2/17/2017
Rail News: Amtrak
TransLink’s SkyTrain extension of the Millennium Line in Vancouver, British Columbia — which opened late last year — features Thales’ SelTrac system.Photo – Thales By
Railroad News
Feb
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Feb
17
Peter Gertler has rejoined HNTB Corporation as a senior vice president in a corporate and national strategic business development role, based in Oakland, Calif.
HNTB calls Gertler a nationally recognized rail and transit expert who brings three decades of infrastructure leadership to the firm's clients across the country. He previously worked at HNTB from 2004 to 2014 as rail and transit market service leader and principal project manager. During that time, he served as national thought leader and subject matter expert on high-speed and intercity passenger rail, as well as serving in leadership roles for projects with a total construction value of over $100 billion.
Feb
17
2/17/2017
Rail News: Safety
Feb
17
Rail News Home C&S February 2017 Rail News: C&S
TransLink’s SkyTrain extension of the Millennium Line in Vancouver, British Columbia — which opened late last year — features Thales’ SelTrac system.Photo – Thales ByThis email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. , Managing EditorA train-control technology that’s been employed in North America for more than 30 years is becoming a bit more high-tech. Categorized as communications-based train control (CBTC), it also is evolving into a signaling option for both passenger and freight railroads.CBTC is an automated system that employs continuous, bidirectional train-to-wayside communications to monitor a train’s location and ensure the safe operation of rail vehicles. It differs from conventional signaling by determining a train’s location independent of track circuits via transponder tags or beacons installed along a wayside.To date, CBTC is employed at a dozen or so passenger railroads and airport trams, while several others in the North American rail industry are considering whether to adopt it.To help more railroads meet today’s demanding operational challenges — including the addition of positive train control (PTC) — several suppliers are trying to enhance their CBTC systems for increasingly complex rail environments. In addition, others are working to develop and market their system for broader rail industry applications.Count Siemens among those pursuing system enhancements. The radio and Automatic Train Supervision (ATS) aspects of its Trainguard MT CBTC system are maturing to better provide the functionality transit agencies need, says Bill Conis, director of business development for Siemens Mobility.Trainguard MT is designed to operate at different train-control levels, handle trains with different train control equipment at the same time in the same network, and help reduce lifecycle costs by minimizing the number of outdoor elements and maximizing energy efficiency.Since there are growing concerns in the passenger-rail industry about computer hacking, Siemens recommends that transit agencies use a licensed radio band for their CBTC system instead of a proprietary radio — they need to “stay away from public Wi-Fi bands,” Conis says.“I think more agencies in the future will go with a licensed band. It’s not expensive and you don’t need a lot of bandwidth,” he adds. “It’s critical to ensure others won’t hack your system.”In addition, the ATS portion of CBTC now is much more sophisticated, with greater functionality than there was four or five years ago, he says. Recent enhancements include junction and work-zone management, a graphical user interface, and the ability to access a supervisory control and data acquisition system to determine if track is energized or de-energized.New York state of mindIn terms of ongoing CBTC projects, Siemens continues to work on equipment for MTA New York City Transit’s (NYCT) Queens Boulevard Line (QBL). The transit agency plans to eventually have CBTC systems in place on all of its 24 lines, says NYCT spokesman Kevin Ortiz.Slated to enter service in 2021, the QBL CBTC system will enable the agency to operate more trains per hour on the underground line between Queens and Manhattan and provide more reliable service.Last month, RailWorks Corp. subsidiary L.K. Comstock & Co. Inc. won a $223.3 million contract to install CBTC, upgrade signals and complete new systems work on the line.Siemens will provide 90 percent of the CBTC equipment for the QBL, with the other 10 percent supplied by Thales, says Conis.Siemens previously provided the CBTC system for MTA New York City Transit's Canarsie Line. Siemens
TransLink’s SkyTrain extension of the Millennium Line in Vancouver, British Columbia — which opened late last year — features Thales’ SelTrac system.Photo – Thales By
“We’re working together to test interoperability,” he says.
About a decade ago, Siemens provided the CBTC system for NYCT’s Canarsie Line. The company continues to count the agency as a customer in addition to pursuing CBTC projects at the Maryland Transit Administration and Bay Area Rapid Transit, which are in procurement phase, says Conis.
Feb
16
French Railways operator SNCF is busy connecting its entire rail system using IBM Watson Internet of Things (IoT) on IBM Cloud that the tech company said will allow SNCF to enhance customer experiences, operational efficiency and rail safety.
Thousands of specialized industrial sensors are being installed along SNCF's more than 18,600 miles of track, 15,000 trains and 3,000 stations in France. These sensors will securely send tens of thousands of data points to the IBM Watson IoT Platform on IBM Cloud all in real-time. IBM said by connecting the entire rail system and gathering insights from real-time information on data, SNCF will be able to manage its equipment and, thus, improve quality, security and availability of its trains.
