Ph.D. in civil engineering with a focus on rail engineering, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (UIUC)

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Jul
31

Landsberg, Homendy confirmed to NTSB

The U.S. Senate last week confirmed Bruce Landsberg and Jennifer Homendy as members of the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB).

A general aviation safety advocate, Landsberg was confirmed as the board's vice chairman, while Homendy will fill an empty board seat.

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Jul
31

North Carolina ports report record traffic in FY18

[Editor's note: This story was updated at 3:45 p.m. CDT.]

During its 2018 fiscal year, North Carolina's Port of Wilmington moved a record number of containers while logging a 38 percent year-over-year increase in container traffic.

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Jul
31

RTA: Tie production, purchases rose in June

Rail News Home Maintenance Of Way 7/31/2018 Rail News: Maintenance Of Way
In June, tie production rose 1.4 percent to 1.54 million units and purchases soared 23.7 percent to 2.23 million units compared with May levels, according to the Railway Tie Association's (RTA) latest market report.On a year-over-year basis, production fell 14.2 percent, while purchases dropped 10.4 percent.Year to date, production totaled 8.57 million ties, down 22.1 percent compared with last year. Tie purchases through the first six months of 2018 are down 3.5 percent to 11 million units compared with the same period a year ago.Meanwhile, 12-month rolling totals through June show purchases are in an upward trend at a 1.4 percent annual rate. Production is trending lower and is down by a 25.3 percent annual rate, RTA reported.

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Jul
31

WMATA announces two labor agreements

Rail News Home Labor 7/31/2018 Rail News: Labor
One agreement provides higher wages in exchange for increases in employee contributions to health care.Photo – WMATA/Larry Levine

The Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA) and the AFL-CIO's Office of Professional Employees International Union (OPEIU) Local 2 have reached an agreement that provides wage increases in exchange for increases in employee contributions to health care.

Union members ratified the new five-year contract last week. WMATA's board will take up the new agreement in September, agency officials said in a press release.

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Jul
31

Nissan honors UP for transportation solutions, hurricane recovery

Rail News Home Union Pacific Railroad 7/31/2018 Rail News: Union Pacific Railroad
Union Pacific Railroad has received the 2018 Nissan North America Logistics Value to Customers Award for providing transportation solutions supporting a new model launch and its Hurricane Harvey recovery efforts in summer 2017."Union Pacific employees stepped up and provided creative solutions to help Nissan maintain important customer commitments," said Jason Hess, UP's vice president-premium, in a press release. "We will continue focusing on providing an excellent experience and finding new ways to help customers win in their marketplaces."The Class I is the largest automotive carrier west of the Mississippi River, transporting more than 70 percent of western U.S. rail automotive shipments. It operates or directly accesses more than 40 distribution centers, all six Mexico gateways, and West Coast and Mexican ports.

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Jul
31

Nissan honors UP for transportation solutions, hurricane recovery

Rail News Home Union Pacific Railroad 7/31/2018 Rail News: Union Pacific Railroad
Union Pacific Railroad has received the 2018 Nissan North America Logistics Value to Customers Award for providing transportation solutions supporting a new model launch and its Hurricane Harvey recovery efforts in summer 2017."Union Pacific employees stepped up and provided creative solutions to help Nissan maintain important customer commitments," said Jason Hess, UP's vice president-premium, in a press release. "We will continue focusing on providing an excellent experience and finding new ways to help customers win in their marketplaces."The Class I is the largest automotive carrier west of the Mississippi River, transporting more than 70 percent of western U.S. rail automotive shipments. It operates or directly accesses more than 40 distribution centers, all six Mexico gateways, and West Coast and Mexican ports.

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Jul
31

IANA to honor Manning with Silver Kingpin Award

The Intermodal Association of North America (IANA) will honor American Trucking Associations Chairman David Manning with this year's Silver Kingpin Award.

The award recognizes an individual's long-term contributions to the intermodal industry. Manning, who is head of Nashville, Tennessee-based TCW Inc., will receive the award Sept. 17 during the Intermodal Expo in Long Beach, California, IANA officials said in a press release.

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Jul
31

SunRail opens 17-mile extension

Rail News Home Passenger Rail 7/31/2018 Rail News: Passenger Rail
The extension runs from the existing Sand Lake Road station in Pine Castle, Florida, to a new terminus in Poinciana, Florida.Photo – SunRail

SunRail yesterday began passenger service along its 17-mile southern expansion into Orange and Osceola counties, Florida.

The extension, which includes four new stations, runs from the existing Sand Lake Road station in Pine Castle, Florida, to a new terminus in Poinciana, Florida. As part of the project, SunRail double-tracked most of its corridor and upgraded grade crossings.

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Jul
31

OIG: Amtrak's Washington Union Station projects face delays, cost overruns

Amtrak's improvement projects at Washington Union Station face risks of delays and cost overruns due to weaknesses in scheduling, cost estimates and project management, according to a new report by the Amtrak Office of Inspector General (OIG).

Amtrak agrees with all the OIG's recommendations for the station projects, an Amtrak spokeswoman said in an email.

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Jul
31

Rising Stars: Clayton Johanson, BNSF Railway Co.