Feb
16
The Transportation Safety Board of Canada (TSB) is calling for Transport Canada to develop strategies to reduce the severity of derailments involving dangerous goods, following its investigation into the derailment and fire of a Canadian National train near Gogama, Ontario in February 2015.
The TSB's recommendation asks the Department of Transport to "conduct a study on the factors that increase the severity of the outcomes for derailments involving dangerous goods, identify appropriate mitigating strategies including train speeds for various train risk profiles and amend the Rules Respecting Key Trains and Key Routes accordingly."
Feb
16
The Massachusetts Department of Transportation (MassDOT) has launched the search for a permanent CEO and general manager for the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA).
Massachusetts Gov. Charlie Baker made the announcement during an address before the Greater Boston Chamber of Commerce. Additionally, he recommended that the MBTA's Fiscal and Management Control Board (FMCB) exercise the two-year extension of its governance of the MBTA, as permitted by statute. Chief Administrator Brian Shortsleeve will continue to serve as acting general manager in the interim and will sit on the search panel.
Feb
16
Canadian Pacific Railway on Tuesday launched an awareness campaign highlighting the safety benefits of the preventative use of inward-facing cameras in the cabs of locomotives.
Feb
16
2/16/2017
Rail News: Safety
Feb
16
The head of Amtrak told lawmakers a new era of infrastructure investment is needed to ensure a healthy future for long-distance passenger rail travel in the U.S.
Amtrak President and CEO Wick Moorman urged a hearing of the Senate Subcommittee on Surface Transportation and Merchant Marine Infrastructure, Safety, and Security to invest in the carrier's infrastructure, fleet, and stations.
Feb
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Feb
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2/16/2017
Rail News: Passenger Rail
Feb
16
2/16/2017
Rail News: Federal Legislation & Regulation
Feb
16
2/16/2017
Rail News: Rail Industry Trends
Feb
16
2/16/2017
Rail News: Short Lines & Regionals
Feb
16
Rail News Home Passenger Rail February 2017 Rail News: Passenger Rail
As part of its modernization efforts, the MBTA will completely replace its Red Line subway fleet.Photo – CRRC MA Corp. — ByThis email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. , Associate EditorTwo years ago, a series of unforgiving winter storms pummeled the Boston area. In February 2015 alone, a record 64.8 inches of snow blanketed the region.The storms had a devastating effect on the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority's (MBTA) commuter-rail system, which reported an average on-time performance rating of 33 percent that month. The agency's locomotives sustained significant damage as they struggled through the snow.While crews worked to dig out the system, the MBTA ran trains on limited schedules and even shut down service entirely on some segments.After the February storms, it took weeks for the agency's commuter-rail service to return to normal. In the wake of the service disruptions, Beverly Scott resigned as the MBTA's general manager, while Massachusetts Gov. Charlie Baker formed a panel to perform a comprehensive review of the agency. He also established a fiscal management and control board to keep closer tabs on the MBTA's finances.The panel's findings painted a bleak picture of the agency, known locally as The T."The catastrophic winter breakdowns were symptomatic of structural problems that require fundamental change in virtually all aspects of the MBTA," the group's report stated.Those problems included ballooning operating expenses, poor customer service and a general lack of accountability. The MBTA also had failed to use available funding to pay for much-needed infrastructure repairs and improvements, according to the report.Since then, however, the MBTA has made progress on several fronts, including boosting on-time performance, cutting costs and modernizing its system. Although more work remains, agency officials and observers say The T is headed in the right direction."We've seen a series of improvements and also different ways of doing business," says Joseph Aiello, chairman of the MBTA's fiscal control board. "The commuter-rail system is not where we want it to be, but it's significantly better than it was when we stepped in."Staying on scheduleAnd indeed, the metrics are trending in the right direction: For 2016, the commuter-rail system's on-time performance came in at 89 percent across all lines. When adjusted for factors beyond the operator's control, such as trespassers, that figure rose to 94 percent.Hiring additional locomotive engineers and conductors has helped improve performance, says David Scorey, general manager of Keolis Commuter Services, which has a contract to operate The T's commuter-rail system. The company brought on 100 more conductors over the past year.Massachusetts Gov. Charlie Baker called for a comprehensive review of the MBTA after severe service disruptions in early 2015.Photo – MBTA
As part of its modernization efforts, the MBTA will completely replace its Red Line subway fleet.Photo – CRRC MA Corp. — By
For this particular railroad, there's a strong connection between on-time performance and the number of conductors and engineers on hand, Scorey says.
"That's because a lot of the operations are quite manual, so it's directly affected by having the right number of people," he adds.
Feb
15
2/15/2017
Rail News: Passenger Rail
Feb
15
2/15/2017
Rail News: Passenger Rail
Feb
15
The Association of American Railroads (AAR) today reported U.S. rail traffic for the week ending February 11, 2017.
Feb
15
2/15/2017
Rail News: Passenger Rail