Rail News Home People July 2018 Rail News: People

Clayton Johanson, 36Job description: Oversees the commuter-rail service BNSF operates on behalf of Metra. Also oversees customer-service training, schedule planning and performance measurementEducation: Bachelor of Science in transportation and logistics, Iowa State UniversityCareer path: After college, Johanson worked at intermodal marketing company Hub Group. He later joined BNSF as a trainmaster in a Chicago-area intermodal facility. He spent two years in the Class I's Chicago Command Center working with other railroads to coordinate interchange traffic. He has served in his current role since 2009.Nominator's quote: "Clayton brings a balanced experience of freight and passenger operations in the Chicago terminal. He has become a go-to person for others within BNSF for his knowledge of Chicago-area operations." — DJ Mitchell, BNSF Railway Co.Why did you go into railroading? I have loved trains since I was a kid. It is such a fascinating industry with a great history. Whether freight or passenger, railroads get to make a positive contribution to the communities we serve.What career accomplishment are you most proud of so far? Our special service for the 2016 Chicago Cubs World Series parade. I take the success of our service very seriously, and earlier in my career, I seriously underestimated the number of customers attending the Blackhawks parades. It felt like the whole world was on my shoulders and I needed a plan that would get people to Chicago. It took an incredible effort from people throughout BNSF and Metra, but we had enough trains to meet the demand.What do you hope to be doing or learning in five years? I would like to be in a capacity planning or service design role. Technology is rapidly changing the world railroads operate in. The industry will need to find new ways to serve our customers. I want to help create and build those offerings.Hobbies outside the office? Have I mentioned I like trains? I enjoy reading about the railroad industry and traveling to new places to see and photograph trains. I don't get to do it as much with my two young kids, but in a few years I'll get to bring them along. Rising Stars 2018 Award Winners:





 

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Jul
30

NJ Transit police partner with Nextdoor to boost community policing

Rail News Home Security 7/30/2018 Rail News: Security
Agency police will be able to use the app to geo-target Nextdoor users who live within a mile of commuter- and light-rail lines.Photo – NJ Transit's Twitter account

The New Jersey Transit Police Department late last week began using social networking app Nextdoor to boost community policing efforts.

Using the app's public agency platform, NJ Transit police will be able to geo-target Nextdoor users who live within a mile of commuter- and light-rail lines, as well as bus terminals.

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Jul
30

Amtrak's Michigan network adopts bike-friendly policy

Rail News Home Amtrak 7/30/2018 Rail News: Amtrak
Riders need to pay a $10 fee and make reservations to bring their bikes on board.Photo – Michigan Department of Transportation-West Michigan's Twitter account

All three of Amtrak's Michigan routes now accept bicycles on board.

Last week, the Wolverine Service became the last Michigan Department of Transportation-sponsored line to allow riders to bring their bikes on board. Wolverine trains provide three daily-round trips between Pontiac, Michigan and Chicago, via Detroit, Dearborn, Jackson and other stops in Michigan.

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Jul
30

FTA announces course on transit project planning

Rail News Home Federal Legislation & Regulation 7/30/2018 Rail News: Federal Legislation & Regulation
The National Transit Institute at Rutgers University will sponsor a course Sept. 18-20 on transit ridership forecasting, the Federal Transit Administration (FTA) announced last week.The course, which will use the FTA's Simplified Trips-on-Project Software package (STOPS), will be held in Miami, according to an FTA press release.The agency developed the course to provide training on STOPS and its use in  planning transit projects. FTA released STOPS in September 2013 as an optional ridership-forecasting method for sponsors of New Starts and Small Starts projects.The updated version of the course will feature STOPS version 2.5, scheduled for release in the next few months. Topics addressed during the course include how STOPS works; how to use STOPS for individual projects; and how to use ridership forecasts to prepare a narrative about the benefit of transit projects.For more information, click here.
 

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Jul
30

SMART TD's Lesniewski retires

John Lesniewski, vice president and successor president of the Transportation Division of the International Association of Sheet Metal Air, Rail and Transportation Workers (SMART TD), retired earlier this month.

A member of Chicago Local 1534, Lesniewski began his railroad career on the Baltimore and Ohio Chicago Terminal Railroad in October 1972, according to a SMART TD press release.

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Jul
30

LA Metro OKs bus-line crossing upgrades to prep for light-rail conversion

The Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority's (Metro) board late last week approved a plan to install up to 35 crossing gates along the San Fernando Valley's Orange Line bus rapid transit route.

The improvements are necessary to prepare the line for its eventual conversion to light rail, Metro officials said in a press release. Orange Line buses operate along an exclusive right of way between North Hollywood and Chatsworth, California.

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Jul
30

Oregon DOT, British Columbia, Microsoft pledge funds for high-speed rail study

Rail News Home High-Speed Rail 7/30/2018 Rail News: High-Speed Rail
The province of British Columbia, the Oregon Department of Transportation (ODOT) and Microsoft Corp. are contributing $750,000 to study high-speed rail service between Seattle and Vancouver, British Columbia.The new funds are in addition to the $750,000 the Washington State Legislature provided earlier this year to the Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT) for the study.The study builds on a 2017 preliminary analysis for a new 250 mph high-speed rail system in the Pacific Northwest. That earlier analysis laid the groundwork for the more "in-depth business case evaluation that WSDOT will undertake over the next year," department officials said in a press release. The service could provide one-hour trips between Seattle and Vancouver. The proposed line could help foster economic growth in the region and encourage "greater collaboration, deeper economic ties and balanced growth for years to come," said Microsoft President Brad Smith."We developed a vision for a better connected Cascadia mega region that will help our talented entrepreneurs, researchers and workers share knowledge and expand economic opportunity," added Washington Gov. Jay Inslee.WSDOT tapped WSP to complete the business case study. Other members of the study team include Steer Davies Gleave, EnviroIssues, Paladin Partners, and Transportation Solutions.In addition, a new committee will provide advice during the year-long technical analysis.

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Jul
30

RailTrends unveils 2018 conference agenda

RailTrends® today announced the agenda for its 2018 conference, which will be held Nov. 29-30 at the New York Marriott Marquis in New York City.

Confirmed participants include Association of American Railroads (AAR) President and Chief Executive Officer Ed Hamberger, who will be presented with this year's 2018 Railroad Innovator Award.

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